VOA慢速英语2019--多明戈取消大都会歌剧院未来所有表演

Placido Domingo Withdraws from Met Opera After Harassment¹ Reports

New York’s Metropolitan² Opera announced Tuesday that Plácido Domingo had agreed to cancel plans to perform at the opera house.

Domingo has been accused by several women of sexual harassment. The opera star said he will never again perform with the Metropolitan Opera, also called “the Met.”

Domingo was supposed to sing in Giuseppe Verdi’s “Macbeth” Wednesday night. The show is the Met’s first of the new season. It would have been Domingo’s first performance in the United States since the accusations³ were made.

The Associated Press (AP) reports that several women have accused him of inappropriate behavior. One performer said he grabbed her breast.

The Met was under growing pressure to cancel Domingo’s appearances. Its general manager, Peter Gelb, said on Saturday that the opera house was awaiting results of investigations⁵ by the LA Opera. Domingo has served as general director of the LA Opera since 2003.

The American Guild⁶ of Musical Artists, the labor⁷ union that represents opera company workers, was also investigating the claims.

More than 700 performances

In a statement, Plácido Domingo said that he would not again sing at the Met after what the company said was more than 700 performances. Domingo noted⁸ that he started performing “at the Metropolitan Opera at the age of 27.”

He denied all the accusations and said that he had requested his removal from the performance.

The Met also released a statement, which said that the Spanish opera star “agreed” to end his performances at the Met.

The Philadelphia Orchestra, San Francisco Opera and Dallas Opera all canceled upcoming shows starring Domingo after the AP first reported the harassment claims.

But in Europe, reaction to the harassment claims has been far different. Opera lovers praised his performance of Verdi’s “Luisa Miller” at the Salzburg Festival last month, just a few weeks after the first AP story.

Reaction to Domingo’s withdrawal⁹

Angela Turner Wilson is the singer who gave the AP permission to use her name in the story about Domingo grabbing a woman’s breast. Wilson said she was “relieved” by the Met’s action. She criticized Gelb for saying earlier that the opera house could not act without additional evidence because all of Domingo’s accusers refused to be identified.

Wilson said Gelb’s statements were “a major concern to me and many others who wish to see…sexual harassment and retaliation¹⁰ removed from our industry. It is time.”

Another of Domingo’s accusers, Patricia Wulf, also called the decision a relief. The Met finally stepped up and did the right thing,” she told the AP.

Wulf accused Domingo of repeatedly harassing¹¹ her during performances at Washington Opera in the late 1990s. At the time, he was the general director of the opera company.

The Met dismissed conductor James Levine in 2018 after an investigation⁴ found evidence of sexual abuse and harassment. Levine was the company’s music director for many years. He denied the accusations. He and the Met reached a settlement last month.

Domingo is known around the world for his performances as part of The Three Tenors¹² with Luciano Pavarotti and José Carreras.

Domingo’s next performance is in Verdi’s “Nabucco” at the Zurich Opera on October 13. His next U.S. performance will be at the LA Opera in February.

Zeljko Lucic will replace Domingo and sing all six performance of “Macbeth” at the Met.

Outside the opera house Tuesday night, Cathy Soderquist said the Met’s decision was too strong. The retired¹³ government worker had planned to see Macbeth on Wednesday.

“He’s [been] accused, but he hasn’t been prosecuted¹⁵. He hasn’t gone to court,” she said.

Dick Soderquist, her husband, said “Europeans are…laughing at us.”

