DON ALFONSO (Così fan Tutte), L.A. OPERA

Played with unforced charisma, impeccable comic timing by veteran baritone Rod Gilfry, Don Alfonso nudged events forward, never showy, never straining for effect.  His voice was weathered, knowing, edged with amusement.

https://stageandcinema.com/2025/03/09/cosi-fan-tutte-la-opera/

 

Rod Gilfry’s Don Alfonso is as mischievous as he is commanding. Somehow, he seems just the singer to complete the trio “Soave sia il vento”— which, performed in stillness with a transfixing projection of water overlaid on the stage serves as a highlight of the evening— and then the right man to spy on the lovesick couples from behind a potted plant.

 https://www.broadwayworld.com/los-angeles/article/Review-COS-FAN-TUTTE-at-LA-Opera-20250310

Rod Gilfry, the Alfonso, reprised his 2023 Dallas role with a polished and witty performance.

https://www.classicalvoice.org/review/losangeles/2025/3/8/la-opera-cosi-fan-tutte

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Rod Gilfry
BARON SCARPIA, HOUSTON GRAND OPERA

…Gilfry turned to quiet, insidious tones that carried their own threatening aura, playing off against the force of his outbursts. Gilfry’s Scarpia sneered as he made fun of lovers’ moonlight escapades, and he brought a butter-wouldn’t-melt-in-his-mouth chill to the moments when he pretended to play nice. In a final, non-singing touch of theatricality, Gilfry’s dying Scarpia let out a death rattle as he expired—perhaps answering Tosca’s question about whether he’s choking on his own blood.

https://texasclassicalreview.com/2023/04/22/wilson-makes-hgos-tosca-a-blazing-vocal-feast/

Suave and reptilian, Rod Gilfry — also making his role debut — comes off cucumber-cool until his commanding baritone boils over with frustration and rage. His Scarpia is far from sympathetic, but Gilfry’s charismatic performance has the unsettling effect of superimposing the heroic public servant he could have been with the poisonous creep he turned out to be.

https://www.houstonchronicle.com/entertainment/classical/article/houston-grand-opera-tosca-17915994.php

Baritone Rod Gilfry, as Scarpia, the libidinous head of Rome's police, is gruff and sexy, a lively foil to the jealous Tosca and passionate Cavaradossi.… It's a picture of absolute debauchery. At the close of the first act, his “Va, Tosca” (“Go, Tosca”) ironically paired with a gloriously religious “Te Deum,” captures his unbridled lust set against the august church processional. Puccini at his best.

https://www.houstonpress.com/arts/review-tosca-at-houston-grand-opera-15537172

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Rod Gilfry
THE LOSER, LOS ANGELES OPERA

“A mesmerizingly virtuosic performance by Rod Gilfry destined for the annals of opera. ”

- Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times

“…it is the unrelenting presence and vocal clarity of Gilfry’s performance that makes the loser such a remarkable operatic experience.”

- Jim Farber, San Francisco Classical Voice

“Rod Gilfry was the storyteller and his resonant voice flowed voluminously across to the balcony of the Theatre at Ace Hotel in waves of bronze-tinged tone.”

- Maria Nockin, Broadway World

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Maya Rosehome
THE LOSER, BROOKLYN ACADEMY OF MUSIC

“Gilfry’s lyric baritone sounded crisp and effortless in the narrator’s ironic patter, warming up to a ravishing mezza-voce in the opera’s single scene of open emotion.”

- James Jordan, The Observer

“Rod Gilfry in a tour-de-force performance… Mr. Gilfry sings every phrase with crisp diction and dramatic point, delivering phrases with virile energy, sudden bluster, or, during vulnerable moments, an aching confusion that takes you by surprise. He is becoming the singer of choice for new American operas…”

- Anthony Tommasini, The New York Times

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Maya Rosehome