Opera San Jose (California) took a risk in expanding its operations last year, and it’s proved a success. “It was a financial balancing act. The company moved from the 520-seat Montgomery to the 1,100-seat California, adding $1.6 million to its $2.8 million budget. It still produced four operas, but dropped the number of performances of each from 15 to eight or, for ‘Carmen,” nine. It also increased ticket prices by an average of $27 — and sold more tickets than expected.”