Words in This Story

sexual harassment – n. behavior such as making unwelcome, unwanted sexual comments or physical advances in a workplace or other professional environment

inappropriate – adj. not right or suited for some purpose or situation?

grab – v. to quickly take and hold (someone or something) with your hand or arms

manager – n. someone who is in charge of a business, department, etc.

relieve– adj. feeling relaxed and happy because something difficult or unpleasant has been stopped, avoided, or made easier

retaliation – n. the action to do something bad to someone who has hurt you or treated you badly?

conductor – n. a person who stands in front of people while they sing or play musical instruments and directs their performance

prosecute¹⁴ – v. to hold a trial against a person who is accused of a crime to see if that person is guilty

1 harassment   

n.骚扰，扰乱，烦恼，烦乱

参考例句：

• She often got telephone harassment at night these days.这些天她经常在夜晚受到电话骚扰。
• The company prohibits any form of harassment.公司禁止任何形式的骚扰行为。

2 metropolitan   

adj.大城市的，大都会的

参考例句：

• Metropolitan buildings become taller than ever.大城市的建筑变得比以前更高。
• Metropolitan residents are used to fast rhythm.大都市的居民习惯于快节奏。

3 accusations   

n.指责( accusation的名词复数 )；指控；控告；（被告发、控告的）罪名

参考例句：

• There were accusations of plagiarism. 曾有过关于剽窃的指控。
• He remained unruffled by their accusations. 对于他们的指控他处之泰然。

4 investigation   

n.调查，调查研究

参考例句：

• In an investigation,a new fact became known, which told against him.在调查中新发现了一件对他不利的事实。
• He drew the conclusion by building on his own investigation.他根据自己的调查研究作出结论。

5 investigations   

（正式的）调查( investigation的名词复数 )； 侦查； 科学研究； 学术研究

参考例句：

• His investigations were intensive and thorough but revealed nothing. 他进行了深入彻底的调查，但没有发现什么。
• He often sent them out to make investigations. 他常常派他们出去作调查。

6 guild   

n.行会，同业公会，协会

参考例句：

• He used to be a member of the Writers' Guild of America.他曾是美国作家协会的一员。
• You had better incorporate the firm into your guild.你最好把这个公司并入你的行业协会。

7 labor   

n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦

参考例句：

• We are never late in satisfying him for his labor.我们从不延误付给他劳动报酬。
• He was completely spent after two weeks of hard labor.艰苦劳动两周后，他已经疲惫不堪了。

8 noted   

adj.著名的，知名的

参考例句：

• The local hotel is noted for its good table.当地的那家酒店以餐食精美而著称。
• Jim is noted for arriving late for work.吉姆上班迟到出了名。

9 withdrawal   

n.取回，提款；撤退，撤军；收回，撤销

参考例句：

• The police were forced to make a tactical withdrawal.警方被迫进行战术撤退。
• They insisted upon a withdrawal of the statement and a public apology.他们坚持要收回那些话并公开道歉。

10 retaliation   

n.报复，反击

参考例句：

• retaliation against UN workers 对联合国工作人员的报复
• He never said a single word in retaliation. 他从未说过一句反击的话。 来自《简明英汉词典》

11 harassing   

v.侵扰，骚扰( harass的现在分词 )；不断攻击（敌人）

参考例句：

• The court ordered him to stop harassing his ex-wife. 法庭命令他不得再骚扰前妻。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• It was too close to be merely harassing fire. 打得这么近，不能完全是扰乱射击。 来自辞典例句

12 tenors   

n.男高音( tenor的名词复数 )；大意；男高音歌唱家；（文件的）抄本

参考例句：

• Three celebrated tenors sang at the president's inauguration. 3位著名的男高音歌手在总统就职仪式上演唱。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• His one -- a-kind packaging thrilled an opera world ever-hungry for tenors. 他一对一类包装激动世界的歌剧以往任何时候都渴望的男高音。 来自互联网

13 retired   

adj.隐退的，退休的，退役的

参考例句：

• The old man retired to the country for rest.这位老人下乡休息去了。
• Many retired people take up gardening as a hobby.许多退休的人都以从事园艺为嗜好。

14 prosecute   

vt.告发；进行；vi.告发，起诉，作检察官

参考例句：

• I am trying my best to prosecute my duties.我正在尽力履行我的职责。
• Is there enough evidence to prosecute?有没有起诉的足够证据？

15 prosecuted   

a.被起诉的

参考例句：

• The editors are being prosecuted for obscenity. 编辑因刊载污秽文字而被起诉。
• The company was prosecuted for breaching the Health and Safety Act. 这家公司被控违反《卫生安全条例》。