I Puritani

Though the opera is an ensemble piece — few of the principals are spared the demands of Bellini's long-breathed melodies, vocal agility and exposed high notes — you cannot present I puritani without an Elvira who can dazzle. Oropesa fills those large shoes… how nuanced and devastatingly powerful her singing is. The flutter of mania hovers through the soprano's delivery of the central mad scene, signposted by the aria Qui la voce, yet nothing is over-egged.

Still, as it should be, the night belongs to the diva.

—  Neil Fisher  •  The Times

There is a superlative performance by Lisette Oropesa as Elvira, whose coloratura is diamond-like in its purity and brilliance… the trills she produces never feel like mere display. Oropesa makes her feel like a human being as well as a symbol of feminine fragility.

—  Julia Rank  •  London Theatre

Oropesa is in her absolute vocal prime. As the happy bride of Act 1, the coloratura of her polonaise Son vergin vezzosa sparkled with diamantine brilliance; pining for Arturo's return, her range of colours in Qui la voce was wide, sometimes pared to the merest silver thread; and then the ornaments in the second verse of her delirious cabaletta Vien, diletto, è in ciel la luna were more florid than the Chelsea Flower Show. This was bel canto singing to crown a new golden age.

—  Mark Pullinger  •  Bachtrack

The artist whose approach is most consistently impressive is soprano Lisette Oropesa, who has achieved outstanding success at this address in such comparable assignments as the title role of Lucia di Lammermoor. Like Donizetti’s tragic heroine, Elvira temporarily loses her reason. Oropesa’s technical skills and sheer interpretative imagination make her movingly memorable throughout

—  George Hall  •  The Stage

Woman of the match, though, is Lisette Oropesa. Elvira is fast becoming a signature role for her, and her performance, dazzlingly well sung and consistently dramatically involving, is the best reason for reviving this tricky, fascinating opera.

—  Erica Jeal  •  The Guardian

Lisette Oropesa now adds remarkable acting to the star vehicle… Oropesa projects charismatic instability and full upper-reach phrases, the fastish vibrato in the voice suitable for the nervous Elvira… she presses all the right buttons and the dramatic gestures feel real.

—  David Nice  •  The Arts Desk

It is primarily her singing that rescues this woeful new production by the Royal Opera… Oropesa is more in the classic Italianate style with a clear, limpid soprano of bel canto size, giving us singing that is expressive and effortlessly agile. In the mad scene, the heart of the opera, her artistry sparkled.

—  Richard Fairman  •  Financial Times

Bellini's elaborately chiselled lines, which portray deep emotional turbulence, are so immaculately managed by Oropesa that she makes life hard for everyone else on stage… it proves that, with the right voices, the expressive world of bel canto opera can still hit home.

—  Nicholas Kenyon  •  The Telegraph

Cuban-American soprano Lisette Oropesa has staked a claim as the undisputed heavyweight champion of Elviras. The character transforms from a charming ingénue to a haunted wraith… a transcendental performance that to this set of ears shows the influence of Callas… Oropesa, channelling the spirit of Callas, gives us an Elvira for the ages.

—  Adrian York  •  London Unattached

She does not disappoint. Not only is her coloratura astounding – a fearless command of the stratospheric register coupled with a remarkable range of colour – but in her descent into so-called madness, after being apparently jilted on her wedding day, she offers a persuasive and moving psychological portrait of a woman undergoing a crisis of self-esteem.

—  Barry Millington  •  Evening Standard

Leading that case is Lisette Oropesa, whose Elvira was magnificent. Few sopranos today combine such effortless technical accomplishment with genuine dramatic intelligence… This wasn't merely dazzling singing; it was a complete performance, making the emotional fragility of Bellini's heroine entirely believable.

Oropesa alone is reason enough to see the production.

—  Keith McDonnell  •  Music OMH

What makes her interpretation so compelling is not only the dazzling agility of her voice and wonderful range of tonal nuance, but also her dramatic presence on stage and her insights into this troubled character: with Oropesa, Elvira's long descent into madness was as emotionally powerful as it was musically acrobatic, crowned by a superlative account of Vien diletto, è in ciel la luna in Act Two. This was an immensely rewarding interpretation of an outrageously taxing role, made all the more thrilling thanks to Oropesa's conviction and theatrical instincts.

—  Nigel Simeone  •  Opera Now

What we are here for is the singing, and specifically for Lisette Oropesa's Elvira… the emotional heavy lifting has been left almost exclusively to the American soprano, and Oropesa carries it without apparent strain.

Jones intelligently gives her the space and time to establish Elvira as the production's lodestone.

—  Franco Milazzo  •  Broadway World

Outstanding in the role of Elvira, the bride abandoned at the altar, is Lisette Oropesa, who has championed this opera… In the mad scene she achieves the impossible, the voice untethered by Elvira's state of mind but also full of meaning and flawless.

If you love the human voice, catch this perfect specimen if you can.

—  Claudia Pritchard  •  Critics' Circle

The singing is first rate, with Lisette Oropesa giving an outstanding performance as Elvira… Oropesa rises to the challenge superbly, with her soprano being possessed of a great clarity that paradoxically enables her to offer a ‘dreamy’ sound that conveys her state of mind and total fragility.

—  Sam Smith  •  Opera Online

She is a soprano gifted with remarkable talents. She is lauded as the best lyric coloratura of her generation and on this showing, that is indisputable.

Not just an astonishing voice but a consummate actor also. Oropesa is, unquestionably, a supreme artist.

—  Mike Hardy  •  OperaWire

The RBO's new staging of the English Civil War opera boasts a commanding performance from Lisette Oropesa.

The Cuban-American soprano Lisette Oropesa is the Elvira of the moment. Oropesa has rock-like security of intonation.

—  Fiona Maddocks  •  The Observer

Il aura fallu une autre diva, celle de notre temps, en la personne de Lisette Oropesa, qui s’est récemment imposée comme une véritable défenseure du répertoire de Bellini, pour que la maison de Covent Garden reprogramme Les Puritains après trente-quatre ans d’absence.

La soprano Lisette Oropesa brille une fois encore dans le rôle d’Elvira par sa grande agilité technique, une douceur exquise du ton et un jeu d’actrice convaincant, plongeant le spectateur dans les tourments de son esprit fragile.

—  Vojin Jaglicic  •  Olyrix

The reigning lyric coloratura soprano du jour delivered not only vocally, but also dramatically, showing her impactful stage presence, her sensitive acting, and athletic physicality.

Her soprano soars like a hovercraft through the famously challenging second act mad scene (Qui la voce sua soave/Vien, diletto, e in ciel la luna), her legato utterly exquisite.

—  Philip Eisenbeiss  •  Interlude