French choreographers stand up for fired director of Lyon Opera

A group of prestigious choreographers and artists has published an open letter calling for the director of the Lyon Opera to be reinstated, after he was fired last month over a case of discrimination.

"A Quiet Evening of Dance", by William Forsythe. Montpellier Danse/Bill Cooper

At the beginning of February, the executive board of the Opera voted to fire Yorgos Loukos, who lost an appeal on the issue in December.

Loukos was defending his decision to not rehire one of his dancers when she returned from maternity leave.

In the Libération daily newspaper, dozens of artists expressed their support for the man who had been at the head of the Lyon ballet for 33 years.

Slamming what they described as an "arbitrary and incomprehensible" decision on the part of the board, his supporters have called for all ballet personnel to be consulted over the matter.

Demand for a vote

"If the majority of ballet dancers vote for Yorgos Loukos, as we believe they will, then he will be able to pursue his career."

The group threatened to withdraw their works from the Opera's catalogue if their demands were not met.

Among the signatories there were choreographers William Forsythe, Mats Ek, Jiri Kylian, Maguy Marin, ballet dancers Benjamin Millepied and Sylvie Guillem, the stage director Robert Wilson, as well as the actor Isabelle Huppert.

They say that "8 out of 16 dancers in the present lineup are mothers to one or more children and that more than 25 dancers have already faced a similar situation in the past" with regards to their contracts.

Not hired for artistic reasons

"The dancer in question was not given a contract for artistic reasons, it had nothing to do with discrimination," they maintain.

In 2014, dancer Karline Marion, 34, who had been on a short-term contract with the Lyon Opera for five years, received a letter saying her contract would not be renewed, two days after she came back from maternity leave.

When she confronted the director over this some days later, she recorded their discussion in which he explained his decision.

"If between 29 and 34 you've done quite a lot, but not a whole lot, it's not between 35 and 40 that you'll do any more, and especially with a child," Loukos told her.