Bernard Uzan, founder of Uzan International Artists has been accused of sexual misconduct.

In a Washington Post expose that also found conductor Daniele Gatti guilty of sexual misconduct, four women accused Uzan of diverse sexual misconduct.

In the article soprano, Diane Alexander stated that “Uzan embraced her and pressed his erection against her in a hotel elevator when she was in the Merola young-artist program at the San Francisco Opera in 1986.” She added, that “seventeen years later, when she needed new management after her agent retired, she joined Uzan’s roster, thinking the incident was long forgotten until she says Uzan reminded her that he had long been attracted to her.” But it was not the case because in 2005 when she starred in a production of Verdi’s “La Traviata” at Opera Carolina in Charlotte things went sour. In a statement, the soprano noted that Uzan, who was directing the production, started propositioning her via text messages and when she ignored him, he started to be critical of her performance to the point of emotional abuse.

Mezzo-soprano Erin Elizabeth Smith also noted that in 2008 when she was 29 and went on to drinks with Uzan, the administrator “pushed himself back from the table so she could see his erect penis inside his pants. Then, she says, he stuck his thumb in her mouth and asked her to suck it.” Smith, who refused to participate in Uzan’s advances was later dropped from his roster.

The expose also saw mezzo Xixi Shepard accuse the manager of sexual abuse. She noted that at a dinner to discuss her career, Uzan told her about his talent for oral sex and invited her to experience his talent after dinner. Mezzo-soprano Carla Dirlikov stated that Uzan cornered her at a 2010 audition and told her he wanted to sleep with her. When she refused, Uzan told companies terrible things about her. Then in 2011 during a production of “Rigoletto” in Detriot that Uzan was directing, he put his hands on her breast causing a stir. She eventually left his roster.

Uzan, who is known in the mid-level opera companies as an influential administrator, a director, and an artist’s manager, denied the allegations noting “Groping, that I deny completely. Yes, probably I have been flirting with women, that’s possible. Did I insist or push somebody? That’s not possible. Did I push somebody verbally to sleep with me? Absolutely not. Did I blackmail somebody? Absolutely not.”

The expose comes at a time when the #MeToo movement has had a huge push in Hollywood and which has seen moguls like Harvey Weinstein fall from power. In the opera world conductors, James Levine and Charles Dutoit have been fired from numerous companies following allegations of sexual abuse and misconduct, while directors Franco Zeffirelli have also been accused.