Madrid, Feb. 25 (Agencia EFE) .- An investigation by the US opera union today confirmed the allegations of sexual harassment and abuse of power made public six months ago by about twenty women against Plácido Domingo , who shortly before knowing this Report has taken responsibility for their actions and has apologized.
The tenor from Madrid (1949) made sexual advances and flirted in and out of work, "inappropriate behavior" that the US opera union considers "proven" in an investigation that began in September last year, and whose conclusion has released today.
On August 13, nine women anonymously, except one, said in statements to the AP news agency that Sunday had harassed them in the 1980s. They were joined by another eleven - ten of them unidentified - the September 5.
The union of musical artists, the American Guild of Music Artists (AGMA), notes in its statement today that "many of the witnesses" with whom they have spoken have "justified" with their fear of being "retaliated" the fact of not having denounced what happened before and adds that his governing council has accepted all the facts of the report and that they will take "appropriate actions".
https://twitter.com/AGMusicalArtist/status/1232349178443042817?s=20
According to several US media in that report, which has not been made public, the testimony of 27 women who accuse Domingo of sexual harassment and abuse of power while leading the Washington National Opera (1996-2011) and of that of Los Angeles (2003-2019).
Shortly before the AGMA communiqué was made public, Domingo sent one to EFE in which he accepted "full responsibility" for his actions, after "several months" of reflection, and apologized "for the pain caused" to all the women who They have accused him.
"I have taken some time during the last months to reflect on the accusations that several partners have made against me. I respect that these women finally felt comfortable enough to speak and I want them to know that I really regret the pain I caused them. I accept full responsibility for my actions, "says the singer, director and manager.
In a first statement, in August, the tenor said that he had always believed that they were "consensual and welcome" relationships, that the testimonies referred to "thirty years ago" and that they were "deeply worrying and inaccurate."
"Now" understands that "some women may have been afraid to express themselves honestly because of the concern that their careers would be adversely affected."
"While that was never my intention, nobody should feel that way," adds the artist, who declares himself "committed" to a "positive change in the opera industry so that no one else has the same experience."
"It is my fervent wish that the result will be a safer workplace for everyone in the opera industry, and I hope that my example in the future will encourage others to follow it," he adds.
AGMA's investigation is in addition to the one that it also activated after the denunciations, and of which the results are not yet known, the Los Angeles Opera, of which Domingo was its artistic director until last October 2, when he decided to resign to "not harm the institution".
Since the denunciations were published, which have not been substantiated until now in a court, the theaters of the United States were annulling all their actions, which have only been kept outside that country.
European theaters maintain, for the moment, the performances of Domingo, which has performances planned in Spain in the month of May at the Festival de Úbeda (south of the country), at the Teatro de la Zarzuela and at the Teatro Real de Madrid.
At the moment, the Real - where it is announced from May 9 with "La Traviata" - and the Zarzuela - on May 14 - have declined to demonstrate.
In his defense, artists such as the Spanish singers Paloma San Basilio and Ainhoa Arteta came out at the time, who on Tuesday did not demonstrate.
The Palau de les Arts in Valencia (eastern Spain) has reported today that they will "study" their relationship with the artist, who collaborates in the selection of the students of the Training Center to which he gives his name, in "coherence with the values ethics of the institution ", and the left-wing group Compromís has asked the regional parliament to change the name of the center.
The Staastoper in Hamburg maintains its participation in "Simon Boccanegra" as of April 22, according to EFE its press officer, Michael Bellgardt.
The KKL Luzern of Lucerne, the Palace of the Republic of Minsk, the Bolshoi Theater, the Vienna Staatsoper or the Verona Arena are the other scenarios that are scheduled for the coming months. EFE
