Singing the role of God (no pressure) against diaphanous live video imagery, Stephanie Dillon retained firm, well-outlined tone with strongly rounded projection in the scene of Cain’s admonishment.

The two non-human figures are mezzo Stephanie Dillon as the voice of God, pronouncing from on high with authority and investing the utterances with a full, rich tone.

Dillon’s creamy and compelling lower range is on display

The role of God (a daunting assumption, one might imagine) was taken by mezzo-soprano Stephanie Dillon, who impressed as Cornelia in Pinchgut’s Giulio Cesare a few years ago, and managed to sound most authoritative as the divine voice 

God appeared through live video, pure light and sparkle, given real authority by Stephanie Dillon’s rich, commanding voice. 

Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Dillon joined for Stradella’s Croifissione e morte di Nostro Signore Gesu Christo…Dillon’s warm, burnished voice was well-suited for this piece. 

Dillon played the part of a cheated Medea, whose gradual descent into madness is lightened only by a clear-eyed call for vengeance. Her characteristic projection – which is almost declamatory in effect, and which therefore worked wonders in the Scarlatti last month – was on full display, especially in the more dramatic passages. 

Mezzo-soprano Stephanie Dillon sang with sincerity and warmth, particularly in He Shall Feed His Flock, where her silken phrasing felt like a pastoral blessing goes here

Stephanie Dillon’s desperate Cornelia and Helen Sherman’s determined Sesto elicited gasps and sighs from the audience at the end of their duet Son nata a lagrimar (I was born to weep), just before the interval. Dillon’s rich and creamy tone, combined with Sherman’s bright mezzo voice, interwove in harmonies, melodious abandon and unreserved emotional expression.

As Pompeo’s grieving wife Cornelia, local mezzo-soprano Stephanie Dillon is superbly cast. Cornelia has a ton of weight bearing down on her and Dillon channels it convincingly with great emotion and deliciously dappled finesse.

Alongside the wildly dramatic gusto to which Australian mezzo-soprano Helen Sherman brings to Cornelia’s ardent son Sesto, a knockout avenging mother-son duo is carved into the work that looks to unseat the primary focus. Together they share that sentiment powerfully in the Act 1 closing mournful duet, Son nata a lagrimar.

Stephanie Dillon’s portrayal of the grieving widow Cornelia is grounded and well-paced. So connected to the orchestra, her sombre legato lines feel almost instrumental.

Sherman and Dillon are sublime together, their mother-son chemistry is palpably believable and they vocally complement each other completely.

Stephanie Dillon’s voice fit right into this instrumental conversation; so much so that it gave the effect of really being a trio between three equal voices. One could viscerally feel the torment and anguish so strikingly evoked by the text.

Stephanie Dillon graced us with a clear, penetrating exploration of the story with superb diction and subtle drama. Her voice was a sublime and magnetic addition to this exciting stage