Pinocchio in Opera News

Zabala, who was onstage almost the entire evening, bounded about with relentless boyish energy and displayed a firmly focused mezzo that was resonant from top notes to bottom.

Michael Anthony  Opera News  2009/05

The Barber of Seville (Opera Carolina) in Opera News

Even among this strong ensemble cast, the Rosina of Adriana Zabala was a particular delight. She was a high-spirited, attractive little minx, and it was easy to see why the Count should be so smitten. Zabala's singing was equally effective. Her voice has a pleasant timbre and is well controlled throughout her ample range. Her acting was particularly alive to each possible nuance: for example, her expression of delighted astonishment at learning Almaviva's true identity was priceless.

Luther Wade  Opera News Online  2009/04

Pinocchio in the Wall Street Journal

As Pinocchio, mezzo Adriana Zabala demonstrated tremendous stamina and boy-like flair; she made his alternation of foolish behavior and abject remorse seem perfectly credible.

Heidi Waleson  The Wall Street Journal  2009/03/06

Twin Cities Daily Planet

As the title character, Adriana Zabala sings with intense innocence and joy, projecting life and intensity through all the makeup and beyond Pinocchio’s growing nose. Hardly leaving the stage, Zabala captures the sympathy and attention of the audience throughout the tall tale.

Rebecca Mitchell    2009/03/03

The American Premiere of Dove's The Adventures of Pinocchio

As the title character, Adriana Zabala sings with intense innocence and joy, projecting life and intensity through all the makeup and beyond Pinocchio’s growing nose. Hardly leaving the stage, Zabala captures the sympathy and attention of the audience throughout the tall tale.

Rebecca Mitchell  Twin Cities Daily Planet  2009/03/03

Twin Cities Performance Art Examiner

The character of Pinocchio is brought to vivid life by the gifted mezzo-soprano, Adriana Zabala. With her versatile range complimented by emotive feeling, Zabala powerfully projects Pinocchio’s stages of maturation from a child given to self-centered sullenness to a youth wandering through heartsick longing. Pardon the awful pun (I’m sorry, but I can’t resist), there’s nothing wooden about Zabala’s performance. She carries the character on his adventure with a vibrancy that will hold the attention of adults and children alike.

by Brad Richason    2009/03/01

The American Premiere of Dove's The Adventures of Pinocchio

The character of Pinocchio is brought to vivid life by the gifted mezzo-soprano, Adriana Zabala. With her versatile range complimented by emotive feeling, Zabala powerfully projects Pinocchio’s stages of maturation from a child given to self-centered sullenness to a youth wandering through heartsick longing. Pardon the awful pun (I’m sorry, but I can’t resist), there’s nothing wooden about Zabala’s performance. She carries the character on his adventure with a vibrancy that will hold the attention of adults and children alike.

Brad Richason  Twin Cities Performance Art Examiner  2009/03/01

The Wall Street Journal

As Pinocchio, mezzo Adriana Zabala demonstrated tremendous stamina and boy-like flair; she made his alternation of foolish behavior and abject remorse seem perfectly credible.

Heidi Waleson    2009/02/28

Exhilaration - Gregg Kallor and Adriana Zabala

Full Article

By Richard Kamins  courant.com  2009/01/11

Hartford Courant

Kallor's piano phrases frame Zabala's voice perfectly, weaving around the lyrics, sometimes in unison, other times an echo. He is as expressive as she is and neither one takes the lead. "Ribh in Ecstasy" follows, the first of the Yeats' pieces and it explodes from the opening piano introduction. Zabala steps in, exclaiming the words with passion, but as the piano chords strike twice on the words "Godhead on Godhead in sexual spasm begot Godhead", the lyrics turn inward as the music becomes introspective. "A Drunken Man's Praise of Sobriety" rolls in with the comic earnestness of an Arthur Sullivan melody, foreshadowing the serio-comic lyrics.

