As Cherubino at Florentine Opera, 2019:
"Also special is what is known as the breeches role (playing an overly romantic young man). Here soprano Abigail Levis proves the best mime on the stage while neatly modulating a famous love song." ~ Urban Milwaukee
"Mezzo- soprano Abigail Levis shines in the pants role of Cherubino, bringing vocal warmth and facility to the role along with a light-footed comic ease." ~ Journal Sentinel
With Mirror Visions Ensemble, 2019:
"The opening set began with the chipper Prelude from Bernstein’s Trouble in Tahiti, then moved to the poignant folk-like melody of “The Gambler’s Wife” by John Jacob Niles, which mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis delivered with quiet sorrow.
She showed a different side of her voice in Ruth Crawford Seeger’s “Chinaman, Laundryman,” matching the ferocity of the music with blazing focus. "
. . . . .
"The third section of the program, “War,” was the darkest of the four, and it began with the evening’s most memorable performance. Levis led set number three with a haunting unaccompanied rendition of “Johnny, I hardly knew ye,” a black-humored Irish song, better known in its American version, “When Johnny Comes Marching Home.” There is a basic coolness in her tone, but she gave the music an emotional edge by letting more and more agitation creep into her voice. This was a dramatic and devastating interpretation, unsparing in its presentation of the text’s sardonic edge..."
. . . . .
"Levis again showed her keen textual sense in B. E. Boykin’s setting of “Secret” by Gwendolyn Bennett." ~ New York Classical Review
As Prince Orlofsky with Utah Opera, 2018:
While all performers had their shining moments, the standout performances of the evening go to Rethwisch for her role as the maid Adele, and, in a bit of gender-bending casting, Abigail Levis for her hilarious portrayal of the infinitely wealthy and eternally bored Prince Orlofsky. Small in stature, Levis’ commanding presence drew laughs as she would dramatically demand to be carried from room to room, indicate her desire for people to bow before her and theatrically sigh and lie down on the couch in a state of irreparable boredom." ~ Deseret News
"...he rewrote the rules for Abigail Levis’ characterization of Orlofsky. Levis stole the show as the bored Russian prince with broad, physical humor and an accent rumored to be based on Felonius Gru from Dispicable Me. At times, the pampered prince jumped into the hulking arms of the valet, played by Utah Opera Artistic Director Christopher McBeth, in a quasi-pair’s ice skating pose" ~ Opera News
"Act II also showcases the trouser role (a woman playing a male character) of Abigail Levis, a former Utah Opera Resident Artist, who returns to Salt Lake to sing the role of Prince Orlofsky—a character she lends great humor and depth to in addition to her beautiful voice. Her hilarious demands to be carried into rooms and kissed on the hand make some of the most entertaining memories." ~ Utah Review
As Rose/Dinah with Opera Parallele, 2018:
"Highlighting both operas was the San Francisco debut of Abigail Levis. Singing with bright, unforced brilliance, the mezzo-soprano, looking chic in Christine Crook’s costumes, made a captivating first impression as Rose, exuding charm and tossing off glistening high notes in Heggie’s quicksilver lines. That impression only deepened as Levis, artfully shading Dinah’s predicament, revealed a startling depth of emotional intelligence; her dreamlike soliloquy (“I was standing in a garden”), delivered in the office of Dinah's therapist, was an enveloping episode" ~ Opera News
"Mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis ... sang with glittering vocal and emotional precision on opening night."
...
"There’s nothing finer in the piece than “There is a Garden,” which blooms out of Dinah’s session with her therapist. Levis gave the number’s aspirational intervals a quietly vaulting, bittersweet spaciousness. "
...
"If Statue has less exalted aims, it accomplishes its purposes with some style and wit ... Levis was funny, present in the moment, and all too cognizant of her innocent, vanished past. Her diction and musical delivery had the willed clarity of a woman trying as hard as she can to hold on to hope for the future. A high note near the end seemed about to shatter even as Levis lofted it.
Missing out on a blind date is one thing. The Tahiti marriage to come, in Levis’s quietly anguished performance, is an entirely deeper and more perilous matter. " ~ Steven Winn www.sfcv.org
"In “Venus,” a single woman (the thoughtful and dramatic fervent Abigail Levis on opening night...)
...
Meanwhile, Dinah (Levis again, in a performance of wondrous expressive specificity" ~ Joshua Kosman, SF Chronicle
"Mezzo Abigail Levis depicts the humor and unease of Rose deftly, as she will playing Dinah later. What’s more, she masters the vocal demands of the incredibly long act-length aria with command over her full vocal and emotional range."
