Vanessa Rodriguez, Soprano
"Vanessa Rodriguez plays Despina, the sisters' maid and the imp who works on the women like the tree of good and evil. She also sets the tone in this farce that mocks 18th century notions of chastity, made possible by an acid libretto by Lorenzo da Ponte. 'Pay attention to 100 men at a time,' Despina counsels. 'Keep 1,000 as possibilities.' Rodriguez is a fine soprano. Hopefully, she will get a bigger shot soon. As it is, she carries the satirical spirit of the opera more than any other performer."
-Andrew Meacham, Tampa Bay Times
"Director John Stephens maintained a breezy, easy-going pace that was accentuated with a number of top-quality performances, led by Vanessa Rodriguez in the role of Elsie. She brought zest and sauciness to the role of the warbling minstrel, with a beautiful soprano that elevated Elsie’s arias in clear, distinctive style. Her acting proved satisfactory as well."
-Mark Bretz, Ladue News
'The only thing good about tonight was the National Anthem. After that, it sucked.' - Lightning head coach Jon Cooper. "To be fair, the anthem, sung by Vanessa Rodriguez of Opera Tampa, was an exceptionally good rendition. But yeah."
-Clark J Brooks, Raw Charge