Russian star Anna Netrebko sues Met Opera for $360K for dropping her after Ukraine invasion
A Russian soprano — once among the biggest stars in the Metropolitan Opera — is suing the company for alleged breach of contract, defamation and other violations when they dropped her after the start of Moscow’s war on Ukraine.
Anna Netrebko, 51, who had voiced pro-Kremlin views over the years, said the Met Opera’s decision to cut ties left her with ”severe mental anguish and emotional distress” and tanked her reputation, according to the lawsuit filed Friday in Manhattan federal court.
In the $360,000 suit against the company and its general manager Peter Gleb, Netrebko claims she was used “as a scapegoat in their campaign to distance themselves from Russia and to support Ukraine.”
The opera singer accused Gleb and the Met of encouraging protests against her performances, which were set to be paid $17,000 per show, the suit states.
Netrebko also claims that because of Glen and the Met, her chances of being hired at other US opera houses or businesses were nonexistent, forcing her to sell her city apartment at a loss.
The suit claims Netrebko not only faced discrimination in the US, but also in Russia following the Met’s attempts to have her issue a public statement opposing the invasion of Ukraine.
While the company claimed it was unsuccessful in changing her stance, Netrebko put out a statement calling on Russia to end the war, allegedly sparking retaliation against the singer who once received the People’s Artist of Russia honor from President Vladimir Putin.
“Russian politicians have denouncePd Netrebko, Russian theater companies have canceled contracts with her, Russian audiences have criticized her on her social media channels and in the Russian press, and Netrebko and her family and friends in Russia have suffered the risk of harm, retaliation, and retribution by the Russian government,” the suit reads.
The suit states the ordeal has led to Netrebko’s “depression, humiliation, embarrassment, stress and anxiety, and emotional pain and suffering.”
In a statement, the Met said “Ms. Netrebko’s lawsuit has no merit.”
In February, Netrebko won a legal round against the Met in a grievance filed by the American Guild of Musical Artists, with an arbitrator ruling the company violated the union’s collective bargaining agreement when it canned three of her shows.
She was awarded $209,103.48 for the lost revenue from the canceled deals.
Netrebko debuted at the Met Opera on Feb. 14, 2002, when she starred in Sergei Prokofiev’s “War and Peace.”
Since her start, she has appeared in 192 performances. Her last show was at a New Year’s Eve bash on Dec. 31, 2019.
She also made a cameo appearance as herself in the 2004 Disney film “The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement.”
