The Latest: Met Opera says Levine’s suit full of ‘untruths’

NEW YORK (AP) — The Latest on conductor James Levine’s suit against the Metropolitan Opera (all times local):

7:30 p.m.

The Metropolitan Opera’s lawyer says conductor James Levine’s (luh-VYNEZ) lawsuit over his firing is “riddled with untruths.”

Attorney Bettina “Betsy” Plevan said in a statement on Thursday there’s “no basis” for Levine’s claims that the renowned opera company used groundless sexual misconduct allegations to accomplish a longtime goal of forcing him out.

She notes that the Met stuck with Levine as music director when an injury sidelined him from 2011 to 2013.

Levine sued on Thursday, claiming breach of contract and defamation. He’s seeking at least $5.8 million in damages.

The Met suspended Levine and began an investigation in December after the New York Post and The New York Times aired allegations of sexual misconduct involving three boys decades ago. He was fired on Monday.

Levine calls the claims unfounded.

———

5:10 p.m.

Conductor James Levine (luh-VYNE’) has sued New York’s Metropolitan Opera over a sexual-misconduct investigation that sank his storied career.

His lawsuit was filed Thursday and says the renowned opera company used baseless allegations to tarnish him and then fired him Monday without so much as a phone call.

The New York City lawsuit accuses the Met of breach of contract and defamation. The suit seeks at least $5.8 million in damages.

The Met says it hasn’t yet seen the suit and has no immediate comment.

The Met suspended Levine and began an investigation in December after the New York Post and The New York Times aired allegations of sexual misconduct involving three boys decades ago.

Levine said the claims were unfounded. He hasn’t been charged with any crime.

———

5 p.m.

Conductor James Levine (luh-VYNE’) has sued the Metropolitan Opera over a sexual-misconduct investigation that sank his storied career.

His lawsuit was filed Thursday and says the renowned opera company conducted a one-sided inquiry into baseless allegations to tarnish him and then fired him Monday without so much as a phone call.

The New York City lawsuit accuses the Met of breach of contract and defamation. It seeks at least $5.8 million in damages.

Met spokespeople haven’t responded to a request for comment.

The Met suspended Levine and began an investigation in December after accounts in the New York Post and The New York Times aired allegations of sexual misconduct involving three boys decades ago.

Levine said the claims were unfounded. He hasn’t been charged with any crime.

Free News Delivery by Email

Would you like to have the day's news stories delivered right to your inbox every evening? Enter your email below to start!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

For security, use of Google's reCAPTCHA service is required which is subject to the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Use.

I agree to these terms.

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.