ENO

Catching up with yesterday's events. This is copied from a post to Cafe Mozart, an online discussion group I've been a member of for over twenty years:

ENO's new season opens early in October with the tempting prospect of four operas based on the Orpheus myth - Orpheus & Eurydice, Orpheus in the Underworld, Orphee, and The Mask of Orpheus. All the way from Offenbach to Birtwistle. A few months ago I booked the whole ten-opera season.

That, of course, was before my cancer diagnosis. I shall be in either radiotherapy or chemotherapy (or rest periods between the two) throughout the entire season. So I had to make a decision about how capable I'm likely to be of making the journey into central London and back, and appreciating the performances (as well as not throwing up over the unfortunate person in the seat in front, if the chemo should affect me that way...)

I decided that the only fair thing to do would be to forego the entire season. ENO's Box Office policy, although they are always very helpful when you want to change a date, is a flat "No Returns".

I wrote a letter to the Chief Executive Stuart Murphy, explaining the situation and asking if there was any way, under the circumstances, that ENO could accept my tickets back in exchange for a full refund (and the hope that someone else would be able to use them in my place).

Today I had a couple of emails confirming a full refund and another from the Head of Box Office Services:

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Dear Ian
 
Thank you for your letter which Stuart has passed on to me.   We are so sorry to hear about your illness.

We will of course refund you.  Indeed I have already refunded the first booking (£315) straight on to your credit card.
For various boring technical reasons the second one (£35) will have to be a cheque refund as we no longer have the connection to the original card payment.
I’ve requested this from our finance team and hopefully it will be with you in the not too distant future.
 
With best wishes from us both for a speedy recovering.
 
Barbara

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Those came in while we were at Springfield Hospital for radiotherapy. More than good enough, you might have thought. But when we got home there was a message on the answering machine - a personal and quite lengthy call  from Stuart Murphy.

Ten out of ten to ENO. They have absolutely repaid my loyalty to the company over the last several years. Couldn't have been better.