San Francisco Classical Voice May 2008 Madama Butterfly Martinez Opera Olga Chernisheva as Cio-Cio San, limned the character in fine detail, moving convincingly from the child-bride of Act 1 to the woman living by and then shattered by the strength of her illusions. I was moved...It didn’t hurt that she looked the part, as much as a non-Japanese woman can, and that she used appropriately controlled gestures and movements. She has a strong voice, with well-rounded tone and fullness in all registers |
Naples Daily news Naples March 17 2008 Madama Butterfly Teatro Lirico d'Europa Olga Chernisheva is a Cio-Cio-San of vast range. Chernisheva develops Butterfly skillfully from blushing 15-year-old — a coy bride in denial that she is rented — to a resolute matriarch, determined to keep her loyalty, and in the end, her honor. She harmonizes as beautifully with Suzuki in their “Flower Duet” as she does on her wedding night with Pinkerton in a thrilling “Viene la sera". |
New London Opera L Jan 15 2008 Tosca Teatro Lirico d'Europa Olga Chernisheva projected very well over the orchestra and sang strongly through all the registers. Chernisheva sang with excellent vocal color, vocally and visually embodying all of Tosca's varying emotions from love of Mario to hatred of Scarpia. Her "Vissi d'arte" was beautifully vocalised and moving, and it deserved the long applause it received. |
Boston Phoenix Jan 20 2008 Tosca Teatro Lirico d'Europa ...she’s a terrific Tosca, with her big voice and glamorous looks, whether boiling over with misguided jealousy or nuzzling the painter Cavaradossi (even in church!), terrorized by her sadistic tormentor or plunging a knife into his loathsome heart. Her big aria, “Vissi d’arte” was more impressive than heartrending, but find me another soprano who can sing this demanding role so well and also look so convincing in it. |
Boston Globe Jan 18 2008 ToscaTeatro Lirico d'Europa The soprano's voice was all power and glinting steel; her high notes, particularly in the frenzy of her Act II confrontation with Scarpia, were often thrilling. |
November 2007 La Boheme Tampa Opera A strong Musetta, played by Olga Chernisheva, steals outright the Cafe Momus scene with her vivacious stage presence and alluring vocals. |
Boston Globe October 2007 Madama Butterfly Teatro Lirico d'Europa In the title role, Russian-born soprano Olga Chernisheva looked beautiful, and moved gracefully. She had plenty of volume, and topped her entrance with a soft, easy C-sharp. She was dignified and strong in her final moments. |
Opera Online October 26 2007 Madama Butterfly Teatro Lirico d'Europa The amazing soprano Olga Chernisheva returned, singing the role of Butterfly, capturing all the delicacy, hope and humanity of a young girl who finds herself crushes by the betrayal at the hands of the man she loved. Ms.Chernisheva and Zhelezova produced a perfect blending of vocal beauty and complimentary acting, such that their characters, when on stage together, not only tugged at our heartstrings with some fine acting, but swept us away with their smooth delivery and vocal evenness. |
Opera L Portland October 2007 Tosca Teatro Lirico d'Europa Chernisheva was polished, pushing on and never less than ravishing. Her Act I was a jealous, preening beauty, with a childlike wonder of everything that made you see why Mario could forgive her jealous outbursts and diva craziness. Olga Cernisheva poured out enormous voice...She scales back the sound beautifully, shading text with emotion, but when, as in Act II's many violent moments, she unleashes the full "fury" of her voice, it causes one of those rare "whoa!" moments. How wonderful it is to have a Tosca that looks like the gal everyone wants, but also has the voice to soar when necessary. |
Cape Cod Times May 1 2007 Manon Lescaut Di Capo Opera Porcelain-doll-like and exotically sensual at the same time, Chernisheva has a burnished glow to her smooth and seamless voice, which can be heard throughout the hall in every register (high and low) and dynamic (soft and loud). Hers is not innately a big sound — although she can belt the high notes out of the park— but its quality carries. She is an experienced actress, and her portrayal of Manon's fickle character was spot on. |
