Serge Dorny has changed his position regarding Anna Netrebko.

In a recent interview with BR-Klassik, the Bayerische Staatsoper’s General Manager told the publication, that “the door is absolutely not locked.”

According to the publication, Dorny did signal a possibility of working with her in the future and added he wanted a clearer position from the soprano and “that he was a big fan of the soprano and her art.”

He said he regretted the “vagueness” with which Anna Netrebko had distanced herself from Vladimir Putin in recent months and that it “that hasn’t put me in a position to keep her in the program now.”

Dorny also told BR-Klassik, “Language can be incredibly hurtful. It can be incredibly disturbing. It is important to say things very clearly. But now it’s time to turn things around and try to start again – also with Anna Netrebko. For me, the door is absolutely not locked.”

The comments come only months after the General Director was tricked by Russian pranksters and Dorny boasted about parting ways with Netrebko. It also comes as the singer is about to return to Germany for a concert in Regensburg where the Mayor said, “It’s Putin’s war, not the war of the Russian people. As far as I know, Ms. Netrebko never defended or justified this war, but spoke out clearly against it.”

Netrebko released a statement at the end of March in which she reiterated her stance against the war and distanced herself against Putin. She said, “I expressly condemn the war on Ukraine and my thoughts are with the victims of this war and their families. My position is clear. I am not a member of any political party nor am I allied with any leader of Russia. I acknowledge and regret that past actions or statements of mine could have been misinterpreted. In fact, I have met President Putin only a handful of times in my entire life, most notably on the occasion of receiving awards in recognition of my art or at the Olympics opening ceremony. I have otherwise never received any financial support from the Russian Government, and live and am a tax resident in Austria.”