Russian-Austrian opera singerAnna Netrebko sued the Metropolitan Opera in New York, from which she was removed following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, demanding $360,000 in damages to the theater and its director. The work responded in a statement, stating that the lawsuit has no basis. The BBC reports.
Netrebko has repeatedly supported Russian President Vladimir Putin, but condemned the invasion of Ukraine after pressure from the Met. In 2014, she donated money to a theatre in the rebel-controlled city of Donetsk in eastern Ukraine and was photographed holding a pro-Russian flag.
After Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, she was urged to speak out against Putin and the war, but never spoke out clearly on the subject. The lawsuit was filed yesterday in Manhattan District Court alleging, among others, defamation, breach of contract and seeking hundreds of thousands of dollars in damages for lost performance and trial costs. The 51-year-old singer says the Met has caused her "severe mental distress and emotional distress," including "depression, humiliation, embarrassment, stress and anxiety, pain and emotional distress." She also claims that Mete and its director "damaged Netrebko's relationship with the public, including by encouraging protests against her performances," and that her criticism of the war caused her to lose contracts with Russian theater companies.
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