Role Reviews
As Herodias, the golden-voiced Rosalind Plowright was the very epitome of icy elegance. One wondered how so outwardly fastidious a character could have got herself mixed up with her husband in the first place. Bernard Jacobson - Seen & Heard - 19.11.13
Rosalind Plowright, a former leading soprano now singing the heavier character mezzo roles, brings a formidable voice and the cast's best acting to Herodias. Mark Mandel - The Oregonian
Rosalind Plowright as Herodias was authoritative and touching, vocally secure and with enough sexiness to play emotively into the tension with her daughter. Alexandra Coughlan - The Art’s Desk
…. and Rosalind Plowright's thrilling Herodias to provide the vocal clout. …. while Plowright proved suitably disgusting as Herod's wife. Her cackle during the tales of Jesus Christ was profoundly chilling. Gavin Plumley - Entartete Musik
Rosalind Plowright was a persuasive, vocally secure Herodias, sufficiently sumptuous to make her a convincing object of Herod’s desire, but not afraid to add a touch of roughness or harsh extremity to convey the Queen’s desperation to maintain her husband’s admiring gaze and her delight in capitalising on his weakness. Her relationship with her daughter was appropriately ambiguous. Claire Seymour - Opera Today
The performance of the evening came from Rosalind Plowright as Herodias, Salome’s mother-from-hell. Not only did the ageless mezzo (and former soprano) find surprising depths in her portrayal of this jealous harridan, she also sang and enunciated superbly. Mark Valencia - www.classicalsource.com
… whilst Rosalind Plowright is a forthright Herodias Keith McDonnell - What’s on Stage
Rosalind Plowright is brilliant as a proud, haughty and demanding Herodias… Sam Smith - Music OMH
Rosalind Plowright's Herodias is fully credible although the character is complex. Beyond selfish greed we see the vulnerability of the wife whose husband happily strays and lusts after her own daughter. We even see compassion and warmth in Herodias, when she comforts the page. (I can't resist recalling Salome at the English National Opera several decades ago when Rosalind Plowright was the excellent page). She sounded as natural as if the part of Herodias was written for her. Agnes Kory - Musical Criticism
Rosalind Plowright’s imperious presence and voice was mightily impressive as Herodias, his haughty scheming wife Jim Pritchard - Seen and Heard International
Some of the foreground performances, too, are special - Rosalind Plowright fields a Herodias combining sophistication with menace, George Hall - The Stage
As his wife Herodias, Rosalind Plowright is regal, the voice appropriately harsh, the demeanour superbly disdainful, Nick Kimberley - Evening Standard
…. while Rosalind Plowright's Herodias is refreshingly uncaricatured; it's easy to imagine her as the chic hostess of the dinner party that's going on upstairs as the gruesome events unfold beneath. Andrew Clements - The Guardian
There are good cameos in the supporting cast ….. particularly Rosalind Plowright’s raddled Herodias Neil Fisher - The Times
and Rosalind Plowright as Herodias was excellent. Mark Ronan - www.markronan.com - May 2012
