Photo: Christophe Gateau/picture alliance/Getty
A German ballet director has been suspended after he allegedly smeared dog feces on the face of a critic whose review he disagreed with.
Thedaily newspaperFrankfurter Allgemeine Zeitungreported that Goecke, 50, approached its dance critic, Wieble Hüster, during a premiere over the weekend and asked what she was doing there, the news agency said.
Goecke did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Monday.
During the altercation, Goecke allegedly threatened to ban her from the ballet and accused her of being the reason people were canceling season tickets at the Hanover.
He then allegedly pulled out a paper bag with animal feces and smeared it on her face before fleeing through the theater foyer, the AP said.
Hüster later recounted the incident, saying that Goecke had “suddenly pulled the bag from his pocket. With the open side of the bag, he rubbed the dog excrement in my face. When I felt what he had done, I screamed,” according toThe Guardian.
“I can assure you that it was not an impulsive act -he had planned this. I consider it an act against the freedom of [the] press,” Hüster told the BBC.
Hüster did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Monday.
Laura Berman, the opera house’s artistic director, told The Guardian she apologized to Hüster and said they would investigate the incident before deciding what next steps to take.
Berman said management would “explore the relevant steps relating to labor law with respect to” Goecke and “then act in this internal staff matter”.
The Hanover opera house and Berman did not immediately respond to PEOPLE’s request for comment on Monday.
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Goecke was given a few days to apologize but was suspended on Monday, according to the AP.
But, he added: “Once a certain point has been reached, I disagree.”
source: people.com
