"The role of Carmen is a landmark in the world of opera, and it requires a mezzo-soprano with skill, strength, sex, and a dang good set of pipes. Without a woman like that, the show falls flat. UFO&MT’s Carmen features Audrey Babcock, as Carmen, who perfectly satisfies all the requirements for the role. Babcock is a force to be reckoned with. Full of life, sex, and a killer voice, Babcock is a hurricane that no one can resist. And who would you want to? She is sure and comfortable in her skin—or should I say Carmen’s skin—and she is the main reason this production is great. Her delivery of the classic Habenera, “L’amour est un oiseau rebelle,” is wonderful, as is every one of her arias. And she can play the castanets!"
"Mezzo-soprano Audrey Babcock gives us a Carmen that is traditional in all respects. She’s hedonistic, impetuous and hot-tempered – the quintessential Spanish woman, as imagined by Bizet, a Frenchman. Ms. Babcock’s performance is superb. She seems to be born to play Carmen (in fact, as UFOMT founding director Michael Ballam suggests – half jokingly, perhaps – Ms. Babcock may have played that role more often than anyone else alive). Ms. Babcock’s voice ranges from flirtatious to sultry and seductive, but is always rich and velvety. Her interpretation of the “Habanera” is a declaration of independence to which her would-be suitors should have listened more closely. Ms. Babcock is the perfect Carmen, destined to tempt men to their destruction and ultimately her own."
- Cache Valley Daily
"Audrey Babcock played the whore Aldonza, whom Don Quixote sees as the beautiful Lady Dulcinea. Babcock’s fierce attitude and demanding acting combined with her bewitching operatic voice make her a strong force to be reckoned with. Her desperation is sadly too relatable as she says, “See me as I really am… I am no one, I am nothing.”"
"Ballam stars opposite the incomparable Audrey Babcock as the fiery Aldonza. In addition to her memorable turns as Carmen, Ms. Babcock has drawn critical acclaim for this role in many previous venues and she plays it here to the hilt. Her performance is electrifying."
