A twisted Russian politician has urged Vladimir Putin to fire "a ballistic missile" at the largest weapons testing site in the US as a warning against interfering in the country's affairs.
25.02.2022 - 15:31 / variety.com
Nick Vivarelli International CorrespondentThe Russian invasion of Ukraine is reverberating in the classical music world, where star conductor Valery Gergiev, who has close ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin, is being forced to cancel engagements at La Scala in Italy as well as Carnegie Hall and other venues in the U.S.Gergiev, known to be an old friend and vocal supporter of Putin, last conducted Tchaikovsky’s opera “The Queen of Spades” on Wednesday evening at Milan’s famed La Scala opera house, where he was lightly booed, according to Italian press reports.On Thursday, as Russian tanks rolled into Ukraine, Milan mayor Giuseppe Sala, who is the president of La Scala, publicly urged Gergiev to condemn Russia’s invasion, saying that if the conductor — who has not commented Putin’s move — did not issue a statement, “the collaboration will be over,” he said. Gergiev is next scheduled to appear at La Scala on March 5.
La Scala spokesman Paolo Besana on Friday confirmed to Variety that Gergiev’s engagement at the theater house will not continue, unless the conductor takes a stand against Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, which is considered unlikely.“We are still waiting for his answer. If he does not answer our request, we will be forced to find another conductor,” the La Scala spokesman said.Meanwhile, after the Milan mayor publicly called out Gergiev to take a stand, Carnegie Hall announced that the 68-year-old Russian conductor, who is a fixture on the U.S.
classical music circuit, will not be leading the Vienna Philharmonic in a five-date U.S. tour that was scheduled to kick off at New York’s Carnegie Hall on Friday.Responding to mounting protests, Carnegie Hall and the Vienna Philharmonic on Thursday in a last-minute
.A twisted Russian politician has urged Vladimir Putin to fire "a ballistic missile" at the largest weapons testing site in the US as a warning against interfering in the country's affairs.
Councils, NHS trusts and a university in Greater Manchester are caught up in Russian deals worth millions of pounds, it has been revealed.
Russian President Vladimir Putin has got himself a bit of a reputation for terrible time keeping.
Russian-born model Irina Shayk shared her support for Ukraine on Monday via Instagram. Shayk, 36, shared a photo of a black and white peace sign on her personal Instagram account as Russia continues to invade Ukraine. "No To War," she wrote, adding prayer and broken heart emojis.
Ukraine has drawn swift and wide-ranging condemnation from the international community, which has imposed unprecedented sanctions against President Vladimir Putin and his inner circle and pushed the Russian economy to a breaking point, with the ruble plummeting to historic lows on Monday.Amid calls for a boycott of Russian films that have received government support and a strident response from European media groups, cultural institutions, film festivals and industry confabs, the backlash has rattled Russian filmmakers with long-standing personal and professional ties to the continent’s screen industry.“The need for Europe to make a clear anti-war statement is understandable and necessary. However, banning all Russians from the major cultural events is not only unhelpful — it’s harmful,” said one veteran producer.
Louis Tomlinson and HEALTH are among the latest to pull their Russian gigs, joining the likes of Yungblud, Green Day and Russian rapper Oxxxymiron.Tomlinson was due to perform in both Ukraine and Russia this year, with a show at Kyiv’s Stereo Plaza slated for Monday July 4, and at Moscow’s Crocus City Hall on Wednesday July 6.In a statement shared to social media overnight, the former One Direction singer wrote: “Due to the recent events in Ukraine, I have to sadly announce that my tour shows in Moscow and Kyiv are canceled until further notice. The safety of my fans is my priority and my thoughts go out to the people of Ukraine and all those suffering from this needless war.”A post shared by Louis Tomlinson (@louist91)HEALTH, on the other hand, were booked in to play two shows in Russia next month, taking to St.
The Glasgow Film Festival has withdrawn two Russian titles from its 2022 program in response to Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine.
Russian conductor Valery Gergiev has been dropped by his management and from upcoming performances in Europe and the US over his failure to denounce Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The friend and long-time supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin has so far issued no statement on the war.Gergiev had been represented by Munich-based manager Marcus Felsner since December 2020.
MUNICH -- Russian conductor Valery Gergiev was dropped by his management company Sunday over his ties to Russia President Vladimir Putin.The 68-year-old Russian had been represented since December 2020 by Munich-based Marcus Felsner, who started his own management company that year after leaving Opus3.“In the light of the criminal war waged by the Russian regime against the democratic and independent nation of Ukraine, and against the European open society as a whole, it has become impossible for us, and clearly unwelcome, to defend the interests of Maestro Gergiev,” Felsner said in a statement.Gergiev is the music director of the Mariinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg, Russia, and its White Nights Festival, as well as chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic.
NEW YORK -- Munich Mayor Dieter Reiter has threatened to remove Valery Gergiev as chief conductor of the Munich Philharmonic unless Gergiev publicly says by Monday that he does not support Russia's invasion of Ukraine.The 68-year-old Russian conductor is close to Russian President Vladimir Putin and supported Russia's annexation of Crimea in 2014.“I have made my position clear to Valery Gergiev and have asked him to clearly and unequivocally distance himself from the brutal invasion that Putin is waging against Ukraine and now in particular against our twin city, Kyiv,” Reiter said in a statement Thursday. “If Valery Gergiev does not take a clear stance by Monday, he can no longer remain chief conductor of our philharmonic.”Gergiev has been Munich's chief conductor since the 2015-16 season.
Valery Gergiev, the Russian conductor and longtime supporter of Russian president Vladimir Putin, will not take the stage at Carnegie Hall with the Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra as planned this weekend, with a spokeswoman for the famed venue explaining that the change “was made due to recent world events.”
Valery Gergiev, a conductor who is close to Russian President Vladimir Putin, will not lead the Vienna Philharmonic in a five-concert U.S. tour that starts at Carnegie Hall on Friday night.