§ 426. Opera houses. Real property owned by any corporation whose
certificate of incorporation is approved by the commissioner of
education and which is organized to sustain, encourage and promote
musical art and to educate the general public in good music, provided
moneys donated to such corporation as a result of popular or general
appeal shall have been used for the acquisition thereof and provided
further that such real property shall be maintained for the production
of opera and for furthering the purposes for which such corporation was
organized by providing operatic and musical performances and other
related educational activities, shall be exempt from taxation and exempt
from special ad valorem levies and special assessments to the extent
provided in section four hundred ninety of this article, as provided for
corporations in section four hundred twenty-a of this article although a
portion thereof is leased for public performances, opera, ballet,
concerts, lectures, meetings, graduation exercises or other educational
or non-commercial uses for the purposes of income, if such income is
necessary for and actually applied to the maintenance and support of
such corporation.