In a statement, Opera Australia said that ticket revenues had risen in 2005 by 13 percent to a total of A$32.8 million. Paid attendance for its mainstage productions in Sydney and Melbourne topped 305,000.

Chief executive Adrian Collette attributed to positive results to "inventive programming, the quality of our performances, and intelligent marketing."

"A personal highlight for me was the addition of music director Richard Hickox to our artistic leadership team," he added. Hickox replaced the acclaimed but controversial Simone Young, who was dismissed because of the high cost of the productions she planned for the company, at the beginning of 2005.

The company also noted that the struggling Australian Opera and Ballet Orchestra posted a deficit of A$1.5 million in 2005. "The lack of certainty regarding future [federal] funding of the AOBO is a source of ongoing concert for Opera Australia," the statement read.