Royal Opera House Concludes Vittorio Grigolo Investigation

By Francisco Salazar

The Royal Opera House has concluded its investigation on Vittorio Grigolo, who allegedly groped a chorus member during the curtain call of “Faust.”

The ROH issued a statement noting “Following an independent investigation into an incident involving Vittorio Grigolo in Tokyo in September, the ROH has concluded that his inappropriate behavior at the curtain call and afterwards fell below the standards we expect of our staff and performers.”

As a result, the ROH has canceled his performances of “Lucia di Lammermoor” which were scheduled for the summer.

The company stated, “We have therefore concluded that he will not return to perform in ‘Lucia Di Lammermoor’ at the Royal Opera House in 2020. We will announce new casting for this role in due course.”

Grigolo himself issued a statement in which he noted, “I am truly saddened that my behavior towards everyone in the cast, people whom I have always respected and continue to respect from the bottom of my heart, was perceived to be below the Royal Opera House standards.”

The Royal Opera House suspended Grigolo on Sept. 18 and began an investigation while the Metropolitan Opera suspended the tenor from all future engagements.

The Metropolitan Opera issued a statement after the Royal Opera House’s investigation noting, “Following the Royal Opera House investigation into misconduct concerning Vittorio Grigolo and his subsequent suspension from performances there this season, the Metropolitan Opera confirms that he will not be singing at the Met this season.”

The tenor however, returned to the Teatro alla Scala where he was met with standing ovations.

Here is the entire statement:

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