Estonia National Opera soloists call for director’s resignation

Fourteen soloists at Estonia National Opera have asked its supervisory board to dismiss general director Ott Maaten, citing a complete lack of trust, ERR reported.

In a letter to the board, the soloists said there had been no substantive changes in the two months since their last meeting with Maaten. They said promises had not been kept, particularly concerning disagreements between the soloists and Helen Lepalaan.

The soloists said plans to address problems relied on new staff, including a human resources manager and a head of the opera department, whose recruitment is still under way. They said this amounted to the current management transferring responsibility for finding solutions to others.

They said this approach did not give them confidence in the organisation’s future. The soloists called on the board to make decisions promptly, take responsibility and change the management, citing staff wellbeing and a peaceful working environment.

Board chair Ivari Ilja confirmed to ERR that the letter had been received and that the situation was being taken seriously. The board’s next regular meeting is scheduled for next week, when it will discuss the matter in depth. Ilja said the board would comment after that discussion.