The title track is the first of the Emily Dickinson songs and while the piano melody seems subdued, the vocal lifts delightfully on the opening lines "Exhilaration is the Breeze/That lifts us from the Ground." While there was a classical elegance to the Yeats' pieces, here the songs feel more open. "Bee! I'm expecting you!" is the 3rd of the 9 songs; short, playful, with a melody line that allows Zabala to display the range of her excellent voice.

On repeated listenings, one notices more than the just beauty of the voice and strength of the melodies. Both Zabala and Kallor are emotionally involved with this music. Their performances are not perfunctory and the deeper you get into the music, the more you take from it. Dickinson's poems often seem fragmented but with this music, one senses the intricate thematic structure of her verses. "Still own thee - still thou art" has a stunning musical setting that allows for the sadness and wonder of sitting by someone's bed as he or she is dying. When Zabala sings "Exhilaration - is within -" in the final Dickinson piece, one feels the quiet joy and the eternal questioning that accompanies an insular life.

Garfein's "Lullaby" is a lovely afterword to the program. Tender and soft, the questions raised by the other songs are put to rest. And a group of songs that began with words of death ends with thoughts of hope.

Gregg Kallor has performed jazz, is a wonderful accompanist and fine composer. Adriana Zabala is a busy mezzo-soprano performing with opera companies and symphony orchestras throughout the country. "Exhilaration" is a wonderful and wonder-filled recording, a diamond with many facets for one to delight in.

Richard Kamins    2009/01/11

Opera News Online

Kallor has found a wonderful exponent in Adriana Zabala, a gifted, agile mezzo-soprano. Kallor knows how to make these words sing, and Zabala gives perfect flight to them. Singing with uncommon clarity and natural beauty, she seems to be deep inside both the poems and Kallor's musical realizations. Kallor plays the accompaniments with the authority and skill one would expect from the composer; the piano parts sound vibrant and colorful, but they never battle with Zabala for primacy.

Joshua Rosenblum    2009/01/10

Exhilaration in Opera News Online

Kallor has found a wonderful exponent in Adriana Zabala, a gifted, agile mezzo-soprano. Kallor knows how to make these words sing, and Zabala gives perfect flight to them. Singing with uncommon clarity and natural beauty, she seems to be deep inside both the poems and Kallor's musical realizations.

Joshua Rosenblum  Opera News Online  2009, 03

SEQUENZA 21

This disc of songs by Gregg Kallor, fabulously sung by Adriana Zabala, is packed with lovely and effective music. The language of the music is simple (in a good way), straightforward, and approachable. The harmonies, tone, energies, and textures don’t break any new ground, but they don’t need to. The whole disc reminds me of my favorite recording of Bernstein songs (”Songs and Duets” disc with Arias and Barcarolles sung by Judy Kaye and William Sharp).

These songs are not thick and ponderous, they are not heavy at all, they are simply beautiful and poignant works that I hope more people hear. The poems selected do have weight to them, don’t get me wrong, but the treatment in the music really lets the poetry shine through on its own. The focus remains on Ms. Zabala’s sensitive and expressive voice while the piano is always serving a background role without ever falling into a pit of “I’m just the accompaniment.” The piano writing is equal parts tender, melodic, spiky, and playful.

Musically conservative? Sure. Well crafted? Definitely. Entertaining? Yes. Well performed? Absolutely. Lyrical? You bet. I would think this would do well in some stockings this year. As gifts.

Jay Batzner    2008/12/09

Exhilaration - Dickinson and Yeats Songs

Full Article

By Jay Batzner  Sequenza 21  2008/12/09

Le Nozze di Figaro

In addition to Adriana Zabala's lovely singing, she had the unusual achievement of actually making the character look and act like an adolescent boy.

Richard Todd  The Ottawa Citizen  2008/09/15

Stephano with Minnesota Opera

Of the supporting singers, Adriana Zabala was the standout, singing the trouser role of Stephano with true Gallic grace.

William Randall Beard  mspmag.com  2008/01/27

Elijah with the Mormon Tabernacle Choir

Supporting Terfel were... mezzo Adriana Zabala, who brought menace to her Queen Jezebel and sweet reassurance to her Angel.

