A dance choreographer has sued singer Cher for alleged racial discrimination.
Choreographer Kevin Wilson has claimed in the lawsuit that the singer had told him to stopped hiring black dancers for her "Dress to Kill" tour.
During the auditions, when he pointed out to her a dark-skinned dancer that he particularly liked, Cher allegedly told him, "We have too much color onstage."
However, a representative of Cher had denied the claims, saying that the statements were false.
"These are ridiculous allegations. They couldn't be further from the truth," said Cher's publicist. She added, "To attribute such a statement to Cher is absurd."
Meanwhile, the lawsuit further claimed that Wilson and two other dancers, Suzanne Easter and Jacquely Dowsett Ballinger, have been fired after reporting an incident involving one of Cher's male dancers.
Wilson stated in his claims that the dancer got sexually aggressive towards a female fan during their show in Louisville last June. The three reported the incident, but Cher allegedly tried to cover the incident up. She then continued keeping the dancer while firing the three whistleblowers.
They were told that the reason for firing was budget cuts, but the dancers claimed this reason untrue. Apparently, the tour was a huge success as it was ranked as one of the top 10 grossing tours in 2014. "Dress to Kill" has a reported gross profit of $54.9 million.
Wilson's lawyer Perry Wander told TMZ, "The allegations are made by long term employees who have been on tour with Cher for over a decade."
He added, "Cher, while reviewing audition tapes, stated that the tour had too much colour and the choreographer was prohibited from casting any dark-skinned or African Americans even if they were better qualified than other counterparts."
Cher finished the first leg of her tour last July. She will begin the second leg next month, which will begin in Toronto, Canada and will finish in New York City in December.
