A warm and expressive voice, capable of creating chills.
"Miss Todd's maid, Laetitia, was portrayed by the soprano Rachel Blaustein, who sang with excellent spoofing dramatic power needed to introduce the beggar, Bob ('a MAN!'), and threw off high D's with the lightness and agility of a coloratura. When she was daydreaming about Bob, Blaustein settled into her true voice-warm and expressive - in the aria 'Steal Me, Sweet Thief.' For those craving 'chill-factor moments,' Blaustein provided them in the two high B flat climaxes."
OPERA NEWS
The Old Maid and the Thief, Spoleto Festival, USA
Video gallery.
1. OPERA | 2. MUSICAL THEATRE | 3. RECITAL & SONG
"Ho perduto il caro sposo" from Rodelinda. Chuck Foster, piano.
"Padre, germani, addio" from Idomeneo. Chuck Foster, piano.
Garden scene from Falstaff. With Maryland Lyric Opera.
"I worry, that's all" from Fellow Travelers. Blair Salter, piano.
"Wo bin ich?" from Hänsel und Gretel. Blair Salter, piano.
"No one else" from Natasha Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812. Chuck Foster, piano.
"Far from the home I love" from Fiddler on the Roof. Matthew Gemmill, piano.
"Gretchen am Spinnrade" by Schubert. Itamar Esformes, piano.
"C'est l'extase langoureuse" from Debussy's Ariettes Oubliées. Itamar Esformes, piano.
"Ein Traum" by Grieg, op. 48. Matthew Gemmill, piano.
"Every Lovely Shining Thing" by Matthew Recio. Mark Bilyeu, piano
A skilled actor with a lilting lyric soprano.
"Vocally, she was well cast. Her lyric voice had a carefree lilt, perfect for the daughter of the richest family in Ferrara, and this came across beautifully in the letter-writing scene as she narrates the words she will send to Giorgio. The “rich girl” who is careless with hearts is a trope, and a less-skilled actor could fall into the stereotype trap. Blaustein stayed far from that pitfall."
OPERA WIRE
The Garden of the Finzi-Continis (world premiere)
"Opposite him, Blaustein had a rounded, gentle tone and elegant phrasing, while still able to express anguish."
New York Classical Review
Photo galleries.
Production photos courtesy of The Metropolitan Opera, The Santa Fe Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Austin Opera, Cincinnati Opera, Ravinia Festival, Spoleto Festival, Maryland Lyric Opera, Chicago Opera Theater, and others.
Promotional photos by Jaclyn Simpson, Lauren Cook, and Jiyang Chen.
