The Globe and Mail reports in its Tuesday edition that the Calgary Opera has replaced bass singer Gabriel Sanchez-Ortega as the character of Cesare Angelotti in its run of Puccini's Tosca after the vocalist unfurled a Palestinian flag during curtain call Friday. The Globe's Josh O'Kane writes that the opera company issued a statement confirming that "a cast member displayed a flag" at Friday's opening night performance, calling it unauthorized. "I have no regrets," he wrote on Instagram. "This is the state of cultural institutions in Canada. I was informed that financial threats have been made against Calgary Opera. I hold no resentment." The Calgary Opera said it prohibits personal protests. Numerous rifts have emerged in the arts world since Hamas attacked Israel on Oct. 7, 2023; Israel's response has killed more than 74,000 Gazans. The Giller Prize for fiction faced numerous protests over former sponsors -- particularly the Bank of Nova Scotia, which held a significant investment in Israeli arms maker Elbit Systems through a subsidiary. Those sponsors have since left, ending a boycott. Both the Hot Docs documentary festival and Toronto's Contact Photography Festival also saw pushback over Scotiabank sponsorships.
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