Venice's famed La Fenice opera house has fired its music director-designate Beatrice Venezi, bringing to an end a months-long dispute between the conductor, who is close to Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, and the theatre's workers.

The decision by La Fenice's general manager to appoint Venezi as music director last September was condemned by the musicians who said they had not been consulted, as is customary.

Venezi, 36, would have been the first woman in the role and was due to have taken up the post in October. She did not respond to a Reuters request for comment.

La Fenice said in a statement on Sunday the decision to sack Venezi followed her "repeated and serious public statements, which were offensive and damaging to the artistic and professional standing" of La Fenice and its orchestra.

In an interview with the Argentine daily La Nacion last week, Venezi said jobs in La Fenice's orchestra were handed down from father to son.

"I have no godfathers. That is the difference. I do not come from a family of musicians," she said.

Venezi also told the newspaper she was a fan of strong and competent women such as Meloni and that she was happy when Meloni won the 2022 election.

La Fenice rejected her accusation of nepotism, saying people only joined the orchestra after open international auditions.

PROTESTS AND CANCELLATION OF OPENING NIGHT

Protests against Venezi led to the cancellation of the opening night of Alban Berg's "Wozzeck" last October, as well as rallies in Venice involving orchestra members, theatre workers and season ticket holders calling for the resignations both of her and the general manager Nicola Colabianchi.

"When appointing a music director, it is customary for the candidate to work with the orchestra beforehand, allowing both parties to determine whether the foundations exist for a successful artistic partnership," Paolo Bertoldo, a percussionist and union representative for the theatre's workers, told Reuters on Monday.

Critics also said Venezi was too young to take on the role of music director of the theatre, founded in 1792, where conductors such as Igor Stravinsky and Claudio Abbado have performed, and that her closeness to Meloni risked undermining the theatre's independence.

Colabianchi said at the time of her appointment that he had picked her because she was talented, young and a woman.

Venezi is seen as close to Meloni's Brothers of Italy party and was hired as a musical consultant to the government after Meloni was elected prime minister in 2022. On Monday, the Italian leader issued a statement denying a newspaper report that she had authorised Venezi's sacking.

-Reporting by Sara Rossi; Editing by Crispian Balmer and Alison Williams/Reuters