A decision that comes at the end of bitter controversy. The
Teatro La Fenice in Venice has made official the total break with the maestro Beatrice Venezi, canceling all his future collaborations with the institution.
News that had been in the air for months, given the protests that his appointment had caused.
The dismissal was made public by the Fenice management, through the superintendent Nicola Colabianchi, who justified the interruption of all relations with the maestro in an official note, explaining how the decision came «following the Maestro’s repeated and serious public statements, offensive and detrimental to the artistic and professional value of the La Fenice Theater Foundation and its Orchestra». In fact, his words, with which he accused the orchestra of “nepotism”, were judged to be “incompatible with the principles of the Foundation and with the protection and respect due to orchestra professors”.
During an interview with the Argentine newspaper La Nación on April 23, Venezi declared: «I don’t have godfathers, that’s the difference. I don’t come from a musical family. And this is an orchestra where positions are practically handed down from father to son.”
The superintendent had already preventively distanced himself from those statements, underlining “the excellent quality of the orchestra”. The next step is inevitable.
The Minister of Culture, Alessandro Giuli, immediately intervened on the matter, declaring that he takes note of Nicola Colabianchi’s decision, taken autonomously and independently, and confirms his complete trust in the superintendent of La Fenice, with the hope that this choice will clear the field of misunderstandings, tensions and exploitation in the interests of the Theater and the city of Venice».
The comment from the CGIL was more forceful, observing that “the decision was the only possible choice, given the inadequacy of the appointment”.
The Teatro La Fenice Foundation, for its part, concluded the note by reiterating its commitment “to promoting a professional environment based on mutual respect, constructive collaboration and artistic excellence”.