~ Victor Cordell, www.forallevents.info
As Testo with Opera Philadelphia, 2017:
"Mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis also sings Testo, and her singing is a masterclass in itself on grounded technique, which achieves consistent beauty in its sound." ~ Schmopera
As Alto Soloist for Handel's Messiah with Toronto Symphony, 2016:
“I was really impressed with Abigail Levis and her low register. It was still bright and warm and just as agile and active as her upper register. I loved her "O thou, that tellest good tidings from Zion". ~ Schmopera
“Mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis, along with Okulitch, made her TSO debut with a strong personality and a voice to match.” ~ Musical Toronto
“American Mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis was magnificent in the pitiful air “He was despised an rejected of men…” She demonstrated why she is on the cusp of a great career. Next week, she heads off to Berlin for an extended engagement with Deutsche Oper Berlin."
~ Toronto Concert Reviews
As Cherubino with Utah Opera, 2016:
"Mezzo Abigail Levis was a firecracker as Cherubino, delivering the lovestruck page's arias with effervescent lightness."
~ The Salt Lake Tribune
"A special note should be made of Abigail Levis as Cherubino. She sang well, and her very physical and energetic portrayal of Cherubino was a welcome addition to the cast." ~ The Utah Review
"If there was one moment that crystalized the production’s extraordinary appeal, it was Cherubino’s aria, “Voi che sapete,” sung with uncommon innocence and purity by mezzo soprano Abigail Levis. Levis, a former Utah Opera resident artist, wore her trouser role well, projecting just the right amount of awkward, youthful impetuousness." ~ Opera News
As Cherubino with Wolf Trap Opera, 2015:
"Looking every bit like a teenage, impetuous boy, Abigail Levis sailed through the role of Cherubino, leaving an impressive vocal glow in her wake; she sculpted "Voi che sapete" in particular, with terrific tonal and textual sensitivity." ~Opera News
"Mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis was outstanding in the trouser role of the page, Cherubino, her “Voi che sapete” lovely, light and full of longing." ~The Washington Post
"...a delightfully brazen Cherubino played by Abigail Levis...Cherubino’s famous aria “Voi che sapete” was purely and soaringly sung by Levis..." ~DC Metro Theater Arts
As Sesto with Symphonie Atlantique, 2015:
"Abigail Levis’ clear and flexible mezzo was perfect for the boy Sesto. She delivered “L’angue offeso” with dazzling ornementation and my biggest regret was that one of her arias in Act II was cut." ~ bachtrack.comt
"...the nimble Abigail Levis, who managed to keep many revenge arias exciting." ~ operacast.com
As Despina with Utah Opera, 2015:
"Mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis, as the maid Despina, delivered scene-stealing comedic talent and descriptive vocal flexibility that impressed throughout the evening. Her fearless performance was a highlight." ~ Opera News
"...even the fun-loving maid Despina has a surprise or two to offer in Abigail Levis' delightful portrayal." ~ Salt Lake Tribune
As the sisters’ maid Despina, mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis showed a flair for comedy as she lectured the sisters on men and how to act when around them. She has a strong voice that is infused with finely modulated lyricism. ~ reichelrecommends.com
As Ottavia with the Britten Pears Young Artist program, 2014:
"There is steel also in Abigail Levis` fraught Ottavia, trailing her tail of white crinoline as she loses her husband and invites his vengeance as well as that of the affronted gods." ~ whatsonstage.com
As Rosina with Hubbard Hall Opera, 2013:
"The young Abigail Levis and her warm and resonant mezzo voice was breathtaking as Rosina. She has the rare interpretive gift of using coloratura to highlight emotional truth rather than simply show off. " ~ berkshirefinearts.com
As Dorabella with New York opera Exchange, 2012:
In this case, the quirky and fickle Dorabella was sung by lyric mezzo-soprano Abigail Levis. I know it's cliche to say - especially for someone reviewing a show - but, there are no other words to use: Levis stole the show. Her singing was consistently sumptuous and brilliant...while her portrayal of the character displayed comedic timing that was spot-on, giving us a Dorabella that was comically lovable. I can't wait to see more from her ~ A Liberal's Libretto
Mezzo Abigail Levis gave a standout performance as Dorabella, with focused, agile, and emotionally rich singing. Her lyric timbre was matched with a vivid portrayal, charting Dorabella's journey from faintly guilty sympathy to joyously sensual flirtation.
~ Opera Obsession
The Most Important Review of All:
"She was really great in her high school musicals" ~ Abigail's Father