In a column published on its site, the daily Frankurter Allgemeine Zeitung, employer of the attacked dance critic, says: “Saturday evening, on the sidelines of the premiere of the ballet “Glaube – Liebe – Hoffnung” (Faith – love – hope”, editor’s note) at the Opera of Hanover (north), a disgusting incident occurred”.
“During the intermission, the director of the Hannover ballet, Marco Goecke, first verbally and then physically attacked our dance critic, Wiebke Hüster,” he wrote.
“In the hall of the Opera, the fifty-year-old Goecke planted himself in front of our critic (who until then did not know him personally) to ask him what she was doing at the premiere”, continues the newspaper.
Apparently unhappy with one of his past critics, “he first threatened to ban him from entering, then accused him of being responsible for the cancellations of season tickets in Hanover”, continues the FAZ.
No longer in control, “he took out a paper bag filled with animal turds and smeared this content on the face of our critic”, adds the newspaper, renowned for its seriousness.
A Hanover police spokeswoman confirmed to AFP that a complaint had been lodged by a 57-year-old woman “because her face had been smeared with dog turds”.
The excrement was not seized, therefore the police will have to rely on the basis of testimony, she said. An investigation has been opened.
This “humiliating act” is an “attempt to intimidate free and critical observation of the arts”, judges the FAZ.
In a statement released on Monday, the Hanover Opera announced that it was “suspending” Marco Goecke from his duties with immediate effect and “banned him access” to the institution “in order to protect the ballet and the theater from any further damage. “.
Mr. Goecke is also “urged to issue a full apology in the coming days”.
The Opera, which apologized to Ms Hüster, “deeply regretted that the public was disturbed by this incident”.
The institution of Hanover was under pressure, the president of the section of the Federation of German journalists for Lower Saxony (region of which Hanover is the capital), Frank Rieger, having notably called for a reaction against the director of Ballet.