New York's prestigious Metropolitan Opera has suspended its eminent long-time conductor James Levine after three men, including one of Indian-origin
New York's prestigious Metropolitan Opera has suspended its eminent long-time conductor James Levine after three men, including one of Indian-origin, accused that he sexually abused them decades ago. The company in a statement said that it was suspending its four-decade relationship with 74-year-old Levine and cancelling his upcoming conducting engagements after knowing about his sexual misconduct that took place from the 1960's to the 1980's, Peter Gelb, the general manager of the Met said.
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James Levine pic/afp
"Levine will not be involved in any Met activities, including conducting scheduled performances at the Met this season," the statement said. "While we await the results of the investigation, based on these new news reports, the Met has made the decision to act now," it said. The move to suspend Levine comes a day after one of Levine's accusers claimed he had sexual contact with Levine as a teenager. One of Levine's accusers, 48-year-old Ashok Pai, said that he was sexually abused by him starting in the summer of 1986, when Pai was 16, an accusation he made last year. The other men have alleged Levine masturbated them when they were teenagers.
2.5k No. of performances Levine has conducted at the Met
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