A German newspaper critic had animal feces smeared on her face in the city of Hannover by a ballet director who apparently took offense at a review she wrote.

The Hannover state opera house apologized for the incident and said Monday that it was suspending ballet director Marco Goecke with immediate effect.

The daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported that a furious Goecke approached its dance critic, Wiebke Huester, during the interval of a premiere at Hannover鈥檚 opera house on Saturday and asked what she was doing there. It said that the two didn鈥檛 know each other personally.

The newspaper said that Goecke, who apparently felt provoked by a recent review she wrote of a production he staged in the Dutch seat of government, The Hague, threatened to ban her from the ballet and accused her of being responsible for people canceling season tickets in Hannover.

He then pulled out a paper bag with animal feces and smeared her face with the contents before making off through a packed theater foyer, the newspaper said. Huester identified the substance as dog feces and said she had filed a criminal complaint, German news agency dpa reported.

In a statement on its website, the opera house said Huester鈥檚 鈥減ersonal integrity鈥� was violated 鈥渋n an unspeakable way.鈥� It said that it contacted her immediately after the incident to apologize.

The opera house said that Goecke鈥檚 鈥渋mpulsive reaction鈥� violated the ground rules of the theater and that 鈥渉e caused massive damage to the Hannover State Opera and State Ballet.鈥� As a result, it said, he is being suspended and banned from the opera house until further notice.

Goecke has been given the next few days to apologize 鈥渃omprehensively鈥� and explain himself to theater management 鈥渂efore further steps are announced,鈥� it added.

The ballet director appeared at least partly unrepentant, however. In an interview with public broadcaster NDR, Goecke acknowledged that his 鈥渃hoice of means wasn鈥檛 super, absolutely.鈥�

鈥淥f course socially that is also certainly not recognized or respected, if one resorts to such means,鈥� he said of the attack, adding that he had never done anything like that before and was 鈥渁 bit shocked at myself.鈥�

Goecke said that while having his work 鈥渟oiled for years鈥� was a price he had been told he had to pay for being in the public eye, there was a limit.

鈥淥nce a certain point has been reached, I disagree,鈥� he said.

The German journalists鈥� association DJV denounced the attack.

鈥淎n artist must tolerate criticism, even if it seems exaggerated,鈥� the union鈥檚 regional head in Lower Saxony state, Frank Rieger, said. 鈥淲hoever reacts violently to criticism is unacceptable. The attack on the 鈥� journalist is also an attack on press freedom.鈥