London
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One of the UK’s most prestigious arts institutions, Royal Ballet and Opera (RBO), canceled the planned production of “Tosca” in Israel after extensive staff backlash.
In a recent open letter, members of the 182 staff said they “rejected” to preserve current or future performances in Israel due to the war in Gaza.
RBO was planning to collaborate with Israeli Opera in Tel Aviv next year to host a three-act opera that dramatized “The Devastation of War.”
However, the signatories accused the RBO of “choosing to actively support the Israeli state,” and its government is “now engaged in crimes against humanity” in the besieged Palestinian enclave.
RBO CEO Alex Beard confirmed on Wednesday that production had been cancelled to CNN, but said the decision was removed from “concerns about the safety of local corporate members in light of the ongoing dispute.”
A letter from the staff was urged by a conflict that broke out within the organization after the dancers raised the Palestinian flag during a curtain call and then raised the Palestinian flag for the performance of “Il Trovatore”.
A widely shared video of the moment showed a flakah between a dancer and a man stepping out of his wings to try to steal the flag from the dancer’s hands.
In a statement at the time reported in the UK media, RBO said the dancer’s exhibition was “completely inappropriate” and “false behavior” that fell into the organization’s “commitment to political equity.” However, the organization’s response has sparked widespread condemnation among staff.
In their open letter, RBO staff expressed solidarity with the dancers who spread the Palestinian flag. The attempt to seize the flag from him “sent a clear message that visible solidarity with Palestine is accompanied by hostility.”
Staff requested that the organization withhold “our works from agencies that legalize and economically support the nation engaged in mass murder of civilians.”
On October 7, 2023, more than 61,000 Palestinians were killed in Gaza when Hamas attacked Israel, killing about 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages.
The letter also targeted what was called the RBO’s “hypocritical” stance, citing the organization’s support for Ukraine following the full-scale Russian invasion in 2022.
“At that time I realized that silence was unacceptable. Why is it different now? Why did the Palestinian suffering come to silence?
Chief Executive Beard said in a statement reported in the UK media that RBO’s support for Ukraine was “consistent with the global consensus of the time,” but “as global geopolitics became more complicated, our attitude has changed so that our actions reflect our goals and values.”
He said he was “awaiting the crisis in Gaza,” and that the RBO acknowledges and respects “the set of views held by staff, artists and audiences.”
The activist group, Palestinian-British artist, praised the RBO’s decision to cancel production in Israel, claiming that “the management of such an agency has never responded immediately to this point.”
The alarm for Gaza’s suffering has reached new heights in recent months since Israel put Israel under lockdown and caused Palestinians to die of starvation and malnutrition.
Following the lead of British President Emmanuel Macron, British Prime Minister Kiel Starmer announced that Britain will recognize Palestine in September unless Israel agrees to a ceasefire in Gaza.
RBO’s production of “Tosca” will premiere in London in September. The Israeli Opera website has since removed all mentions of planned production.
