“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir delivers the evening’s top vocal performance in the title role; a truly magnificent role debut. Vocally and artistically, the Icelandic soprano is simply Mimi, always. She sings with great intensity and remarkable pianissimi and fortissimi. And she does this both when she bravely portrays the tragic fate of the young, penniless seamstress, already suffering from consumption, who tries to find herself through her love for Rodolfo, as well as at the end when she returns to him, terminally ill, and dies.”
“The soprano Eyrún Unnarsdóttir, a member of the Lucerne ensemble, gave a magnificent debut in the main role of Mimí. She managed the transition between lightness and serious love, between joie de vivre and exhaustion in a very authentic acting and vocal performance. And whether in her great entrance aria with Rodolfo or the famous love aria, she sang her way straight into the hearts of the audience with heartfelt musicality and many colorful nuances.”
“The execution of this concept, which takes the comedic and tragic aspects of the work to extremes, is spectacular, both in the singing and the acting. Eyrún Unnarsdóttir as Mimì touches the heart with the warmth and passion of her voice.”
“In addition, there was an ensemble of singers who transferred the urgency and the warmth of this musicianship into the vocals in a powerful yet slender manner. This applies first and foremost to the soprano Eyrún Unnarsdóttir as Dido. Directed by Magdalena Fuchsberger, she makes a strong woman out of the victim of the male political careerist Aeneas.But she takes back the expressively flaring vigor with which she rebels against the betrayal of love in her famous farewell and lamentation into a serenity that is as if no more from this world: musically, this is, like the whole evening, in its haunting baroque tone a Liebestod for the advanced.”
“With time, you recognize the voices and know, even without seeing them, where Dido is singing. Especially in the case of the Icelandic soprano Eyrún Unnarsdóttir, it is also greatly rewarding to listen to her.”
“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir is vocally magnificent as the haplessly loving Dido. The Icelandic soprano expresses all the feelings of her tragic role in a very differentiated way and conveys with great empathy and depth, but without ever forcing, joy, infatuation, love and passion at first, then frustration and disappointment, and at the end the despair into whose abyss the morally strict woman plunges after she falls hopelessly in love with Aeneas [...]. It is simply heartrending how the singer interprets the famous lament, the wonderful “When I am laid in earth’ [...] before she goes to her suicide.”
“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir as the somewhat reserved Dido ultimately fills vocally with ease the great task that the directorial concept opens up to her with a lot of warmth, beautiful phrasing and a great deal of calm.”
“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir gives a convincing Dido with her full, multi-facetced soprano.”
“Of the consistently impeccable ensemble, the first to be mentioned is the fabulous Marschallin of the Icelander Eyrún Unnarsdóttir, who manages to bring out all the subtleties of the vocal line with a clear yet warm voice. You understand every word. Her body language is that of a young woman of nobility, which she remains throughout the piece. At the end of the opera, in her ravishing rococo dress, she is able to radiate the dignity that is innate to such a person of rank, without appearing arrogant or condescending in any way. A particular vocal highlight was the singer’s interpretation of the “silberne Rose”, which she allowed to blossom from a pianissimo to its full beauty of sound. A murmur went through the audience! A world-class Marschallin who will certainly be heard from in the future.”
“The soprano Eyrún Unnarsdóttir lends the Feldmarschallin a sensual and gently melancholic aura. [...] Unnarsdóttir sang her aria about transience intimately and touchingly, her “bickering” with Octavian was spiritedly passionate, the duets with him were enchantingly melodious.”
“Here already, in her famous musings on time and finiteness, the Icelander Eyrún Unnarsdóttir impresses with her precious timbre, her supple voice leading and her text-precise creative ability.”
“[...] but as far as the voices are concerned, Eyrún Unnarsdóttir as the Marschallin and Solenn’ Lavanant Linke as Octavian were particularly brilliant. The Icelandic soprano interpreted one of the greatest female roles in the history of opera with great sensitivity and differentiation, both vocally and scenically. With charm and sensuality during the night with Octavian, her Quinquin, her young lover (toyboy, one would say today); extremely girlish in the fountain of youth in the pool scene, as well as plausible during the ‘Lever’ the following morning, when she is dressed by the servants, coiffed by the hairdresser, etc...: this is the moment of truth in which she suddenly realizes that youth and beauty are gone forever.”
“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir as the Marschallin exudes lavish sensuality with her soprano, and yet she touchingly accompanies the “old woman’s” farewell to love and youth - her musings on time and transience are the first real highlight of the evening.”
“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir as Tatjana leaves hardly anything to be desired. She makes the letter scene just as gripping as the later rejection of Onegin. Tatjana knows what she wants and translates this into a corresponding stage presence.”
“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir heightens and at times intensifies Tatjana’s girlish tone to a commanding passion.”
“There is Tatjana, sung and played with strong character by Eyrún Unnarsdóttir. ”
“[...]It demands a wide range from speaking to recitative singing to ariosis, which Robert Maszl explores masterfully, while soprano Eyrún shapes the narrator with warm radiance and dramaturgical flair.”
“Following ancient dramatic tradition, two choruses - two narrators - narrate the action in Britten’s opera, sometimes offering the listener diverse points of view. The outstandingly singing Eyrún Unnarsdóttir forms the female part with her counterpart Robert Maszl, whose tenor blossoms especially in the second act.”
“[...] an ensemble that is downright luxuriously cast, even in supporting roles. [...] In the commented roles Robert Maszl convinces as dramatic narrator and Eyrún Unnarsdóttir with soaring emotions.”
“The Countess? The audience cheers that Figaro’s wedding can finally take place undisturbed, we love the bride and groom and are confident that things will end well; but we only really feel sorry for Rosina, the Countess, because this beautiful woman must continue to put up with such a husband. Mozart, aware of our sympathy, gave her two arias - and what arias! Was it his intention to always give her the warmest applause and almost move us to tears? Yes, the theatrical genius knew: when we like something, we like to applaud. But when we feel pity, we applaud with passion. The real suffering, rarely found in an opera buffa, was beautifully conveyed by the dramatic coloratura soprano, Eyrún Unnarsdóttir. Her voice has the ideal fullness, even in the high register, that goes to the heart.”
“Eyrún Unnarsdóttir gives the Contessa Almaviva with a distinctly colorful, cultivated dramatic soprano.”
“Another highlight of this kind is the aria “Porgi, amor, qualche ristoro”, performed by Eyrún Unnarsdóttir in the role of the Countess with bravura lightness and virtuosity in the vocal treatment.”
“Particularly outstanding in her debut for the company as the Countess was Eyrún Unnarsdóttir; she has an entrancing, exquisite soprano voice of great richness. Her ‘Dove sono...?’ gave a clear notice that here was yet another young Icelandic singer set to make a significant mark on the world stage”