nola.com (Andrew Adler)

The principal singers are almost always vocally reliable and, on occasion, considerably more than that. French soprano Gabrielle Philiponet's Violetta, whose defining personality evolves radically from salon to country house to deathbed, is a success if not quite an unalloyed triumph. Philiponet appreciates the idiomatic Italianate style – she can spin out a lush, evenly supported legato, and her points of expressive emphasis, regardless of dynamic, are intuitively truthful. In the totality of her interpretation, and her ability to maintain poise and shading amid the taxing final 15 minutes, Philiponet was an affecting, authentic Violetta..