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The artists at the Armenian National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet named after Alexander Spendiaryan have gathered outside the government headquarters in Yerevan to protest the dismissal of Constantine Orbelian as the theater director.

Orbelian was fired as General Director of the Yerevan Opera Theater on 28 March under a decision by Acting Minister of Culture Nazeni Gharibyan, but continues to serve as Artistic Director of the theater. Gharibyan justified her decision with the fact that Orbelian cannot hold two offices simultaneously by law.

Expressing solidarity with Orbelian, the protesters demand the authorities to cancel the decision and fire the caretaker culture minister for ‘disrespect’ towards culture and cultural figures and her decisions contradicting the law.

Seven employees of the Opera House will meet with Prime Minster Nikol Pashinyan to voice their concerns.

“Our fight is not against an individual: it is against the system. Our government fails to understand that the arrival of new theater director with all the levers of control in hand causes an obstacle,” Liparit Avetisyan, an artist at the theater, said.

Orbelian, a Grammy-nominated conductor, was appointed Artistic Director of the Yerevan Opera Theater in 2016. A year later, he also started serving as General Director of the theater. He is also the chief conductor of the Kaunas City Symphony Orchestra in Lithuania since 2013.

Orbelian leads concerts and recordings with some of the world’s greatest singers, in projects such as recordings of “Simon Boccanegra” and “Rigoletto,” with Dmitri Hvorostovsky in the title roles, and Virtuoso Rossini Arias, with American tenor Lawrence Brownlee.