Catherine Reese Newton  The Salt Lake Tribune  2007/05/14

Waiting for the Barbarians/Barbarian Girl

The principals were ideally cast. Mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala was lustrous as the Barbarian Girl. Too bad Glass didn't give her more to do.

Mike Greenberg  San Antonio Express News  2007/01/24

Waiting for the Barbarians in the New York Times

As the barbarian girl, the mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala sang with a bright, penetrating voice. She was a vivid, fearless presence in the physically demanding role, which required her to perform one scene completely unclothed and covered with bruises.

Steve Smith  The New York Times  2007/01/22

Waiting for the Barbarians in the L.A Times

Adriana Zabala, the Barbarian Girl whom the Magistrate takes in after she is tortured, was extraordinary, a young, vibrant mezzo-soprano.

Mark Swed  Los Angeles Times  2007/01/22

Waiting for the Barbarians/Barbarian Girl

One wished for a larger role for the barbarian girl as mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala had an impressive clarity and emotion.

Jeanne Claire van Ryzin  Austin American-Statesman  2007/01/21

Les Contes d'Hoffmann: Muse/Niklausse

Mezzo-Soprano Adriana Zabala is fabulous as Hoffmann's muse and guardian angel, Niklausse. Zabala's polish and vocal agility make her an ideal Muse/Niklausse. She and Alison Bates take full advantage of the bacarolle, one of the loveliest moments in the show.

Jay Furst  The Post-Bulletin  2006/11/03

Les Contes d'Hoffmann: Muse/Niklausse

The Nicklausse/Muse part is charmingly portrayed here by Adriana Zabala.

Michael Anthony  Minneapolis Star Tribune  2006/10/30

Les Contes d'Hoffmann: Muse/Niklausse

A night in Venice is evoked splendidly by a solo as blissful and soothing as a ride down the canal, courtesy of Adriana Zabala.

Ron Hubbard  St. Paul Pioneer Press  2006/10/30

Carmen at the Wildwood Festival

Mezzo-Soprano Adriana Zabala was absolutely captivating in the title role.

Eric Harrison  The Arkansas Democrat Gazette  2006/06/19

Bernstein Memories- Madison Symphony

Zabala returned to give a highly entertaining rendition of "What a Movie!" from "Trouble in Tahiti," one of Bernstein's two operas. The mezzo-soprano has a wonderful range and a good sense of comic timing, both of which were put to excellent use.

Michael Muckian  The Capital times  2006/02/04

The New York Times- Teatros Espanoles

Adriana Zabala, who has a strong, clear mezzo-soprano that she uses adroitly…sang a number of the evening’s highlights…(including) a breathtakingly rapid tongue-twister of a patter song, which she coolly pulled off.

Anne Midgette  The New York Times  2005/11/18

Teatros Espanoles- New York Festival of Song

Tackling the title song from Ernesto Lecuona's María la O, Adriana Zabala brought sultry style to these Cuban blues.

Bruce-Michael Gelbert  Theater Scene.Net (New York)  2005/11/15

The Barber of Seville

The mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala made a lithe, sexy Rosina, making the character charming and smart. Her voice had the luster of liquid silver in the middle range and beautiful fire at the top.

David Williams  The Charleston Gazette  2005/05/20

Il barbiere di Siviglia (Syracuse Opera): Soprano sparkles

The sooner Syracuse Opera can bring back Adriana Zabala, the better it is for the company.

Zabala's saucy Rosina, with a soprano that sometimes soared, sometimes floated and was consistently lyrical and effortless, proved to be the highlight of last weekend's lively production of "The Barber of Seville."

JOAN E. VADEBONCOEUR   The Post-Standard  2005/03/16

Zabala is the standout in Syracuse Opera's well-coifed Barber of Seville

The standout among McKee's agreeable cast of singers is Adriana Zabala, whose delightful Rosina captured all the coquettish charm of her character, whether she was singing or acting. Her engaging mezzo-soprano is brilliant in its high register and deep in the low register, dazzling the crowd in "Una vocepoco fa" with her poise and elan.

