More Bad News for Placido Domingo

Los Angeles Opera finds 10 credible accusations of 'inappropriate conduct'
By Arden Dier,  Newser Staff
Posted Mar 11, 2020 9:10 AM CDT
More Bad News for Plácido Domingo
In this Aug. 28, 2019, file photo, opera singer Placido Domingo performs during a concert in Szeged, Hungary.   (AP Photo/Laszlo Balogh, File)

The second of two investigations into allegations of sexual harassment by Placido Domingo has concluded with the Los Angeles Opera finding 10 credible accusations that the former general director engaged in "inappropriate conduct" over three decades. A summary report released Tuesday by the law firm of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher didn't describe individual accusations stemming from 1986 to 2019, but CNN reports there were commonalities. Some women felt "uncomfortable" while others "described significant trauma," per the New York Times. The AP previously described unwanted advances including forced kisses and groping. One accuser said Domingo put his hand down her skirt and another said he stuck his hand in her bra. Some women also said they suffered retaliation after rejecting advances from one of opera's greatest singers.

Domingo "denied all allegations of unwanted contact and maintained that all his interactions were consensual," per the report. Investigators "often found him to be sincere in his denials but found some of them to be less credible or lacking in awareness." However, they found no evidence that the 79-year-old Grammy winner "engaged in a quid pro quo or retaliated against any woman by not casting or otherwise hiring her at LA Opera." Last month, the American Guild of Musical Artists concluded Domingo "engaged in inappropriate activity, ranging from flirtation to sexual advances, in and outside of the workplace," based on accounts from 27 people, per the Guardian. Domingo has since withdrawn from performances at Madrid's Teatro Real, London's Royal Opera House, and the Hamburg State Opera, which cited his concerns about the coronavirus. (More Placido Domingo stories.)

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