This summer, Sergey Romanovsky returned to the Rossini Opera Festival, Pesaro in the role of Leicester in Elisabetta, regina d'Inghilterra. Sergey is a firm favourite with the festival audience, having previously sung roles including Agorante in Ricciardo e Zoraide and Néoclès in Le siège de Corinthe for the company. He reprises a role that he sang earlier in the 2020/21 season to great critical acclaim in a filmed production for Théâtre Royal de la Monnaie, Brussels.
The reviews have been outstanding, highlighting Sergey's skilful use of the whole breadth of his vocal range and expressive quality, and his characterisation of this complex character, especially in the second act's famous prison scene:
“Sergey Romanovsky is vocally and visually a radiant young Leicester, whose strong tenor voice has great charisma in the upper register. A highlight is the big prison scene in the second act, where he descends from cleanly sung heights to voluminous depths and laments the suffering of his wife Matilde.”
Thomas Molke, OMM
“Sergey Romanovsky takes advantage of the different characters of his rich vocal register. The tone is soaring and captivating; it makes the line of the recitatives rich and smooth. With long breaths, and a moderate use of vibrato, he sings with clean high notes and very convincingly portrays himself as the lover, rather than the soldier, in his aria.”
Thibault Vicq, Opera Online
“The cast includes two tenor roles with similar vocal characteristics, what we now would call a “baritenor”: a dark tenor voice, with strong, powerful high notes. Sergey Romanovsky, as Leicester, fits the bill. His performance was exciting, his high notes confident, his interpretation convincing as the young hero torn between love for Matilde and loyalty to the Queen, who wants him as her husband.”
Laura Servidei, Bachtrack
“Sergey Romanovsky truly impresses as Leicester, one of the baritenor roles which he particularly favours and which allows him to showcase his middle and lower registers, remarkably well projected and integrated into the vocal line. The upper register is not to be outdone […] and the characterisation is very convincing, notably in a very moving prison scene.”
Stéphane Lelièvre, Première Loge
“Tenor Sergey Romanovsky produced a lyrically engaging presentation as Leicester, in which his acting and singing successfully captured the swagger of the returning hero. He possesses a well-supported voice, with a pleasing timbre that he used to good effect, no more so than in the prison scene in which his expressive recitatives captured his weary and forlorn state. From here he moved into the aria “Sposa amata…respira…,” in which he gave voice to his anxiety and sorrow in a powerfully rendered and emotional presentation, which also showed off the beauty of his singing. His ensemble singing also displayed quality. The scena and duet with Matilde, beginning “Incauta, che festi!,” was also wonderfully presented, with both Romanovsky and Jicia producing strong, lyrical performances in which their voices combined to complement each other splendidly.”
Alan Neilson, Opera Wire
“Sergey Romanovsky shows us a Leicester with great class. The voice is both virile and supple […] the baritone timbre is silky and the high notes are beyond reproach. In addition, he deals well with the whims of the staging that make him start his magnificent aria “Fallace fu il content” from behind and then continue it…lying down.”
Paul Fourier, Toute La Culture
“Sergey Romanovsky’s Leicester is a Nozzari-style baritenor, with a solid upper register, a rich lower register, an attractive voice and a familiarity with Rossinian style.”
Didier Van Moere, Diapason
“The tenor Sergey Romanovsky, well known at the Rossini Opera Festival, shows us a Leicester with great vocal resources at his disposal. The Russian singer, with an interesting baritonal timbre and an impressive instrument, knows how to use the whole breadth of his vocal resources to present a magnificent character who stood out, especially in the second act.”
Aleix Palau, Revista Musical Catalana
Listen to Sergey sing Leicester's aria "Della cieca fortuna un triste esempio" here.
