Salt Lake’s Utah Symphony & Opera has taken a step back from financial ruin. “In March, managers acknowledged that US&O had run up deficits of $3.4 million after the merger of the Utah Symphony and Utah Opera in 2002. Administrators used private donations to keep US&O from dipping into endowment funds. The US&O board responded with a three-year plan to get back on track. US&O has made progress in cutting costs and raising revenues. The organization ended fiscal year 2005 on Aug. 31 with a deficit of $312,000, beating a target of $571,000 in the red. Revenues from contributions were $6 million, squeaking in at just $500 more than the organization’s goal.”