NYC NOW - May 8, 2023: Midday News

Episode Date: May 8, 2023

New Jersey political boss George Norcross relinquishes Democratic Party leadership, MTA reveals their Manhattan congestion pricing plan, And finally, WNYC's Kerry Shaw highlights unsung hero Maria D'Amato, a Metropolitan Opera chorister, and her significant contribution to 175 annual performances.

Welcome to NYC now. Your source for local news in and around New York City from WNYC. It's Monday, May 8th. Here's the midday news from Michael Hill. On WNYC, one of New Jersey's most powerful political bosses, George Norcross tells Politico he's giving up his leadership of the Democratic Party. Nancy Solomon reports. George Norcross runs the political machine in South.

Jersey that extended its power statewide over the last 20 years. He controlled the largest voting block in the legislature and key elected officials across the southern part of the state. He's come under scrutiny for $1.1 billion in tax breaks connected to him in varying ways. He defends the tax breaks as critical to the economic development of Camden. And he says, stepping down from politics has nothing to do with any of the investigations into the Camden tax breaks. Norcross does not hold any official political position, so it's not immediately clear what stepping away means. The MTA may release a final version of a congestion pricing plan this week. This new version will likely include how the agency will address residents enduring concerns, such as increased truck

traffic in the Bronx. Once released, the public has 30 days to review the plan before federal officials give the final stamp of approval. The MTA must then decide on how much to charge drivers. that's a major point of contention. New Jersey officials say they'll take legal action if the tolls are unfair to drivers from the Garden State. MTA officials say they hope to have congestion pricing up and running by 2024. Seventy-three and mostly sunny now. Mostly sunny today and 76 for a high. We cool off tomorrow to 66 with a slim chance of showers under mostly cloudy skies Wednesday, back to the 70s and Thursday even warmer near 80. Right now, 73 and mostly sunny. If you've ever had a job where you did a lot of the work but didn't get much credit,

then you can probably relate to Maria DiMato. She's one of 74 choristers at the Metropolitan Opera, where she sings in about 175 performances a year. And yet she has been snubbed even by opera buffs, who sometimes only have eyes for the stars. WNYC's Kerry Shaw spent the day at the Met to learn more about this unsung hero. Recently, after she performed in Lesir Damore, Maria Damado had to force her way past the Mets superfans. They were waiting by the stage door to see the stars.

I have had people approach me thinking that I was one of the principals and want my autograph, and I'm like, do you really? Who do you think I am? And they totally thought I was somebody else. They did not want, you know, Maria D'Amato of the chorus. The thing about the singers in the Mets chorus is that many of them are good enough to have solo careers. and yet their job is to essentially make their voices disappear, to blend into one sound. Their coach is the legendary chorus master, Donald Palumbo.

Everyone calls him maestro. It's my job to figure out how to take different voices and get the collective to sound like one voice. And I have a very specific sound that I like to get from a group. It's maybe darker and richer and maybe less, brassy than a lot of choral directors may opt for, but I have the voices here at the Met that allow me to do that. To be a chorister is a grueling job. They work long days, weekends, and many holidays.

I shadowed Demado on a 13-hour day that included three operas in two languages. She was in rehearsals for Don Giovanni and then the magic flute until dinner time. Then she took a break and came back to perform in. Lelizier Damore. During one of her breaks, Damado meets up with two of her fellow choristers in the dressing area. It's like the lady's locker room. This is where the magic happens. It's our home away from home and we have to do everything. Eat, pump, study, sleep. Everything happens in this little cubby. She shows me her heat wrap, which is a heating pad that goes around her neck and shoulders. So I plug it in and it gets nice and toasty.

And a lot of times I have a ton of tension in my shoulders. Her friends are nodding. Metsos soprano Christina Thompson-Anderson says she can relate. The costumes are heavy, and the corsets are tight, and we're standing on rakes and in heels and different shoes that aren't shoes that we would necessarily choose. Yeah, it just really, it takes a toll on your body and your alignment. Each chorister has a desk with a mirror by their lockers. That's where they organized their lives outside of opera.

They planned carpools or pay bills. Maria's area is dotted with family photos. There are pictures of her daughter Natalie, who was on stage with Maria before she was even born. Maria sang in Turando at the Met up until two weeks before her due date. I climbed this ladder at nine months pregnant and got on this platform, which then was raised up by hydraulics, and we are super high above the stage, maybe like 20 feet above the stage.

She says it was something she was very proud to do. But it wasn't easy. My legs and feet were so swollen just from being on my feet and being so physical for so many hours. That was insane. If all this sounds like a bad deal, Maria says it's not. Choristers tend to keep this gig until they retire. It's a rare thing, a stable opera job with a pension in New York City. And there's no travel.

There's no schlepping to Sarasota or Amsterdam for a show. Even though this job is crazy and so busy, I still get to go home every night and I get to be with my family, even if it's just to, you know, kiss them good night and say, well, mommy's got to go again. On this night, she goes home for 44 minutes to eat a quick dinner with her kids and her husband. Her daughter Natalie just turned five, and her son Mateo is 14 months old. I love you. Then, she took the one train back. to work. At the Met, people are in fancy outfits, ready for their night at the opera.

Damado says she sometimes likes to enter through the front door. The buzz in the air reminds her that there's magic to her job. Just because it's the hundredth time we've sung a piece or even more, you know, it's the first time for somebody else. Carrie Shaw, WNYC News. Thanks for listening. This is NYC Now from WNYC. Be sure to catch us every weekday, three times a day, for your top news headlines and occasional deep dives.

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