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  30 Nov 17 Verdi Falstaff
  RLPO/Vasily Petrenko

  “Evans, soaring gloriously in the first-act ensembles.
  Andrew Clements, The Guardian, 27 November 2017 

  “The other experienced trouper, Terfel’s fellow Welsh singer Rebecca Evans produced the ideal expansive phrasing for Alice Ford’s mockery of her “shining star” over lecherous Falstaff – and her sense of fun was ideal for the merriest of wives.”
  David Nice, The Arts Dest, 27 November 2017

   

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  30 Oct 17 Handel Rodelinda
  English National Opera

  “Rebecca Evans reprised her turn as a voluptuously full-voiced Rodelinda, her sound always seductive and ornamentation finely controlled.”
  Flora Willson, Opera, December 2017

  “Handel’s operas depend crucially on the quality of the singing, and here ENO has been canny in selecting a top-notch cast who can enter confidently into the manifold intricacies of the staging while still delivering the vocal goods. In the enormous title role, Rebecca Evans has to jump through innumerable vocal hoops yet is never found wanting; her tone is consistently beautiful and her expression exact.”
  George Hall, The Guardian, 27 October 2017

  “Rebecca Evans’s impassioned voice of many colours perfectly suits Rodelinda’s wide-ranging music. There’s a special thrill in hearing her belt out the words ‘I loathe you’, but she equally convinces, all melting butter, when murmuring ‘My darling husband’.
  Geoff Brown, The Times, 31 October 2017

  “Returning as Rodelinda is Rebecca Evans, again asserting her credentials as one of the finest Handelians in the UK.”
  Barry Millington, Evening Standard, 28 October 2017

  “The cast is pretty much faultless, too. Rebecca Evans and Susan Bickley return to the roles of Rodelinda and Eduige in which they shone in 2014.”
  Mark Valencia, What’s on Stage, 27 October 2017

  “Rebecca Evans reprising the lead remains wonderfully versatile, whether deviant or grief-stricken – and she captures outpourings of love to perfection.”
  David Truslove, Classical Source, 26 October 2017

  “The cast are, fortunately, superb, many reprising their roles from the first run. Rebecca Evans captures all of Rodelinda’s dolorous grief and self-examination, untroubled by the heights from which so many of Handel’s phrases start, then fall lamentingly. She imbues her soprano with freshness and warmth to convey the depth of her love for Bertarido, and their Act 2 duet is a musical and emotional peak of the performance.”
  Claire Seymour, Opera Today, 30 October 2017

  “Rebecca Evans as Rodelinda delivers her solos with consummate control…In counter-tenor Tim Mead as Bertarido, and soprano Rebecca Evans as Rodelinda, the central roles are gorgeously taken…Evans delivers her solos with consummate control: the lilting grace of her ‘Ritorna, o caro’ seems to magic up the stunning beauty of the duet which follows her husband’s return.”
  Michael Church, Independent, 31 October 2017

  “Rebecca Evans returns as Rodelinda…a gripping assumption of the role and, most importantly, a believable one. She has all the agility her role requires, too, as her opening aria in the second act testified.”
  Colin Clarke, Seen and Heard International, 26 October 2017 

  “All the leading singers give beautiful performances, with Tim Mead (Bertarido) and Rebecca Evans (Rodelinda) the pick of a fine cast.”
  William Hartston, Express, 30 October 2017

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  28 Jul 17 Strauss The Complete Songs - Volume 8
  Hyperion

  “In these four last songs, Rebecca Evans matches him in that particular ardent introspection Strauss demands.”
  5***** Fiona Maddocks, The Guardian, 23 July 2017

  “But the gains in immediacy and intimacy of these reductions bring their own rewards, and Rebecca Evans…makes a supremely eloquent and musical case for them.”
  Hugo Shirley, Gramophone, August 2017

  “When you have as classy a soprano as Rebecca Evans to hand, it’s well worth recording the Vier Letzte Lieder in a piano version (not by Strauss) which sheds a more intimate light on these masterpieces. Evans weaves a special magic in the dying falls, with magnificent breath control at the end of ‘September’.
  David Nice, BBC Music Magazine (Choral & Song Choice), October 2017

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  05 Jun 17 Strauss Der Rosenkavalier
  Welsh National Opera

  “…she sculpts the Marschallin’s phrases with a beauty of tone that suggests immaculate husbandry of her vocal resources, and an eloquent delivery and understanding of Hofmannsthal’s wordy text that speaks of a lifetime of singing Strauss. So many of the Marschallin’s phrases make time stand still — the line about her waking up in the night and stopping all the clocks is one of the opera’s most potent, nostalgic images — but none more so here than the notorious Silver Rose phrase at the end of Act I. I’ve rarely heard it more securely, or musically, sung.”
  Hugh Canning, The Sunday Times, 11 June 2017

