Scandal-hit Placido Domingo 'happy' to sing in Moscow
Opera singer Placido Domingo on Tuesday spoke of his joy over a forthcoming Moscow concert as the famed Spanish tenor faces multiple sexual harassment claims. Giving a press conference at Russia’s TASS state news agency, Domingo avoided mentioning the scandal which has seen him resign from the Los Angeles Opera and withdraw from all future performances at New York’s Metropolitan Opera. Asked by AFP during a photo-call how the allegations would affect his legacy, the 78-year-old said simply: “It is under investigation, it is not possible to talk.” Flanked by Russian star conductor and viola player Yuri Bashmet, Domingo said he was looking forward to performing with him at a Moscow concert hall on Thursday, one of his first concerts in Europe since the allegations became public. “I am tremendously happy to be back in Russia,” said Domingo, adding that he last visited during the 2018 World Cup.
“I hope we will have a wonderful, beautiful concert.” Embattled Domingo has been accused by 20 women of forcibly kissing, grabbing or fondling them, in incidents dating back to at least the 1980s. The “King of Opera” has said that “all my interactions and relationships were always welcomed and consensual.” So far, Domingo’s career has been less affected by the scandal in Europe than in the United States.
He performed to a chorus of bravos this summer in Austria and Hungary, and most recently performed in the opera “Nabucco” in Zurich on Sunday. Bashmet told journalists in Moscow on Tuesday that the opportunity to perform with Domingo was a “huge joy”. “We have loved him, we love him and we will continue loving him,” he said of Domingo. The tenor also vowed to perform at Moscow’s Bolshoi Theatre in the future. “I’m looking forward, when I will be coming back, to sing at the Bolshoi,” he said.