SITA (Gustav Holst – world premiere) / Saarländisches Staatstheater

Opernwelt 12/2024

Sita's part is extremely well suited to a strong, high-pitched soprano. …Lea-ann Dunbar had to step in on relatively short notice; she masters the extensive title role brilliantly.

October 2024 / die-deutsche-buehne.de

Sita herself captivates from the beginning with her dramatic intensity, which Lea-ann Dunbar's warm, blossoming soprano voice conveys with luminous power but also with touching intimacy.

OPER! Magazin Oktober 2024

From now on, {Sita} stands loyally by Rama's side, sung by Lea-ann Dunbar with an impressively contrasting soprano voice, sometimes with beautiful, dense, long melodic passages, sometimes with dramatic, more conversational passages.

Britten War Requiem / Heidelberg

©Rhein-Neckar Zeitung | Heidelberger Nachrichten | FEUILLETON | 11 | Dienstag, 23. Juli 2024

Such diverse vocal art was crowned by fantastic soloists: directly in front of the choir, soprano Lea-ann Dunbar shone with a gripping sound spectrum …

Die Frau ohne Schatten / Semperoper Dresden

Der Opernfreund 24. März 2024

In order to ensure the coherence of the performance, even the small roles were cast with luxury singers... “The Voice of the Falcon” sung by American soprano Lea-ann Dunbar was a small sensation.

Der Rosenkavalier / Staatstheater Cottbus

Opernwelt 12/2023

In her role debut Lea-ann Dunbar successfully presents a Marschallin that need not shy away from comparison with more famous colleagues. Her easily flowing voice exudes compassionate generosity, wisdom, and magnanimous maturity as if she had been long familiar with the role of Princess von Werdenberg.

Lausitzer Rundschau

When, at the end of Act I, Lea-ann Dunbar as the Marschallin says farewell to her youth … it is pure operatic bliss.

rbbKultur

Lea-ann Dunbar’s Feldmarschallin has an expansive presence. With little physical movement and a graceful voice, she lays her crumbling world at our feet, then to rise strengthened from the ashes.

Das Rheingold / Semperoper Dresden

www.klassik-begeistert.de

And the evening proved something else: The roles of the Rhinemaiden can be sung without a big wobbly vibrato! The ladies Dunbar, Pučálková and Lapkovskaja sing so clearly, brightly and together, like it is, unfortunately, very seldom heard.

Thais / Theater Lübeck

Das Opernglas

Lea-ann Dunbar was an exceptional Thais. Her acting made the transition from narcissistic courtesan to chaste nun utterly convincing. Her singing on opening night left absolutely nothing to be desired: the timbre of her strong, creamy upper register is somewhat reminiscent of Renée Fleming's sound. Her voice carried effortlessly over all the tutti, presented well supported pianissimi again and again, while still having powerful reserves for the exhausting final duet with Athanael.

Der Opernfreund

The singer of the title role, Lea-ann Dunbar, was anxiously awaited after her enthralling Violetta in Lübeck. The intensity of her acting made the transition from whore to saint believable. The high tessitura of the role was perfect for her voice and her singing sounded effortless. The audience presented her with ovations for an exhilarating performance!

Online Musik Magazin

The star of the evening was Lea-ann Dunbar, who filled the title role with wonderfully lyric phrases and whose voice cut through even the thickest orchestration without problem.

Britten War Requiem / Lübeck Marienkirche

Lübecker Nachrichten

The American soprano Lea-ann Dunbar also emphasized the music's international language and message of peace. Her male colleagues were very good; she, however, was outstanding. Her voice was creamy and warm all the way to high C, and it filled the enormous church with an immense radiance and musical depth to the farthest corners.

La Traviata / Theater Lübeck

Der Neue Merker

Lea-ann Dunbar as Violetty Valery…Her powerful voice mastered the difficulties of this role with seeming effortlessness. Her expressive acting was profoundly moving.

Kieler Nachrichten

Lea-ann Dunbar has all the necessary vocal qualities at her disposal for the role of Violetta: a strong upper register, secure coloratura, and a delicate piano.

Schleswig-Holstein Zeitung

…the cast is simply to die for….But no one delved so deeply into emotions as Lea-ann Dunbar whose bell-like voice developed the greatest strength in Violetta's most difficult moments.

Lucia di Lammermoor / Theater Krefeld-Mönchengladbach

Das Opernglas

Opening night would have been "perfectly normal" had it not been for Lea-ann Dunbar in the title role. Her performance was fascinating in its delicate fragility and enthralling in its vocal virtuosity, leaving the listener absolutely speechless. The young American used the artificialness of the role "Lucia"….as a natural means of expressing emotion. Instead of simply presenting a well-rounded, flexible vocal technique, she explored love and insanity, sorrow and despair with a wide range of colors in her well-focused, warm soprano voice. This she did so perfectly that the audience justifiably lay at her feet.

Der Opernfreund

The star of the evening was Lea-ann Dunbar as Lucia. The dramatic potential this graceful singer showed, both vocally as well as in her acting, was astounding and touched the heart…Her singing truly came from the soul and her voice carried effortlessly to the last row.

Rheinische Post

Dunbar can claim a voice her own that is sparkling and sturdy up through dizzying heights, a voice completely dependable through to the end of the opera despite the almost unreasonable demands of the murderous role. Her two famous arias…were the highlights of the evening. Furthermore, she created a figure that was believable not only in her passionate love for Edgardo but also in her madness to which she was driven by her brother Enrico.

La Bohème / Theater Krefeld-Mönchengladbach

Der Neue Merker

Lea-ann Dunbar was a beguilingly evocative Mimi…She not only filled the shell of the ailing figure with tenderness and warmth, but also showed the extreme fragility of this sick woman. Her interpretation of "Mi chiamano Mimi..:", soaring from fragile to heroic, was brilliant and deeply moving. The critic was not the only one with tears in his eyes.

I Masnadieri / Theater Hildesheim

Klassik Heute

Listening to Lea-ann Dunbar's bubbling coloratura and brilliant high notes, one can't help but think of the "Swedish Nightingale" Jenny Lind, for whom Verdi wrote the role of Amalia.