As Princess Turandot in Turandot:
“Sunday’s cast featured a homegrown Turandot in Marcy Stonikas, a graduate of the company’s Young Artists Program. She…made a commanding figure and sang beautifully,”
-Bernard Jacobson, Seattle Times
“Her voice was warm and round from the very beginning, and the music seemed to fit her like a glove; her high notes seemed effortless. She was emotionally connected to the icy princess, making the love story slightly more believable than it might otherwise be.”
-Margaret Higginson, The SunBreak
“Marcy Stonikas (silver cast), vocally and physically captured Turandot’s abrupt emotional about-face.”
-Rebecca Brown, CityArts
“For her performance of the title role [...] Marcy Stonikas [...] showed remarkable control and focus across her range and vividly embodied the “freezing ice that will burn” which underlies Turandot’s enigmatic passion.”
-Thomas May, Crosscut
As Antonia in Les Contes d’Hoffmann:
“Soprano Marcy Stonikas was outstanding as the tragic Antonia. She has a huge, clear, commanding voice that is nonetheless capable of great subtlety, and her Act II performance sent a palpable ripple of excitement throughout the performance space.”
“As Antonia, Marcy Stonikas brought a good deal of ardor to her singing.”
“Marcy Stonikas brought considerable fire to the role of Antonia.”
-Baltimore Sun
As Rosaura in Le Donne Curiose:
“Marcy Stonikas, in particular, commanded attention as Rosaura, whose boyfriend Florindo is among the protective club members. The soprano revealed a big voice, tempered by abundant cream and nuance in the tone; her luscious low register proved especially appealing.”
“As Rosaura, soprano Marcy Stonikas was simply astonishing in Saturday’s performance. Her voice is magnificently huge, already ready for prime time. And yet she was still able to shape and contain it to match beautifully with the chamber context of this opera.”
-Washington Times
“Marcy Stonikas sustained lovely, long soprano lines as a determinedly histrionic Rosaura.”
-Washington Post
As Donna Anna in Don Giovanni:
“The singers are splendid, as is their acting: Stonikas has a beautiful soprano of Wagnerian size and I imagine we will hear her in those roles soon.”
“Marcy Stonikas is an imposing Donna Anna, with more than enough voice to fill Meydenbauer’s auditorium.”
-SunBreak
“Musically, there was much to enjoy. Marcy Stonikas as Donna Anna displayed strong voice.”
-Seattle Times
As Second Lady in Die Zauberflöte:
“Anya Matanovic, Marcy Stonikas, and Lindsey Anderson were outstanding as the Queen’s First Lady, Second Lady, and Third Lady, respectively.”
-Oregon Music News
“The Queen’s Three Ladies, Anya Matanovic, Marcy Stonikas and Lindsey Anderson all had strong singing skills as well as excellent comedic ability and timing.”
-Seattle Gay Scene
“Appearing in all performaces are the three excellent Ladies: Anya Matanovic, Marcy Stonikas, Lindsey Anderson.”
-The Gathering Note
In Beethoven’s Symphony No. 9:
“The solo quartet of Marcy Stonikas, [et al], individually polished, also blended exceptionally well.”
As Ariadne in Ariadne auf Naxos:
“For the Ariadne of Marcy Stonikas, only superlatives will do. The warmth, flexibility, and apparently inexhaustible power of her voice easily rode even the larger orchestral climaxes, and enveloped us all with its loveliness — most definitely, this is a singer with a big future.”
-Seattle Times
“As the Prima Donna (Ariadne), Marcy Stonikas displayed an astoundingly rich voice, with easy production from top to an almost contralto bottom. This was a big voice, such that she didn’t need to approach its limits to rise above the full orchestra. She had poise and a nice appearance. [Gregory Carroll’s] voice combined with that of Ms. Stonikas to make their final duet so exciting that I had to re-evaluate this whole opera! For the first time in my experience, the comic elements were properly balanced by the truly sublime ecstasy of the finale, making more sense out of the whole opera.”
-Seattle Gay News
“After we’ve heard Ariadne suffer (thanks to the vocal magnificence of Marcy Stonikas, who has an Antony Hegarty-like bitter chocolate to her blues singing and a credibly princess-like physical grace), we also get Zerbinetta’s side…Stonikas and Carroll deliver the vocal goods (Bernard Jacobson backs me up on this)…Conductor Brian Garman gets a strong evening’s performance from the Auburn Symphony Orchestra, who are sitting right there onstage, but Stonikas and Carroll sail right over the top.”
-SunBreak
“The ringing, vibrant voices of both Marcy Stonikas and Gregory Carroll ride atop the orchestra (almost literally, given the size of the stage) and shake Meydenbauer’s walls as they must rarely have been shaken.”
-Seattle Weekly
In Mahler’s Symphony No. 8:
“Marcy Stonikas brought tonal security and affecting expression to Gretchen’s climactic lines.”
-Chicago Classical Review
As Vanessa in Vanessa:
“Marcy Stonikas was a commanding Vanessa. Her big soprano was supple, unfurling Barber’s wide-ranging melodies in bright, seamless lines. Entirely self-absorbed, she made us believe that Vanessa truly did not understand the reason for Erika’s anguish. It was equally clear, however, that had she noticed, she wouldn’t have cared.”
-Chicago Sun-Times
“Marcy Stonikas brings grande-dame hauteur and a big, sometimes raw soprano to the title role [Vanessa].”
-Chicago Tribune
Premiere of Contemporary work with I.C.E.:
“The world premiere of ‘Fallen Eve’ by Chicago composer Geoffrey Gordon set five poems by the British poet laureate Ted Hughes for mezzo-soprano and chamber ensemble…Marcy Stonikas, the limpid-toned and expressive singer, was fully inside them…”
-Chicago Tribune