The controversy over Anna Netrebko's CD has continued to explode on the social networks.
On June 12, Deutsche Grammophon released a sneak peak of the Russian superstar's new Verdi album by presenting the album cover. However it was immediately criticized by fans and pundits for being heavily photoshopped.
One person wrote " This cover is horrible. A terrible photoshop job. Nothing looks real or natural. Anna looks plastic and terrifying. I hope it's redone."
Others threatened not to buy the CD because the artwork looked cheap. One fan noted, " What a cheap photoshop! if the album is like the cover better not to buy it" Another added, "I'll never buy this cd with that cover ! Photoshop horror !"
La Cieca from the opera blog Parterre.com went as far as creating an album called "the Annas" where Netrebko's face from the cover was photoshopped into various other posters. Some of the pictures included the Russian soprano's face superimposed on posters from "Man of Steel," "V For Vendetta," "Statue of Liberty," "Star Trek: Into Darkness," and "The Adam's Family."
The blog Operachic also ridiculed the poster by photoshopping cats into the cover while some fans sent mock up covers to the Netrebko's Facebook page.
The record company has yet to respond to the criticism.
The CD will be released internationally on August 9, 2013 and includes arias from "Macbeth," "Il Trovatore," "Giovanna d'Arco," "Don Carlo," and I Vespri Siciliani" and was conducted by Italian conductor Gianandrea Noseda; the album marks Netrebko's first solo studio recording in five years.
Netrebko is set to perform in Red Square where she will sing alongside Dimitri Hvorostovsky in a concert that will celebrate Verdi and will also include works by Tchaikovsky and Puccini. Netrebko will then make a stop at the Verbier Festival to sing the first act of Verdi's "Otello," and later make her role debut in Verdi's "Giovanna D'Arco" at the Salzburg festival. Netrebko will also make her role debut as Leonora in "Il Trovatore" at the Berlin State Opera and her role debut as Lady Macbeth in "Macbeth" at the Bavarian State Opera in Munich.