With less than a week to showtime, the Long Beach Opera announced the cancellation of its first show of the season, “Stimmung,” after the show’s director, Alexander Gedeon, resigned.
The exact reason for Gedeon’s sudden resignation was not disclosed, but a statement by the opera said that at an LBO board meeting in December, three staff members, including Gedeon, expressed concerns about “the organization’s internal communications, work environment and issues related to equity and diversity.”
“LBO’s Board and leadership team members were shocked and dismayed by these allegations as they are in direct opposition to our individual and collective values,” the opera said in its statement.
Gedeon could not immediately be reached for comment.
The Los Angeles Times first reported news of the cancellation.
“Stimmung,” an immersive opera featuring the music of Karlheinz Stockhausen’s a capella opera, was to be staged at the now-closed Fresh & Easy grocery store at the City Place shopping mall in Downtown, with shows March 19-20 and March 26-27. Months were spent transforming the abandoned grocery store into a “magical kitchen” where the audience would encircle six performers preparing a meal that they would also share with the audience.
The project had been Gedeon’s brainchild, and after consulting with the performing artists in the show, LBO decided that it would not be “appropriate” to continue the show without him, according to the statement.
“The project had already been completely funded, built, rehearsed, and was just over one week from opening when he tendered his resignation,” the statement continued. “LBO will honor our commitment to compensate all the artists for their work preparing the project nonetheless.”
The opera said it would also reach out to individual ticket holders with instructions on how to receive a refund.
After the allegations put forth by the LBO staff members, LBO said in the statement it hired an investigator to look into the issues, and has spent two months interviewing LBO’s current and former staff members as well as board members and independent contractor artists.
The opera said that the investigation should be finished in a few weeks and “results will be made public at that time.”