“Ailyn Pérez was Castronovo’s equal in every way. Her powerful, agile soprano is bright and clear, but with a burnished sheen. She navigated Donizetti’s wide leaps and plunges with aplomb and flung his virtuoso flights into the air like so much golden confetti. Perky but business-like in a pink silk shantung pantsuit, her Adina was a young woman savoring her ability to flit among boyfriends. But we never doubted her warm heart.”
“Clad in an array of period wear—including fuchsia capri pants—Ailyn Perez was a worthy Adina, the object of Nemorino’s affections. She has been singing heavier roles in recent years… yet her soprano remains flexible and with a purity of tone well suited to this bel canto role. Perez was at her finest—vocally and dramatically in Act 2, bringing a touching and intimate sensitivity to her belated duet with Nemorino.”
“…soprano Ailyn Pérez aces both the comic drama and the bel canto vocal flourishes as Adina.”
“While all four leads have wonderful voices, Pérez and Castronova had truly extraordinary moments, with their voices rising first gradually, then exploding into towering crescendos. Bel canto, indeed.”