Opera L Portland March 2007 Madama Butterfly Teatro Lirico d'Europa Taking over the Cio Cio San was Olga Chernisheva. I was simply not prepared for the size of her voice - more Turandot . . . . or Isolde . . . . than Butterfly. Chernisheva is slim and lovely and the voice seemed as if it belonged to a larger person. The bottom of her voice is simply huge - with an easy pluminess most mezzos would envy. It was huge, powerful singing - but a bit more than I wanted for this music. All that would change, however, after the intermission. Chernisheva owned the role. The sheer, constant outpouring of sooooo much voice - passionately involved with a stage character that moved with restrained elegance made magic of Puccini's odd juxtaposition joining frail Eastern-influenced character - to full blooded operatic heroine absolutely thrilling. Un bel di was followed by a moment of stunned silence as this Butterfly completely drowned out the orchestra (something Chernisheva did several times throughout the evening). Her farewell to her son was as it should be - more than too much - and the sound that poured forth, effortlessly, matched every emotion Puccini requires here. |
SCHENECTADY GAZETTE – Geraldine Freedman – Feb. 2007 Teatro Lirico d'Europa Turandot As Princess TURANDOT, soprano Olga Chernisheva sang with intensity and forcefulmess. Her voice was quite dramatic in its color. |
May 2006, The Marin Scope, Suor Angelica, San Rafael, CA “Chernisheva has a beautifully resonant chest voice. She can also carry that beautiful resonance into the upper end of the soprano range The Marin Scope, Suor Angelica, San Rafael, CA |
The Almanah 3/15/05 Manon Lescaut West Bay Opera …a soprano with the ability to project a full-throated, buttery voice to the farthest reaches of the hall. She seems most comfortable in the lower ranges, and brought a Maria Callas kind of mezzo-soprano pathos to the death scene |
San Francisco Classical Voice 2/18/06 Manon Lescaut West Bay Opera Chernisheva has a prominent voice, standing out in any situation, with effortless legato and a secure placement in the low note |
The Gazette (Cedar Rapids-Iowa City) 1/15/06 Madama Butterfly Chernisheva gave a triumphant performance in the title role… portrays a Butterfly so delicate and fragile that the audience can't help but fall for her. |
Opera News 12/19/05 Francesca da Rimini & The Bells, Dicapo Opera Olga Chernisheva made an impressive Francesca, her dark lyric voice focused and alluring, her platform manner subtly expressive. |
The New York Sun 12/19/05 Her instrument is dark,and her singing is formidable. She has that throb we associate with Russia,and also that fantastic cutting power.Her technique is nothing to sneeze at, as we saw when she sung a freestanding high B. Very impressive. |
November 10 2005, The Santa Barbara Independent Olga Chernisheva sang the elegiac "Addio, mio dolce amore." Her mature voice, full and robust, matched the somber tone of the music. |
November 2005, Santa Barbara News Press Olga Chernisheva displayed a penetrating voice … she charmed with a warm, winsome and contained … soprano |
June 2005,THE JOURNAL STAR, Peoria Olga Chernisheva captures...Tosca's complexities - her quick-changing moods, her childlike fragility, her ferocity. In the first act, Chernisheva is flirty, passionate and genuinely pained. She's also tough.Yet she's not merely tough. A little later in the action, moments after holding a knife over the bleeding body of … Scarpia, and shouting "Muori! Muori!", Chernisheva's Tosca gazes in horror at her bloodied hands. For despite everything, Tosca remains a gentle soul capable of singing "Vissi d'Arte". Chernisheva's delivery is mournful and moving. |
March 2005 OPERA ONLINE.US Singing the role of Mimi was Olga Chernisheva. While she sang the part with energy she managed to appear vulnerable, an interesting juxtaposition that worked on many levels. By the final scene where her illness finally overcame her…there was nary a dry eye in the house |
August 2003, The Tico Times, Costa Rica A good-sized lyric voice…The voice has a nice metallic edge to it which makes it ideal for the Puccini heroines she is currently singing. |
August 2002, San Francisco Chronicle A pure, strong soprano with phrasing of sumptuous elegance. |
August 2002, San Francisco Classical Voice Olga Chernisheva sang a Musetta that glittered with light and enormous humor. What a vamp! Her famous Act II waltz was brilliantly tossed off, as was the fight scene of Act III, each ringed with a feeling for comic balderdash. Yet her performance in act IV, just before Mimi’s finale, was touchingly tender. |
July 2002, Contra Costa Times Olga Chernisheva's alluring, firm-voiced Musetta was aptly coquettish in the Cafe Momus scene, making it easy to see why men would melt for her, and the soprano acquired a touching depth of emotion in Act 4. |