In an online story called Peter Gelb on the ins and outs of the Met’s new cinema season, Limelight spoke to the General Manager of New York’s Metropolitan Opera about the new Met in HD season, opening in Australia cinemas on 19 November. As part of the interview, Peter Gelb spoke about Russian soprano Anna Netrebko, who was originally scheduled to perform in François Girard’s production of Lohengrin, but withdrew, and why Netrebko and the Met have parted ways.

Anna Netrebko

Anna Netrebko. Photo © Clive Arrowsmith

Anna Netrebko’s General Manager, Miguel Esteban, has requested a right of response to certain statements that appear in the article, as follows:

“Regarding the quote by the subject of the article, ‘I think she would have had a great success, although we would have fired her anyway! [laughs]’: An employer fires an employee. The Metropolitan Opera could not have fired Anna Netrebko since the agreements between them include the clause, ‘It is specifically agreed and understood that nothing contained in this agreement shall constitute The Met the employer of Singer or Singer its employee.’ On the other hand,...