By David Abrams   The Post-Standard  2005/03/12

Adriana Zabala: artistry in every phrase (Interview)

Clich Here to go to the Interview

by Brian Shepard  American Music Teacher, Feb-March, 2005  2005/02/01

La Cenerentola

In the title role, mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala...opened up when it counted to reveal a sizable, bright, glossy-satin instrument.

Mike Greenberg  San Antonio Express-News  2005/01/16

Il barbiere di Siviglia (Syracuse Opera)

"Rosina was mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala, whose coloratura work is sumptuous."

By WAYNE MYERS, Dispatch Drama Critic  Oneida Dispatch  2005/ 03/ 07

La Cenerentola

Adriana Zabala sailed effortlessly through Angelina’s music in a dazzling singing portrait and she looked the part, perky and excited at her luck and being released from her indentured servitude.

Chris Curcio  Curtain Up Phoenix  2004/11/22

La Cenerentola

In the title role, mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala showed an extremely agile voice that grew bigger and stronger as the evening wore on. By the last scene - her character's big moment - Zabala was singing with easy power and songbird grace.

Kenneth LeFave  The Arizona Republic  2004/11/20

Scenes from Robert Aldridge's Elmer Gantry

In another made-for-opera setup, Gantry's love interest is introduced by a most flattering song. Sharon Falconer is first seen preaching to a revival meeting. Not spewing fire and brimstone this time, she starts slow and flowery. Mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala beautifully held the achingly long notes to give her character a beaming debut. Her music sounds like the dawning of a new day. Her words, by librettist Herschel Garfein, are more poetic: "The sun embraces the stony earth. Sweet rain caresses the land. And pure is the joy that cradles the heart touched by Thee."

Frederick Kaimann  Newark Star Ledger  2004/04/04

Volpone

As classy Madame Erminella, mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala was authoritative, yet affecting. Her opening aria, which wound sinuously around a lullaby tune that proves crucial in the finale, probably was the best set piece in the opera, a jewellike musical moment defining her character as well as this opera's break with the gods of atonalism

T. L. Ponick  The Washington Times  2004/03/13 March 13, 2004

Volpone

Adriana Zabala, in a fab 1920's gown, put an elegant spin, vocally and personally, on the role of Erminella.

Tim Smith  The Baltimore Sun  2004/03/12 March 12, 2004

The Barber of Seville

... Rossini's original called for a mezzo, and Zabala is just the right one-stupendous in all her principal arias and pertly playing the role with just the right touch of mischief.

Eric E. Harrison  Arkansas Democrat-Gazette  2003/06/22

Wolf Trap Discovery Series: Zabala, Taylor and Witman

Taking on all 46 songs of Hugo Wolf's "Italienisches Liederbuch" calls for the grit to tackle Mount Everest or swim the Bosporus. And more -- for the individual songs are only seconds-long encounters with every conceivable mode of the human condition. Mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala, baritone Ryan Taylor and pianist Kim Pensinger Witman handled the lofty assignment with sensitivity and imagination at the Barns of Wolf Trap Friday.

Alternating with Taylor, Zabala lent fine-tuned dramatic conviction with a voice of keen agility and richly hued timbres, capturing every ounce of Wolf's witty twists. After warming up, Taylor gave lustrous intensity to the cycles' more gripping moments. Both singers showed impeccable skill in an enlightening approach to each tiny self-contained drama in the swirl of conflicting emotions exuded by romantic love. Witman's supreme keyboard artistry deserves a large share of the credit for the evening's beauties.

The Wolf songs made up the evening except for a final selection, Stefania de Kenessey's brief song "Sudden Light," a first performance. Singers and pianist seemed to revel in its lyrical washes anchored to rock-solid tonality. It's a nice sample of a self-styled "traditionalist contemporary" composer but well short of the Sondheim and Bernstein it suggests. Perhaps de Kenessey is refuting the rigorous methodologies she studied under Milton Babbitt and his Ivy League compatriots. But the audience loved it.

