If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.
According to one giant of the arts world, it’s better for famous men to withhold the nice comments as well.
Spanish opera superstar Placido Domingo, under fire from more than a dozen women who say he sexually harassed them while working with them in the opera world, has stated that it is impossible to freely compliment a woman these days because of new, fanatical standards about male conduct, especially in the United States.
The Spanish singer, who resigned from his role as general manager at the Los Angeles Opera amid the accusations, said that 30 years ago it was accepted and normal to compliment a woman’s clothing or appearance.
“Now you can’t say anything to a woman anymore,” Domingo told the Spanish newspaper El Pais.
He added that Spain has not embraced political correctness as fanatically as the U.S., where the accusations stem from.
Some women who worked with Domingo in the opera world said he would attempt to kiss or touch them, and would sometimes harm their careers if rejected. Domingo strongly denies the claims, which he says “make no sense.”
Domingo had said he always behaved like a gentleman but that “gallant gestures are viewed differently nowadays.”
In response, Angela Turner Wilson and Patricia Wulf, two of Domingo’s accusers, issued a response through their attorney: ‘There is nothing ‘chivalrous’ or ‘gallant’ about groping a woman in the workplace, in any country or era,’ Wilson and Wulf said.
While Domingo has lost U.S. contracts amid the allegations, he still plans to perform in Europe for the 2021/22 season. He received a standing ovation in Valencia on Monday.
Domingo said that although the accusations had hurt him and his wife, they were “very close, very strong.” He also said that he respects the investigation into his conduct at LA Opera.