  “In her role debut, Rebecca Evans’s sensitive interpretation of a woman who is wise and perceptive came over strongly.  She was a graceful and gracious presence…Evans spun long and expressive vocal lines…”
  Rian Evans, Opera, August 2017

  “Singing the role of the Marschallin with immaculate poise and beauty, Rebecca Evans presents the introspective Viennese princess with well-defined personality and more asperity than usual.”
  George Hall, The Financial Times, 09 June 2017

  “It would be hard to imagine a stronger cast, vocally at least. Rebecca Evans is short of stature for the Marschallin, but she overcomes this with beautiful, elegant Strauss singing worthy of Schwarzkopf or even Lotte Lehmann.”
  Stephen Walsh, The Arts Desk, 13 June 2017

  “With her even, handsome soprano, Rebecca Evans cuts a figure of serene dignity as the Marschallin, able to see all of society’s deep flaws yet treasure life’s momentary beauty. It’s hard to believe that this was Evans’s role debut; she stirred tears and stopped all the clocks. Sophie might see her as a rival for Octavian’s affections, but the Marschallin sees in the lovestruck teenager a chance of redemption.”
  Rebecca Franks, The Times, 06 June 2017

  “Rebecca Evans made a promising debut as the Marschallin…she presents a sympathetic personality and sings with grace and feeling, launching the great trio with tone of tear-jerking purity.”
  Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 05 June 2017

  “Above all, it is the singing that made this production compelling: Rebecca Evans, making her debut in the role of the Feldmarschallin, was dignified, clear-voiced and credible as an aristo.”
  David Truslove, Bachtrack, 06 June 2017

  “British singers Louise Alder and Rebecca Evans both excelled as the loves in Octavian’s life, representing the vernal and the autumnal respectively. As for Evans, WNO owed its loyal Welsh diva a Marschallin and she didn’t disappoint. Hers was a creamily floated role debut that had it all: dignity, wisdom, courage and regret.”
  Mark Valencia, What’s on Stage, 05 June 2017

  “…director Olivia Fuchs’ fin de siecle new production for Welsh National Opera, revolves around the Marschallin’s poignant response to growing older. It’s a triumphant role debut for soprano Rebecca Evans.”
  Steph Power, The Stage, 05 June 2017

  “Rebecca Evans, in her role debut, brings a strong sense of the Marschallin’s sensibilities: not only her perception of human foibles, but also her sense that the world as she knows it is about to fall apart…it felt appropriate that, with Evans’s graceful assumption of the older woman’s role, Sophie was sung by a young soprano whose career looks to follow a similarly stellar trajectory. Louise Alder’s sparkling soprano has great poise and assurance and her warm reception was richly deserved.”
  Rian Evans, The Guardian, 05 June 2017

  “…a glorious role debut for Rebecca Evans…”
  Steph Power, Opera Now, July/August 2017

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  29 Sep 15 Handel Orlando
  Welsh National Opera

  Angelica – the woman who is the object of [Orlando’s] affections – is portrayed by Rebecca Evans, mixing an insouciant aristocratic hauteur with very genuine feeling. Evans’s deep instinct for Handel is always apparent.
  Rian Evans, The Guardian, 28 September 2015

  The complex character of Angelica was brilliantly captured by Welsh soprano Rebecca Evans who while singing sometimes has the audience holding its breath in admiration.
  Peter Collins, Walesonline, 28 September 2015 

  Rebecca Evans is an admirably poised Angelica, elegant and stylish, and suddenly very moving in ‘Verdi piante’.
  Stephen Walsh, The Arts Desk, 28 September 2015 

  …Fflur Wyn and Rebecca Evans [were] the elegantly twittering and lamenting ladies…
  Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 29 September 2015

  Established star Rebecca Evans was immense in her moments of anguish as she marked her 25th anniversary with the WNO.
  Mark Rees, 05 October 2015 

  Rebecca Evans in the best frock of the evening, with hat and red wig to match. Evans’s weightier tone brought out the full lyric potential of Angelica’s role.
  Simon Rees, Bachtrack, 08 October 2015 

  Fflur Wyn, as Dorinda, and Rebecca Evans as Angelica portrayed the conflicts of love in this performance. The rich variety and strength of their singing, allied in both cases to convincing acting, were highlights of the evening.
  Robert J Farr, Seen and Heard, 01 November 2015 

