The opera singer and director has written to the depleted Washington Post, protesting that his activties were misreported.
Here’s the full text:
For the second time, I am writing to the editor of The Post, but this time I have nothing more to lose. [“‘Sabotage’ Puccini’s ‘Tosca’? Hardly,” Letters to the Editor, Oct. 1, 2011]
The Post printed the Feb. 11 front-page article “Major opera left Kennedy Center after a forced face-off” before the deadline I received to answer questions. The Post had already established that the root of the misfortune currently afflicting the Washington National Opera must once again be me. No surprise here. So I now must set the record straight.
By The Post’s own admission, during my tenure, the WNO experienced a period of artistic growth, thanks to the high quality of work done by every member of the company. Productions during those years enjoyed massive attendance and significant sponsors’ support. It’s unfair to attack me by tarnishing the work of so many people who have made the WNO great. I have never had anyone fired, least of all Mark Weinstein, who was hired as executive director by the WNO board and by that same board let go. There was certainly a budget deficit; it’s not easy to manage a theater in the U.S. because it essentially relies on sponsors, not on fixed revenue, but there were several benefactors who supported it. Like me, they believed in the enormous potential of this company.
Raising the level of first-rate artistry is not a pipe dream that the board and I pursued; investors support projects that are truly worth investing in. When, however, the board asked me to cut productions, I complied.
Dismantling the past does not benefit opera in the U.S. It creates more disaffection among the public, leaving deserted the halls of great theaters that have shaped the history of opera.
Plácido Domingo, Monte Carlo, Monaco
