The Metropolitan Opera commenced the second half of the 2021-22 season with a performance of the Ukranian national anthem.

Prior to the opening night production of Verdi’s “Don Carlos,” artist from the production took the stage and performed the anthem alongside the Met Opera Orchestra.

The company has been vocal in proclaiming its opposition to the Russian invasion of Ukraine, cutting all ties to Putin-supporting companies and artists for the foreseeable future. The company even noted that it would not collaborate with the Bolshoi Theatre on its 2022-23 production of “Lohengrin.”

Numerous opera companies around the world are taking stands against Russia’s invasion. Some lit up the facades of their buildings with the colors of the Ukrainian flags and some have incorporated their support in productions. At the Teatro Real de Madrid, Siegfried’s funeral march in “Götterdämmerung” saw the opera’s hero wrapped in a Ukrainian flag.