“Rachel Willis-Sørensen sang the part of Desdemona beautifully, showcasing a beautiful rich voice, an immaculate technique, a well-balanced tone and no hard edges. Her committed acting as the dutiful loving wife created palpable tension as we wait for the inevitable.”
Stage and Cinema
“The cast was a dream. Rachel Willis-Sørensen as Desdemona has the perfect spinto voice: she is able to produce a clear, chiming sound with delicate top notes while lending a darker quality to the lower registers. She exhibited a refinement in her acting and singing that felt innate and authentic. The famed ‘Willow Song’ brought me to tears: with subtlety and beauty, she expanded on the personal tragedy of Desdemona to make the universality of Verdi’s rumination on mortality feel immediate.”
Seen and Heard International
“Mme. Willis-Sørensen brings a full-bodied, mature voice to Desdemona (she sings the big Mozart heroines in Munich and Vienna), and consummate artistry in her delivery.”
Opera Today
“As Desdemona, Rachel Willis-Sørensen intriguingly mixed contradictory traits of character. An unbroken serenity and sheen characterize her voice, which complemented our understanding of Desdemona’s purity, but Willis-Sørensen also brought welcome maturity to the character… Both the Willow song and Ave Maria were drenched in pathos, which intensified the agony of the deaths at the end.”
Opera News
“I’m sure that everyone in the audience felt her despair when Willis-Sorensen, after a gorgeously sung “Salce,” capped the aria with a timed silence before her chilling outburst -- that sudden high note piercing the air, the quietude, a moment when the full terror of what was ahead had her running to Emilia’s arms.”
LA Tempo
“...the internationally recognized soprano, who is making her LA Opera debut, makes it look effortless, radiating with each lush note she smoothly belts out. When her Desdemona is besieged by furious accusations from her suspecting husband (“Terrified, I Face Your Dreadful Look”), is rendered virtually helpless (“Fallen! Yes, in the Foul Mud…”), or plaintively recalls earlier memories of her mother’s servant Barbara via the 'Willow Song', Willis-Sørensen is decidedly intentional with her vocal choices, each note resonating with rawness.”
LA Excites
“Soprano Rachel Willis-Sorensen embodied Desdemona, bringing her exceptional talents, previously showcased in La Traviata and La Boheme, to the forefront. Her voice soared effortlessly through the demanding arias, displaying both vulnerability and strength as she portrayed the ill-fated wife.”
Indulge Magazine