Gergiev protests threatened as London Symphony tour announced

Gay rights protests are likely to meet the LSO's principal conductor when the Orchestra comes to Australia later this year.
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Carnegie Hall protesters Photo: WQXR

Recent appearances by conductor Valery Gergiev have been greeted with protests in London and the US, over his sympathy with  the anti-gay stance of Russian President Vladamir Putin.

Now the London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is heading to Australia under the baton of principal conductor Gergiev and there are threats the same disruptions will occur here.

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Richard Watts OAM is ArtsHub's National Performing Arts Editor; he also presents the weekly program SmartArts on Three Triple R FM. Richard is a life member of the Melbourne Queer Film Festival, a Melbourne Fringe Festival Living Legend, and was awarded the Sidney Myer Performing Arts Awards' Facilitator's Prize in 2020. In 2021 he received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Green Room Awards Association. Most recently, Richard received a Medal of the Order of Australia (OAM) in June 2024. Follow him on Twitter: @richardthewatts