La Traviata—Violetta
The Traviata of American soprano Malinda Haslett is one of elegance, power, and refinement that is truly otherworldliness. Brilliant, she misses not a drop of emotion to perfect
each tableau.
Michele Friche, Le Soir
The cast was dominated by Violetta, the young American soprano Malinda Haslett, who has an agile, luminous, spot-on, musical voice and who is physically ideal for the role.
Martine D. Mergeay, La Libre et L’Express
Le nozze di Figaro—Susanna
Malinda Haslett’s playful humor as Susanna kept one’s eyes on her, especially as the drama progressed
Paul Horsley, Kansas City Star
Malinda Haslett san and acted Susanna winningly and conveyed the buoyant spirit some cast members lacked.
Chuck Klaus, The Post Standard
No one could possibly be more perfectly cast in the capricious role of Susanna than soprano Malinda Haslett.
Rick Justice, The Daily Mail
Romeo et Juliette—Juliette
Haslett excels with her first Juliet. Taking her cue from Gounod’s music, the soprano makes a believable transformation from giggling girl to serious-minded woman, largely by changing the color of her voice as the brilliant lyric coloratura of Juliet’s showy first-act music gives way to a mellower sound.
Catharine Reese Newton, Salt Lake City Tribune
Malinda Haslett in particular, who sang the role of Juliet, really created a dynamic, believable, likable, character whom you could watch mature dramatically as if through a time-lapse camera from the beginning through the tragic end. Haslett is terrific. Her agile voice handles the vocal gymnastics of Juliette’s Waltz with beauty and ease.
Rebecca Howard, Deseret Morning News
Die Zauberflote—Pamina
As Pamina, Malinda Haslett paced herself well, and sang “Ach, ich fuhl’s” with such meltingly limpid phrases that the audience held its collective breath. She is a singer that deserves more attention.
Johanna Keller, Opera News
The Pirates of Penzance—Mabel
The solo singers were an attractive lot. Mabel was taken by soprano Malinda Haslett, who is personable, physically attractive and has the vocal facility to handle Sullivan’s coloratura paradies.
Olin Chism, The Dallas Morning News
The cast displays both physical and vocal talent. Soprano Malinda Haslett best exemplifies this as Mabel, the maiden who falls for pirate apprentice Frederic. Her voice conveys longing and humor.
Mark Lowry, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
Falstaff—Nannetta
As a counter to the pandering of Falstaff, the plot introduces Ford’s daughter, Nannetta, played by Malinda Haslett. Here is a young singer who has great stage presence, a nice sense of comedy, and is blessed with a lyric voice which can produce a silver thread of a vocal line.
Chip Ludlow, Venice Gondolier
A subplot involving Nannetta and her young love a welcome not of innocent young love to the prevailing cynicism. Malinda Haslett, as Nannetta, is girlishly teasing and possessed of a delightfully ethereal soprano.
Florence Fisher, Herald Tribune
Malinda Haslett, as Ford’s daughter, Nannetta, gives a beguiling performance in duets with her suitor, Fenton. Dressed all in white in the third-act forest scene, she is a magical presence, like an enchanted swan.
John Fleming, Sarasota Times
Un Ballo in Maschera—Oscar
Malinda Haslett’s Oscar, on the other hand, was an unalloyed delight, securely sung and nicely conveying the unconventionally prickly attitude her director had in mind.
John Crook, Opera News
Oscar, the page boy—a pants part sun in a sparkly voice by Malinda Haslett—was played as a naughty, youthful incarnation of Riccardo.
Pierre Ruhe, Atlanta Journal Constitution
Don Pasquale—Norina
Dallas-born soprano Malinda Haslett, who has a brilliant, flexible voice, was equally appealing as the clever Norina.
Wayne Lee Gay, Fort Worth Star-Telegram
La fille du Regiment—Marie
For the final production of its 2001 season, Lyric Opera Cleveland has had the smarts to import a soprano, Malinda Haslett, who can tame Donizetti’s coloratur demands. Looking like a cross between Ado Annie and Annie Oakley (until her Eliza Doolittle-like transformation, in Act II), Haslett brings a gawky girlishness to a role often undertaken by singers who warble brilliantly, but challenge verisimilitude. Haslett is pert and bright, spontaneous in gesture and musically sparkling. She is also a Marie who goes beyond mere merriment. Haslett sings both the florid and the buoyant lines with equal assurance. She is especially affecting in the two arias in which Marie must tug at the heartstrings, with expressive help from solo English horn and cello.
Donald Rosenberg, Cleveland Plain Dealer
Malinda Haslett is fetchingly sassy as Marie, a lovable army brat and foundling rescued by the 21st Regiment, who’s grown up as their canteen manager and darling mascot. With an awshucks cockiness that would enliven Annie Get Your Gun, she tosses around rifles and tosses off glittering above-the-staff notes with equal agility. Besides being credibly lithe and comely in a role often associated with hefty matrons, Haslett negotiates the cruelest stretches of coloratura flourishes with a bright, sharp, effervescent sound. She floats some ravishing, mournful pianissimos in her farewell to the regiment and movingly renders a pair of elegant second-act laments, while, with impressive dexterity she turns right around to lead the robust frenzy of “Rataplan” a giddy pastiche of a military tattoo that look sback to Rossini, and the rousing “Everyone Knows,” an infectious regimental salute that looks forward to Offenbach.
Marie Andrusewicz and James Damico, The Free Times
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