Decline of the West: Carmen-ban opera house loses its artistic heads

Decline of the West: Carmen-ban opera house loses its artistic heads

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norman lebrecht

October 30, 2014

West Australian Opera, which made headlines by banning Carmen on health grounds, is losing artistic director Joseph ­Colaneri and chorus master ­Joseph Nolan after the current Trovatore.

Neither, it seems, was offered a new contract by the general manager Carolyn Chard, who said the board was ‘reviewing the structure of the company’. That’s manager-speak for shrinking or shutting it down.

Chard (pictured), a former banker and fashion designer, has stoutly defended her ban on Carmen, prompted by a sponsorship deal with the public health authority. Might be time for her to pick the next career.

carolyn chard

Comments

  • Neil McGowan says:

    Carolyn Chard, they say, was a banker
    Who filled W Australia with rancour.
    Cig-puffing Toreadors
    Had her crying “No more!”
    Showing that she’s just a big incompetent drongo of an intendant

  • Novagerio says:

    Shouldn’t the responsible be fired, that means herself?….Makes no sense….

  • Jules says:

    After the whole Carmen brouhaha, I’m surprised Ms. Chard still has her job.

  • RW2013 says:

    She’s probably too politically correct to go back to either fashion or banking.
    At least now we have a face to identify the stupidity with (not to mention those scary black fingernails).

  • DT1961 says:

    totally agree Farkar. She’s a great General Manager and doesn’t deserve this unwarranted nastiness.

    • Neil McGowan says:

      Who’s doing the most for Australian culture internationally?

      Is it Carolyn Chard? Or Rolf Harris?

      This clueless bitch sadly typifies the Abbott/Bishop/Hockey generation of Australian mouth-off thugs.

  • Farkar says:

    not true. Please be objective. Question your source/s and his/ her/ their intent before you launch a vitriolic attack on an individual.

  • RW2013 says:

    Farkar, just because the WA Opera is geographically the most isolated opera company in the world, it doesn’t mean that there aren’t Slipped Disc readers who haven’t witnessed this softly-spoken woman in her skimpy black dress pontificating on the red carpets of the Puccini room about subjects that she has no business in pretending to know anything about, where the extent of her managerial talent would be deciding what finger food the board should be served.

    • Farkar says:

      Being the most isolated opera company in the world also leads to Chinese whispers. As a result of incorrect information a very competent General Manager is being vilified. No one deserves to be called “a big incompetent drongo” and a “clueless bitch”.

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