Cecelia Porter  The Washington Post  2003/05/05

Street Scene (Wolf Trap Opera)

"Adriana Zabala couldn't have been more convincing as the neighborhood snoop and cynic."

Tim Smith  The Baltimore Sun  2002/08/20

Street Scene (Wolf Trap Opera)

"Some standout performances, from a very strong supporting cast, included Adriana Zabala's scarily spot-on turn as noxious busybody Emma Jones..."

Joe Banno  The Washington Post  2002/08/19

Street Scene (Wolf Trap Opera)

"Chief among these [many standouts] were soprano Adriana Zabala's obnoxious neighbor Emma Jones..."

T.L. Ponnick  The Washington Times  2002/08

Xerxes (Wolf Trap Opera)

"With a tangier, more compact mezzo, Adriana Zabala makes a gutsy Amastre."

Joe Banno  The Washington Post  2002/07/22

Wolf Trap Opera's "South of the Border" w/ Steven Blier

"Wolf Trap Opera Company members sang their way beautifully through an outpouring of canciones, lifting the revue considerably above the routine... Soprano Angela Fout, mezzo Adriana Zabala, tenor Patrick Marques and baritone Carleton Chambers alternated in solos and various ensemble combinations in a remarkable show of youthful zest balanced with veteran finesse... All four singers have glorious voices that sounded equally at home in both song-recital and operatic modes."

Cecelia Porter  The Washington Post  2002/06/24

Little Women (Minnesota Opera)

"Adriana Zabala was a strong, vocally adroit Meg."

Michael Anthony  Minneapolis Startribune  2002/04/15

La Cenerentola (Seattle Opera YAP)

"Adriana Zabala was sweet and endearing as Cinderella. She was believable, both in the lightness of her movement and gravity of her demeanor. Rossini gave the character a lot to sing, in lyrical and coloratura veins. Zabala proved to be equal to these multiple tasks. She possesses a smooth, handsome voice with sure musical phrases. Her technique is astonishingly fluent and seemed wholly at ease with every flourish Rossini threw her way."

R.M. Campbell  Seattle Post-Intelligencer  2002/02

Madama Butterfly (Seattle Opera)

"Adriana Zabala makes an exquisitely pretty Kate Pinkerton."

Melinda Bargreen  The Seattle Times  2002/01

Midsummer night's dream (Wolf Trap Opera)

"The four lovers were vibrantly sung and acted by Eric Cutler (Lysander), Adriana Zabala (Hermia), Keith Phares (Demetrius), and Lauren Skuce (Helena); the tender Act III reconciliation scene was phrased with particular beauty and eloquence."

Tim Smith  Opera News  2001/11

Le nozze di Figaro (Wolf Trap Opera)

"Cherubino was sung with flouncy charm by mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala."

Philip Kennicot  The Washington Post  2001/08

Il Barbiere di Siviglia (Minnesota Opera)

"Resident Arstist Adriana Zabala's... astonishing flexibility... and her characterization (of Rosina)...was broad and brazen, but never became caricature."

William Randall Beard  St. Paul Pioneer Press  2001/04

Annina in Der Rosenkavalier (Minnesota Opera)

"...Mezzo-soprano Adriana Zabala was notable as Annina with a fresh, distinctive tone and good acting-skills. ..."

John Koopman  Opera-Opera (Sydney, Australia)  2000/03

Opera News

Zabala, who was onstage almost the entire evening, bounded about with relentless boyish energy and displayed a firmly focused mezzo that was resonant from top notes to bottom.

Michael Anthony   

NY Concert Review of Weill Hall Concert

Mr. Kallor's own "Exhilaration", in its world premiere, made a lovely first impression... This song cycle on Poems by Emily Dickinson was magnificently sung by a Mezzo-soprano, Adriana Zabala.

Harris Goldsmith  New York Concert Review