Slippedisc editorial: An unedifying episode in the march to equal rights
mainFive days ago, Slippedisc and other media outlets received the following email from a ‘concerned opera lover’ in Australia:
I’m not sure if you’re all aware that Opera Australia has employed the Georgian soprano Tamar Iveri to sing the role of Desdemona in the upcoming production of Otello in spite of the fact that she has publicly declared herself to be a homophobe. Paris Opera cancelled her contract based on the open letter she sent to the President of Georgia
Anonymous emails are not, on the whole, credible sources.
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The link given in the email was over a year old and the Paris allegation could not be verified. The mailshot looked as if jealous individuals in a notably unhappy opera company were seeking to dislodge an unpopular, highly-paid foreign visitor.
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Such things cannot be verified swiftly at distance.
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An Australian website went public with the contents of the email and the resultant public outcry led to Ms Iveri’s dismissal – which had clearly been the intention of the anonymous mailer.
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In view of the appalling nature of the views expressed on Ms Iveri’s website, that was the correct and inevitable outcome. However, the reasons Ms Iveri was targeted in Australia are neither transparent nor honourable.
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This was not a principled campaign against prejudice but a petty turf war, fought behind cover of anonymity. Many in the opera world are left feeling squeamish – not by the ultimately justifiable dismissal of Ms Iveri but by the shadowy, xenophobic motives behind it.
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Several have contacted us today to express unease at the ‘lynching’ of a fellow-artist. Altogether, this has been an unedifying episode in the march to gender parity and equal rights in the arts.
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