At the heart of the evening was Joyce El-Khoury, who joined rehearsals only a couple of weeks ago but had just one week to learn the formidable role of Hélène. You'd never have guessed. Singing with fearless attack in her boléro Merci, jeunes amies and bringing warmth and poise to her later scena with Henri, she gave a performance of staggering assurance and stamina. To step in under such circumstances would have been achievement enough; to deliver at this level felt almost superhuman. – Music OMH
Joyce El-Khoury as Hélène shows a voice of pure elegance, blossoming into power as the drama deepens. She is pure brilliance. – Lohengrin Magazine
Superbly cast as Palermo’s rabble-rousing heroine, Joyce El-Khoury saved the day, unleashing her breathtaking range on one of Verdi’s most dizzying roles whether exhorting patriotic fervour or pinpointing her love duet with Henri with exquisite delicacy. – Bachtrack
Let me start with the star of the evening: Joyce El-Khoury. She began learning the role only a few weeks ago, after the announcement of Marina Rebeka’s withdrawal. And let me tell you—learning such a massive role in just fifteen days is no easy feat, especially in a grand opera like Les Vêpres, which lasts over 3 hours and where Hélène’s part is both central and relentless! The challenge must have been immense, but she pulled it off. She embraced the role, delivered magnificent love duets, and crowned it all with a soaring, breathtaking final aria. – Opera Diary
El-Khoury's Médée was both a vocal and dramatic triumph. From her first appearance, El-Khoury's magnetic stage presence was further enhanced by her wearing an elegant Middle Eastern kaftan...El-Khoury used her beautiful lyric soprano to convey a complex Médée. She is attractive and feminine, yet regal and strong-willed. El-Khourv's diction was impeccable...one could have mistaken her for a French stage actress. Importantly, her acting was natural, never stylized. – La Scena Musicale
Joyce El-Khoury’s Médée captivated from first to last, her ‘Vous voyez de vos fils’ mesmerising, shot through with steel. El-Khoury’s acting was of both body and voice…El-Khoury made the opera’s terrifying climax unforgettable. – Gramophone Magazine
Inspirée par la mise en scène, la Médée littéralement habitée de Joyce El-Khoury possède une voix aussi large que longue de tragédienne. – Le Figaro
Le soprano d’origine libanaise possède une dissociation naturelle des registres vocaux qui n’est pas sans donner du relief aux étrangetés de la magicienne - graves pro-fonds, aigus tranchants comme des lames. – Le Monde
The staging proved to be a powerful showcase for Joyce El-Khoury’s first attempt at Cherubini’s anti-heroine. This charismatic Lebanese-Canadian soprano sang Médée in a late-classical style which made me long to hear her as Gluck’s Iphigénie (en Tauride) or Alceste, surely the vocal models for Cherubini’s incandescent sorceress. Her histrionic performance...suggested that Berlioz’s Cassandre, possibly even Didon, may be within her reach. Every member of the supporting cast complemented her towering central performance. – Opera Logue
La distribution fait appel à Joyce El-Khoury dans le rôle-titre qu’elle incarne de toute sa force de tragédienne. La voix part haut mais s’enfonce aussi dans des profondeurs infernales, servies par un timbre mordoré tout aussi solide que dans les aigues. La projection est excellente, le bref passage en arabe – lorsqu’elle chante une comptine aux enfants – est léger et gracieux, tandis que sa haine se déchaîne face à Jason dans leur duo furieux. – Opera Online
