Domingo to perform for Ist time since accusations

Salzburg, Austria: Plácido Domingo returns to the stage at the Salzburg Festival on Sunday in his first appearance since nine women accused him of sexual harassment in a report by The Associated Press.

The case has divided the opera world.

Two US opera houses immediately cancelled planned appearances. European opera houses have so far confirmed engagements scheduled through November 2020, in what some see as an effort to slow a perceived rush to judgment in the #MeToo movement.

The 78-year-old star, who rose to global fame as a tenor, will sing the baritone role of Miller in performance of Luisa Miller.

He has received unwavering support from the festival, as well as his costars. Domingo appears smiling in an Instagram posted this week by costar Nino Machaidze alongside tenor Piotr Beczala and conductor James Conlon.

The AP story published last week detailed extensive allegations of sexual harassment by nine women against Domingo that spanned decades, starting in the 1980s.

The women accused Domingo of using his power at the LA Opera, where he has been the longtime general director, and elsewhere to try to pressure them into sexual relationships.

Several of the woman said he dangled jobs and then sometimes punished them professionally if they refused his advances.

The allegations included repeated phone calls, the invitations to hotel rooms and his apartment as well, and unwanted touching and kisses.