“Halley Gilbert stole scenes as Lucy, an enterprising maid.”

-Steve Smith, New York Times

“Ms. Gilbert’s voice is a rich palette of colors, skillfully displayed in the various movements. Her physical gestures reflected the words and invited the listener to come even closer, to have a more intimate experience as if one were being entertained in a parlor… [The piece by composer David Gilbert was] delivered deftly by soprano Gilbert, whose vocal range was on full display. It was here that you experienced the intensity of her voice, in contrast to the lyrical and picturesque quality found in the Canteloube.”

-Scott Symons, Greenwich Sentinel

December 4, 2015 | The Greenwich Symphony Soars as Two Gilberts Perform

Soprano Soloist, Chants d’Auvergne (Canteloube) and a world premiere by composer David Gilbert, Greenwich Symphony Orchestra

“Stealing the show was Halley Gilbert as Zerbinetta, flinging out crystalline trills, arpeggios, staccati and roulades with an almost lazy insouciance. Moreover, the warmth and depth of her soprano illuminated the character’s simpler, more lyric lines that in many performances get lost in the shuffle.

Best of all, she deftly avoided the cuteness that almost always afflicts performers of this part. Zerbinetta’s big solo amounts to a manifesto of sexual agency for women, heady stuff for a century ago, and Ms. Gilbert’s frankness and (from time to time) downright raunchiness made the text sound like it could have been written yesterday.”

-James Jorden, New York Observer

June 12, 2015 | When Operas Cross Genres, It’s Mishmosh – Or Magic

Zerbinetta, Ariadne auf Naxos (Strauss), Utopia Opera

“The [standout] from the June 6th performance [was] Halley Gilbert as Zerbinetta. Gilbert has it all - flawless technique, gorgeous high notes combined with rapier wit and excellent acting skills. Her Zerbinetta is not just a trite tart and her confession to the Composer toward the end of the first act revealing her lonely nature comes from an honest place.”

- Tami Swarz, In My Own Words

http://tami-swartz.blogspot.com/2015/06/utopia-operas-ariadne-auf-naxos-slays.html

June 10, 2015 | Utopia Opera’s Ariadne auf Naxos Slays the Audience With Satire

Zerbinetta, Ariadne auf Naxos (Strauss), Utopia Opera