San Francisco Opera is heading into its fall season with contract negotiations for many of its artists and production crews as yet unresolved. The company’s orchestra is currently negotiating, with chorus, dancers and production staff next up… “The labor negotiations, like everything else at San Francisco Opera, are shadowed by the company’s financial troubles. A 2002 operating deficit of $7.6 million forced substantial cutbacks. Two productions were eliminated from the 2003-04 season, and the annual operating budget was slashed by 25 percent.”