Constantine Orbelian has been reinstated in his post of the Director General of the Armenian National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet named after Alexander Spendiaryan.

“I have been reinstated to the post. As you may know the ministry petitions the ruling of the first instance court to the Court of Appeals which was subsequently rejected. Starting from today, I am the director of the of the Armenian National Academic Theatre of Opera and Ballet, ” Orbelian told a press conference on Monday.

To remind, Orbelian was fired as Director of the Armenian National Academic Theatre in March 2019. The dismissal was ordered by Armenia’s then Acting Minister of Culture Nazeni Gharibyan.

Nazeni Gharibyan explained her decision by the fact that Orbelian acted as the opera’s artistic director, and argued that he was not legally allowed to combine the two positions. She also stressed that the San Francisco-born conductor and pianist is not fluent in Armenian.

As Orbelian informed the works on ongoing projects and scheduled premiers will commence, expressing hope they will be able to bring them to life.