“Michigan Opera Theatre conductor Stephen Lord … resigned Wednesday after being accused of sexually harassing singers, pianists and conductors all over the country for more than a decade,” writes Tresa Baldas in Wednesday’s (6/19) Detroit Free Press. “Lord allegedly left a trail of electronic evidence, which was obtained and published by the TwinCities Arts Reader.… The Arts Reader, an online lifestyles magazine … interviewed more than two dozen individuals who allege Lord harassed them and used his prestige to silence them. One day after the investigation broke, Lord resigned from his job in Michigan…. Michigan Opera Theatre … declined comment on any specific allegations…. Lord was not readily available for comment Wednesday afternoon…. Lord also is accused of victim-blaming women who alleged they were sexually assaulted by a singer named Matthew Stump, who in the wake of the scandal ended up getting hired by the Michigan Opera Theatre … It was Lord who allegedly pushed for Stump to get the job…. Lord … was music director and principal conductor at Boston Lyric Opera for 17 years, and he’s conducted significant productions at such companies as the Lyric Opera of Chicago, English National Opera, San Francisco Opera and the former New York City Opera.”
Posted June 20, 2019
