
Jonathan Tetelman Criticizes Treatment by Met Opera, Felt Like a ‘Prop’
By Francisco SalazarJonathan Tetelman is speaking out about his experience at the Metropolitan Opera this past season.
In an interview with Vasmacs, the tenor said he wanted to sing where he was wanted and didn’t want to feel “like a prop” as he felt during his debut season at the Met.
He said, “Honestly, I’m very nervous for the future of the Metropolitan. I’m happy that I got to go, and I got to be there, but I think it’s not going be the place where I will regularly sing anymore. I didn’t feel like they wanted me there in the first place. I think they just wanted me because I was a growing name, I could sing, and maybe they could sell some seats. That’s how I felt. I felt like a prop. I haven’t said it yet, but I want to be honest about where I am going and what I’m doing. If my mission and my artistry don’t align with certain places, with certain people, certainly people that are in charge of these places… Because I have heard that. There are programs. It just not worth it. This life is so short, and I’m only given this gift so long, I cannot waste it.”
He added that he felt that the experience was disappointing and that he didn’t have the best time at the theater. He said, “I wasn’t so happy there, I didn’t feel that I could be artistically free there. It was also difficult that I got sick in the middle of the two operas, so I had to sing the two HDs slightly under my standard. And I think that it wasn’t the best time.”
Tetelman, one of opera’s biggest names, made his Met Opera debut in Puccini’s “La Rondine,” and later performed in a revival of “Madama Butterfly” alongside Asmik Grigorian. Both productions were presented Live in HD. Next season the tenor will perform at the LA Opera, San Francisco Opera, Deutsche Oper Berlin, and Bayerische Staatsoper. He is an exclusive artist for Deutsche Grammophon.
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