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  17 Jun 14 Mozart Le nozze di Figaro
  Royal Opera House, Covent Garden

  But the outstanding performance was that of Rebecca Evans as the Countess, as lovely to behold as to hear.  Her purity of line and security in high-lying passages, called to mind some of the legendary Countesses, such as Margaret Price.  In ‘Dove sono’ her use of ornamentation was natural and discreet – it would have gladdened the heart of Charles Mackerras.  As for her expressive forgiveness of the Count at the end, it would have melted the stoniest heart.
  Michael Kennedy, Opera, July 2014

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  03 Mar 14 Handel Rodelinda
  English National Opera

  Rebecca Evans (Rodelinda) and the countertenor Iestyn Davies (Bertarido) sing their duet with consummate skill. Evans has everything the role requires…
  Hilary Finch, The Times, 03 March 2014

  …it doesn’t happen often in opera that all the elements combine for total musical theatre that stuns: in this case, two great voices – Rebecca Evans’ soprano and Iestyn Davies’ countertenor – at what sounds like the peak of their stylish careers.
  David Nice, The Arts Desk, 01 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans in the title role gives vent to her own desolation, it’s with a full-bloodedness turning to physical fury as she hurls jewels back at her would-be seducer Grimoaldo.
  Michael Church, The Independent, 03 March 2014

  …the world-class Welsh soprano …is given… a raft of great music which she sang with her customary brilliance. This is an opera where the diva has all the best tunes, and Evans seized them gratefully.
  Mark Valencia, What’s on Stage, 01 March 2014

  Musically it’s tremendous…Evans but did extraordinary things with her ecstatic aria of relief on discovering that Bertarido is still alive.
  Tim Ashley, The Guardian, 01 March 2014

  …excellent singing, particularly from Rebecca Evans in the title role and Iestyn Davies as the usurped King.
  Sam Smith, The Londonist, 01 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans showed Rodelinda as a woman more than capable of asserting her rank and getting the better of Grimoaldo, as well as combining great tenderness in her expressions of fidelity to Bertarido, for instance in the ravishing ‘Ritorna, oh caro’.
  Curtis Rogers, Classical Source, March 2014

  a cabaret of superb musical quality. Rebecca Evans and Iestyn Davies are just about perfection as Rodelinda and Bertarido, and there’s a performance of terrific personality and authority by John Mark Ainsley as the loopy Grimoaldo.
  Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 04 March 2014

  I cannot gush enough about how utterly divine Rebecca Evans’ Rodelinda was, what a rich tone and perfect technique she had, giving us some flawless high pianissimi to die for. If you want an example of the finest of British singing, this is it.
  Melinda Hughes, Spear’s, 03 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans’s Rodelinda, a dead ringer for Anna Magnani in Rossellini’s 1945 war drama Rome, Open City, emerges as tough and earthy rather than noble and pure. The voice has more colour in the chest register than the top, but Evans handles her arias with unfailing aplomb.
  Andrew Clark, Financial Times, 03 March 2014

  Vital to Handel is quality singing, and you would have to search long and hard to find a Rodelinda as accomplished as Rebecca Evans or a Bertarido as finely-grained as Iestyn Davies: both are superb.
  George Hall, The Stage, 03 March 2014

  The outstanding contribution was that of Rebecca Evans…this is a big voice, big enough to sing Verdi in a large house. As Rodelinda her singing was truly world class, deeply moving, a still point in the midst of chaos, utterly secure in the coloratura and delivering a truly ravishing sotto voce. It would be worth going to a performance purely to hear her sing.
  Miranda Jackson, Opera Britannia, 03 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans delivered her great aria of relief at finding Bertarido alive with a wonderful pianissimo inwardness.
  Helen Wallace, BBC Music Magazine, 04 March 2014

  The supreme star of the show is Rodelinda, sung with ravishing tone and great intensity by Rebecca Evans.
  Michael Tanner, The Spectator, 08 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans excels in the title role, lavishing each aria with finely measured expression, now spitting outrage, now hushed in loving embrace.
  Fiona Maddocks, The Observer, 09 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans…rent the heart with her ravishingly sung Act III arias.
  Hugh Canning, The Sunday Times, 09 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans has always had drama in her blood and in this towering production she gives a performance of consummate singing and acting. The feistiness of her Rodelinda is matched by the pathos and beauty of her singing as she delivers aria after demanding aria that run the gamut of emotions.
  Mike Smith, Walesonline, 09 March 2014

