“Rae’s Ophelia, a vision of loveliness and innocence in pale peach flounces, was unhinged from the beginning and it was but a slight descent into total madness and suicide. With her mesmerizing stage presence and crystal-clear voice, Rae, covered in dirt, dressed in tatters and clutching a clump of willow branches, galvanized the audience’s attention in Ophelia’s extended mad scene.”

“Brenda Rae as Adèle also shone with stupendous coloratura phrases.”

“Brenda Rae’s astonishingly accurate, far from entirely unsympathetic Queen of the Night impressed similarly.”

“And best of all, Brenda Rae as Zerbinetta: handling her soprano like a sparkler, and etching superheated, multicoloured spirals of sound on the evening air.”

“Brenda Rae sings Zerbinetta with glittering voice and sparkling coloratura, leavened with a twinkling touch of humour”

“Above all, Brenda Rae delighted the audience [with] a focused, brilliant interpretation. The soprano enchanted with wonderfully intimate bends of her great vocal instrument, as well as with colorful and securely placed top notes of downright stunning beauty. As bright as silver, the voice shone effortlessly and precisely above the ensembles and gave the part wonderfully internalized, sweeping Bellini cantilenas.”

“The brightly alluring Brenda Rae was alive to the varied emotions within Ginevra’s music, from the giddy enchantment of ​‘Vezzi, lusinghe, e brio’ to the heart-stopping poignancy of ​‘Il mio crudel martoro’.”

“Ms Rae brought plush radiance to the confessional aria and brilliant, agile singing to the showpiece ​‘The Morning Lark’.”

“her timbre unfolds beautifully to reveal her virtuosity, masterful melismas, and a remarkable ability to emit the quietest of sound, almost with the mouth closed. Her clear tone creates beautiful piani in the a cappella sleep scene, before reaching its peak in ​‘Myself I shall adore’, where she demonstrates vocally brave coloratura passages sung in full voice.”

“First there is Brenda Rae as Elvira [I puritani]. With intense tone and crystal-clear, breakneck coloratura she credibly portrayed the inner turmoil of the young woman.”

“Brenda Rae’s Cunegonde was a showstopper…her voice cut like a knife once her range hit the stratosphere.”

“At the head of the cast is soprano Brenda Rae. She displayed fine musical sensitivities, fluent technique and dramatic flair in her depiction of the [Lucia]…She held the audience rapt in the palm of her bloody hand.”

“Equally exceptional is Brenda Rae, leading her Gilda from girlish chastity to glowing desire and the sobering perception that love can take a brutal toll. She savours the famous ​“Caro nome” aria with all its virtuosic subtleness in every sense…How versatile, touching and fascinating this wonderful voice is!”

“Soprano Brenda Rae, a discover for many, became a constant source of vocal allure with the kind of dramatic instincts that turn a flashy cadenza into an intense character study.”

“Brenda Rae’s Lulu, tirelessly busy and vocally spot-on, is the enigmatic centre of it all, very much the blank slate on which men can project their own fantasies, almost oblivious to her own allure.”

“English National Opera has assembled a superb cast, led by soprano Brenda Rae, making her ENO and role debut as the charismatic Lulu. Athletic and seductive, innocent and predatory, Rae captures the facets of the woman who exploits and is exploited by the men in her life.”

“Brenda Rae makes a sensational house debut in the title role, one of the most challenging in the repertoire. The American soprano husbands her resources early on, mindful of the extremes that lie ahead; yet she never undersings and her characterisation is dynamite. Fearless, probing and compelling, radiant of voice and beauty, she is the complete Lulu.”