(BREITBART) – Soprano Anna Netrebko withdrew from her future engagements at the Metropolitan Opera, costing the company one of its top singers and best box-office draws.
“It is a great artistic loss for the Met and for opera,” Met General Manager Peter Gelb said in a statement Thursday. “Anna is one of the greatest singers in Met history, but with Putin killing innocent victims in Ukraine, there was no way forward.”
Gelb had said Sunday that the Met would not engage artists who support Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Met made repeated efforts in recent days attempting to convince Netrebko to repudiate Putin but failed to persuade her, a person familiar with the developments said, speaking on condition of anonymity because that detail was not announced.