  With a cast led by Rebecca Evans as Rodelinda and the magnificent countertenor Iestyn Davies warbling their way through Handel’s gloriously challenging arias, the whole thing adds up to a thoroughly good and highly amusing night out.
  William Hartston, Daily Express, 06 March 2014

  Rebecca Evans (Rodelinda) and Iestyn Davies (Bertarido) are both fine actors and world-class Handelians.
  Warwick Thompson, Metro, 04 March 2014

  t…here was the wonder of Rodelinda herself, a female character to reckon with, wife, mother and queen, all of them noble – smart – and exquisitely personified by Welsh soprano Rebecca Evans.
  Candice Allen, Artsmeme, 17 March 2014

  As sung by Rebecca Evans, her first aria bristled with defiance…her Rodelinda sounded feisty too, dispatching dramatic crescendos and fiery apeggios with panache….this was a complete and compelling assumption.
  Erica Jeal, Opera, May 2014

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  10 Aug 12 Elgar The Apostles
  Hallé Orchestra/Elder at the BBC Proms

  The resplendent, no-nonsense soprano of Rebecca Evans – on superb form, as is she so often – perhaps had the best of Elgar’s inspiration as the Angel Gabriel, her early address beautifully woven around the string textures so that her higher notes floated above it like a gentle epiphany.
  Guy Dammann, The Guardian, 12 August 2012

  …there were things to savour in the performance. Soprano Rebecca Evans extracted Verdian grandeur from her parts as the Angel Gabriel and the Blessed Virgin.
  Michael Church, The Independent, 13 August 2012

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  25 Feb 12 Mozart Le nozze di Figaro
  Welsh National Opera

  A world class Susanna herself, Rebecca Evans returned to her equally world-class depiction of Countess Almaviva. Evans gave us a master class in cleverly pacing this demanding role, and her assuredness of vocal technique and noble characterisation was a vocal feast. Her diminutive stature gave the Countess a frailty and a smattering of the milk of human kindness, but her vocal reserves are richly hued, especially in the ensembles and the fiendishly beautiful ‘Dove sono’. Her inventive ornamentation flowed with pathos before allowing the finely paced last section of the aria to contain a steel edge, showing that this Countess would not continue to suffer her roving husband’s cruelty. This Countess had stature and nobility and Evans’ artistry is perfectly at home in this role. This was clearly her natural habitat!
  Bethan Dudley Fryar, Opera Britannia, March 2012

  WNO favourite Rebecca Evans vividly bears the Countess’s sorrows.
  Geoff Brown, The Times, 27 February 2012

  Vocally the stand-out performance was that of Rebecca Evans. She brought a weight and depth of emotion to a production which was fairly heavily slanted towards the humorous… It was in her that the rich humanity of the work found fullest expression; her performance of ‘Dovo sono’ would alone have justified a long trip to Cardiff.
  Glyn Pursglove, Seen and Heard, 28 February 2012

  Rebecca Evans (Countess Almaviva) reprises her role with polish and assurance.
  Jenny Longhurst, Wales on Line, 27 February 2012

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  10 Sep 10 Mozart Così fan tutte
  Royal Opera House, Covent Garden

  Vocally and dramatically, Rebecca Evans is a Despina of the highest possible class.
  George Hall, The Stage, 13 September 2010

  Particularly delightful were … Thomas Allen’s … scenes with his Despina, superbly realised by Ms. Evans. The two had tremendous chemistry together; like Sir Thomas, she embodied her role with a completeness that seemed intuitive, offering myriad laughs as much during her immaculately delivered recitative as her delectable ‘Una donna a quindici anni’. She sang the part as flawlessly as I have heard it done, her upper and lower register secure and her enunciation spot on. She assumed the disguised roles of the surgeon and the notary with panache; as with Sir Thomas’s Don Alfonso, it is difficult to imagine a more convincing performance of Despina on offer.
  John E. de Wald, Opera Britannia, 14 September 2010

  Thomas Allen’s Alfonso and Rebecca Evans’ Despina are impeccable.
  Tim Ashley, The Guardian, 13 September 2010

  Rebecca Evans is … Thomas… Allen’s match as his wily gopher Despina. Evans makes the most of her disguises as a quack doctor and a fake judge, and she’s even more entertaining with her furtive slurps of Starbuck’s hot chocolate and her ability to sing through a mouthful of doughnut.
  Mark Valencia, What’s on Stage, 11 September 2010

  Vocally, though, the main interest for me was in Rebecca Evans’s ideal Despina. Combining a rich tone, an idiomatic sensitivity to the text and impeccable comic timing, her performance could scarcely be bettered. Her arias were both beautifully sung, and her participation in the ensembles was always noteworthy.
  Dominic McHugh, Musical Criticism, 11 September 2010

