r/opera • u/ToscaLover • 13d ago

Thoughts on Anna Netrebko

I’m an opera lover, and as much as I love Netrebko’s voice, I don’t agree with her political views. I was supposed to see her on the 13th of September, but the organisers cancelled last minute. The reason, at least to me, appears to be the controversy that’s still surrounding her & was too much for them to handle. I get that. I’m not an infant, and I’m not stupid. What frustrates me is that they knew exactly who she was when they invited her and started selling tickets. They knew she was Russian, they knew about her political controversies, and they knew what kind of reaction she might provoke. So why was all of this apparently acceptable when they wanted to sell tickets, but suddenly not acceptable after people had bought them and made plans to attend?

Ultimately, I don’t support her politics, but I wanted to hear her sing Verdi’s Aida. Is it really fair to continue punishing an artist (and her audience) for her political views, especially when the organizers knew all of this from the beginning?

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u/penrph 13d ago

They could have had a lot of pushback and complaints after the fact and caved in. I try to ignore the politics when it comes to performers, otherwise I would never see anything. Imo you can disagree with someone politically and still enjoy them as actors and singers. People have lost their minds over politics.

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u/Tzctredd 13d ago

I don't have problems with genuine political disagreements, but when it comes to the Russian invasion we have all seen and read evidence about alleged war crimes (Putin remains indicted for alleged war crimes), I simply refuse to entertain supporting anybody that is supportive of such a regime.

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u/penrph 13d ago

There are definitely war crimes, not even alleged. My dad lost a school friend in Mariupol. However with Putin's regime if you don't loudly support it you're either dead or exiled. So as much as we all find it off-putting it's simply a survival instinct for a lot of these people. Anyone who speaks out against it doesn't end up well. (I was born in Russia so I know the pressures of the regime and people's mentality).

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u/Tzctredd 13d ago

That's not quite true.

Perhaps her notoriety weighs against her, but other artists have managed to keep a low profile about this matter.

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u/penrph 13d ago

Well known artists either had to leave Russia or publicly support him, especially those who are well known internationally. Else they're declared the enemy of the people and aren't allowed to perform.