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Free Speech

Opera Star Anna Netrebko Loses Follow-Up Defamation Case Against the N.Y. Metropolitan Opera

Eugene Volokh | 9.5.2026 6:12 PM

From Netrebko v. Metropolitan Opera Ass'n Inc., decided Thursday by Judge Analisa Torres (S.D.N.Y.):

In early 2022, the Met fired {Anna Netrebko, a Russian national and former "reigning prima donna" of the [Met]} after [Met general manager Peter] Gelb was dissatisfied with Netrebko's failure to make a public statement following Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine….

Prior to 2022, Netrebko was widely reported to be a supporter of Russian President Vladimir Putin. On February 25, 2022, after Russia invaded Ukraine, Netrebko stated on Instagram, "These are very sad days and we are deeply concerned for the well-being of all people involved. Every war is a terrible tragedy. This is not a time for music but for reflection and prayer. And so we hope and pray for a swift and peaceful resolution." The following day, the Met asked Netrebko to publicly "denounc[e] Putin … using specific language" it had approved. Instead, Netrebko issued her own social media statement that she was against the war, adding, however, that she was also opposed to "forcing artists, or any public figure, to voice their political opinions in public and to denounce their homeland." That same day, Netrebko reposted a comment from a third party on her Instagram story characterizing "people from the West" who "pretend to be brave … by putting in trouble artists who asked nothing" as "human shits" and "as evil as blind ag[g]ressors."

On February 27, 2022, one day after Netrebko's post, the Met publicly stated that it "can no longer engage with artists or institutions that support Putin or are supported by him—not until the invasion and killing has been stopped, order has been restored and restitutions have been made." Two days later, on March 1, Netrebko again posted on Instagram, this time saying, "I am opposed to this senseless war of aggression and I am calling on Russia to end this war right now." In a phone call on March 2, Gelb told Netrebko to issue a statement specifically denouncing Putin, or she would be fired. Netrebko responded that, as a Russian citizen, she "could not make such a statement."

On March 3, 2022, the Met announced that Netrebko would not perform in the 2021–22 or 2022–23 seasons. About four weeks later, on March 30, Netrebko issued a public statement that she "condemn[s] the war on Ukraine," that her "position is clear," and that she is "not a member of any political party nor [ ]........

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