Met sacks Copley over ‘naked’ remark
Supporters insist Britain’s leading opera director was misheard by member of chorus who complained
JOHN COPLEY, Britain’s leading opera director, has been sacked from his job at the New York Met after what his supporters claim was a misunderstanding about a “naked” ghost.
Mr Copley, 84, is understood to have flown back to London after being fired by Peter Gelb, the manager, over rehearsal room comments which prompted a complaint from a chorus member.
The distinguished director was working on a production of Rossini’s Semiramide, due to open later this month, when the incident took place. The Daily Telegraph understands from a source who was in the room at the time that he was working on a scene with the chorus of the company which involves the appearance of a ghost, and was encouraging the singers to show different reactions to the character.
Among the ideas that he suggested was that he himself would “imagine the character naked”, prompting a complaint from a chorus member who supporters suggested may have misunderstood the comment.
However, the Met claimed last night that during rehearsals on Monday Mr Copley had “approached the chorus member and said ‘I’m thinking of you in my bed with your clothes off’, making the chorus member feel extremely ill at ease due to this sexually demeaning remark.”
The spokesman added: “Later that day the chorus member found himself unable to continue with his work and requested to leave the evening performance of Il Trovatore in which he was performing because he felt upset and distressed.” The cast member “felt unable to continue working with Mr Copley because of the hostile, sexually charged environment that had been created”, so Mr Copley was asked to leave, the spokesman said.
Mr Copley is one of Britain’s leading directors and has produced operas at the Royal Opera House and the English National Opera in London, including a production of La
Bohème that was performed for more than 40 years, as well as many other productions which ran for more than two decades. Over a 50year career he has also worked at the
San Francisco Opera and Dallas Opera, the Sydney Opera House and throughout Europe. A representative for Mr Copley declined to comment when contacted at his London address yesterday afternoon. Friends said he was too upset to speak, but the music website Slipped Disc reported that he had thanked his supporters. In a social media post he reportedly said: “Just to thank you all for your generous support and loving wishes. This is a very difficult time, helped by you all. Uncle John.”
The opera world has come out in his defence, with supporters saying he had been the victim of a “witch hunt”. “I’ve been in that rehearsal room every day. I’m so disgusted that it has come to this. John always makes witty and fun remarks, it’s part of who he is and why we love him,” Helena Dix, the Australian soprano and member of the cast, wrote on Twitter, adding that members of the company “chose not to attend rehearsals” on Thursday afternoon.
Dame Sarah Connolly, the mezzo-soprano, told The Daily Telegraph that Mr Gelb should apologise. “John Copley’s modus operandi is always in jest, and always tongue-in-cheek, and always with a sort of gentle, camp humour, absolutely nothing remotely threatening, and given the outpouring of affection for him, online and on social media, there’s never been an incident where anybody has been offended,” she said.