  As the scheming Don Alfonso, Thomas Allen once again gives a supreme performance, wonderfully acted, sung and gestured. He is matched by Rebecca Evans as the sassy Despina; she is a joy to observe and listen to. For these two artists alone this production is worth seeing or returning to.
  Colin Anderson, The Opera Critic, 10 September 2010

  Ideal for her role was Rebecca Evans as Alfonso’s co-conspirator Despina, another captivating singer with a wonderful gift for comedy. She reminded me of a younger brunette version of Barbara Windsor and she seemed to have as much fun as the quack doctor and notary, as we did in watching her.
  Jim Pritchard, Scene and Heard, September 2010

  Evans’ Despina is the fruity voice of guiltfree pleasure.
  Neil Fisher, The Times, 12 September 2010

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  05 Jan 10 Puccini La bohème
  Royal Opera House, Covent Garden

  Rebecca Evans’ radiant Mimì…
  Hugo Shirley, Opera, March 2010

  Rarely have I heard a more musically sophisticated performance than that given by the Polish tenor Piotr Beczala as Rodolfo and the Welsh soprano Rebecca Evans as Mimì.  Here was perfect phrasing and intonation, everything sung with real feeling, and a tenderness that was often deeply moving.  Evans, one of the leading Mozart sopranos of today moves up with ease for her first big Mimi.
  David Mellor, The Mail on Sunday, 17 January 2010

  This current performance signaled Rebecca Evans in her ROH debut as Mimì, a tender, warm and open vocal performance, gently humorous and endearingly timid in character, and dying with dignity: very believable and moving.
  Colin Anderson, The Opera Critic, 10 July 2010

  Mimì was sung by Rebecca Evans, marking her Royal Opera debut in the role…all her instincts were honed, as her account in the last two acts displayed, and it was her ability to show off a dramatic core that made her interpretation successful…Evans’ Mimì, made this night more than worthwhile.
  Kevin Rogers, Classical Source, 11 January 2010

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  22 Oct 09 Britten The Turn of the Screw
  English National Opera

  The cast could hardly be better. Rebecca Evans sings with sweet vulnerability as the naive young governess.
  Warwick Thompson, Bloomberg, 29 October 2009

  Rebecca Evans’s superbly judged, utterly humane Governess.
  Andrew Clements, The Guardian, 23 October 2009

  Rebecca Evans, as the Governess driven to dangerous distraction, returned faultlessly to the role.
  Nick Breckenfield, What’s On Stage, 23 October 2009

  Rebecca Evans sang with scrupulous care and a degree of fine abandon as the Governess.
  Stephen Jay-Taylor, Opera Britannia, 24 October 2009

  The outstanding Rebecca Evans.
  Richard Morrison, The Times, 26 October 2009

  Rebecca Evans as the governess sings with power and clarity, charting her journey through hysteria and horror with detailed insight.
  Warwick Thompson, The Metro, 26 October 2009

  Rebecca Evans sings the Governess almost too beautifully, and acts her with blazing conviction.
  Rupert Christiansen, The Telegraph, 26 October 2009

  As the Governess, Rebecca Evans has never sounded better, and I can’t imagine the role being more engagingly or movingly performed. Nor could the singing be faulted: a move to a slightly heavier repertoire (Mimi, Liu, Countess Almaviva) has given Evans’ voice an extra weight without losing any of the beauty, and the Governess sounds fully sung into her voice. The level of expression she achieves is striking, with numerous colours and textual nuances, while the sheer loveliness of the voice remains a pleasure every time I encounter her. Her first Covent Garden Mimi is something to look forward to in a couple of months’ time.
  Dominic McHugh, Musical Criticism 26 October 2009

  Rebecca Evans sings the Governess with much beauty.
  Richard Fairman, Financial Times, 27 October 2009

  Rebecca Evans and Ann Murray, respectively the Governess and Mrs Grose, are a dual lynchpin of great voices, great characters and complete verbal clarity. Evans is heart-rending, lovelorn over her crush on the children’s absent guardian and driven to distraction by her understanding of the children’s fate.
  Jessica Duchen, The Independent, 29 October 2009

  She is wonderfully warm of voice, right to the extreme high registers of the part [and] her diction is excellent.
  Alexander Campbell, Classical Source, October 2009

  The role of the Governess is often described as Britten’s finest soprano role. It certainly sounded that way in a riveting, note-perfect performance from Rebecca Evans.
  David Mellor, The Mail on Sunday, 01 November 2009