While her Russian homeland continued to bombard Ukraine in the dark and cold with combat drones and missiles over the weekend, the 51-year-old, who lives in Vienna, appeared with her family in evening dress at the festively laid New Year’s table. You can also see her bring in the food.
A few days earlier she had written in a post that the end of the year was cause for reflection. “And I have to say that despite all the storms that have come down on me, this year has been a really good one!” she wrote. “It was better than the last one.” While many Russians are hit by Western sanctions over Moscow’s war on Ukraine, Vienna-based Netrebko appeared at the lavishly laid table.
The internationally acclaimed soprano has been criticized for her alleged closeness to President Vladimir Putin following the start of Russia’s war against Ukraine. In the past, she was also photographed holding the flag of the pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine. In the course of criticism and the cancellation of concerts and opera performances in Germany, the US and other Western countries, she had distanced herself from Putin in writing. This earned her sharp criticism and cancellations of performances in Russia.
“My position is clear. I am not a member of any political party nor am I associated with any Russian leader,” she said through her German lawyer in March. “I acknowledge and regret that some of my past actions or statements may have been misinterpreted. In fact, I’ve only met President Putin a few times in my life, especially at awards ceremonies for my art or at the opening ceremony of the Olympics.”
(SDA)