Joyce El-Khoury's soaring soprano was even more impressive than usual, from roof-shaking fortissimos to whisper-quiet mezza voce. – Opera Canada
A credible actress, the most appreciable of her singing came from the smooth passages, those that move between prayer and lament, as the last ‘Al dolce guidami’, recreated in an exquisite and precious way. – Platea Magazine
In the final scene, the way she [El-Khoury] resolved the difficult dramatic transition between the madness of the cavatina & the sanity of the cabaletta was astonishing. She dressed the dreaminess of the cavatina, ‘Al dolce guidami’, with all its lyrical finery, dynamic prowess and vocal filigree to make it the highlight of the evening. – El País
The "pearl" of the show, though, is El-Khoury's Leila. Pearl Fishers marks El-Khoury's Dallas Opera debut, and we should be so lucky to see her at the Winspear again in future productions. Her soprano has a haunting richness to it, the kind of bittersweet tone that makes Leila's arias particularly sympathetic and dramatic, but she switches between barely whispered prayers to pained declarations of love with such ease and authenticity that emphasizes the character's own tortured psyche. – Broadway World
