Last week saw the reopening of L’Opéra de Nice for their first fully staged production of the 2020/21 season, Massenet’s Werther directed by Sandra Pocceschi and Giacomo Strada and conducted by Jacques Lacombe.
Soprano Jeanne Gérard made her company and role debut as Sophie, and has been universally praised by critics for her voice and musicality:
“Jeanne Gérard portrays a fascinating Sophie with very touching human accuracy: she oscillates between the sincerity of a happiness that she wants to share, the acute awareness of the drama around her, and a kind of denial essential for the survival of all. This portrayal is served by a magnificent voice, deploying a subtle and nuanced palette of tone, skilfully passing from the overwhelming softness of velvet when she consoles Charlotte to a variegated and luminous power, whose volume is particularly generous, when she shines with joy. We will remember for a long time the heartbreaking grace of her final pianissimo "Dieu nous permet d’être heureux!” which greatly contributes to the poignant beauty of the opera's closing bars.”
Tancrède Lahary, Forum Opéra
“The four main characters show themselves to be of total physical and vocal credibility […] Jeanne Gérard is a vocally very polished Sophie, with a softer and more lyrical timbre than usual, which shows her in an all the more interesting perspective, given that the staging portrays her as a possible rival to Charlotte”
Stéphane Lelièvre, Première Loge
"By [Charlotte’s] side shines a soprano with a sparkling voice, Jeanne Gérard, nominated as ‘Revelation of the Year’ at the last Victoires de la Musique Classique”
André Peyregne, Nice Matin
“The Sophie of the young soprano Jeanne Gérard, nominated for the last Victoires de la Musique Classique, proves to be infallibly musical, with a tone a little more full-bodied than often heard in this role, which avoids the usual vapidity”
Emmanuel Andrieu, Opera Online
"As Sophie, Jeanne Gérard demonstrates a beautiful soprano voice, with a breadth that gives the impression of a firm and seasoned instrument, rather than youthful”
Francois Jestin, Anaclase
"Jeanne Gérard as Sophie deploys her very wide range of vocal qualities, which explain her nomination among the 'Révélations' at the last Victoires de la Musique Classique. [She] uses her full range without losing anything of the assured bass, the radiant treble, the agile, bird-like vocalisations, the vibrant articulation and the noble strength, and with rich vibrato and projection (without forgetting her mischievous air, reinforced by the fact that she and Charlotte are the same size as the young choristers on the stage."
Ôlyrix
Read more about the production here.
Photo credit: Dominique Jaussein