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In reversal, Placido Domingo to receive Mexico music prize

October 05, 2019
Spanish tenor Placido Domingo performs during his concert in the newly inaugurated sports and culture centre 'St Gellert Forum' in Szeged, southern Hungary, on August 28, 2019. -AFP
Spanish tenor Placido Domingo performs during his concert in the newly inaugurated sports and culture centre 'St Gellert Forum' in Szeged, southern Hungary, on August 28, 2019. -AFP

MEXICO CITY - Opera superstar Placido Domingo will receive Mexico's Batuta prize in classical music after all, organizers said Friday, a day after stating it would be withheld over a flood of sexual harassment accusations.

Domingo was chosen in May to receive the first edition of the prize in Mexico City during a ceremony this Saturday, along with 15 other honorees.

However, organizers said Thursday they had decided to put his award on hold "until all this has been clarified."

Changing course again Friday, they decided Domingo would in fact receive the award, but said he would not attend the ceremony in person, instead addressing the gala by video.

"We wish to clarify that the organizing committee has not withdrawn Maestro Domingo's award. On the contrary, the classical music community celebrates the Spanish tenor's six decades of absolute dedication to the arts," they said in a statement.

Domingo "will personally address a special message to the ceremony," they added.

"We are still going to give him the prize. We just hope for better times ahead and that everything gets better for him," the head of the organizing committee, Rene Platini, told AFP.

The latest drama comes after Domingo, 78, resigned Wednesday as general director of the Los Angeles Opera, effectively ending his career in the United States.

He also withdrew last week from all performances at New York's Metropolitan Opera. Several other US opera houses have cancelled concerts featuring him because of the sexual harassment allegations. -AFP


October 05, 2019
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