On Lucia di Lammermoor:
“The director Alyssa Weathersby, who oversaw OH’s Rigoleto last season, retained the early 18th-century Scottish setting of the Donizetti opera and its source novel, Walter Scott’s The Bride of Lammermoor. Thus, kilts and yards of plaid abounded in Shaun Heath and Mary Webber’s costumes, and a bagpiper received a credit in the programme. […] But Weathersby got her creative innings. in. The walls of Chyna L. Mayer’s gothic-flavoured sets dripped blood when the deranged Lucia relived the murder of her new husband. The wedding guests were comically tipsy at first and menaced Lucia as if they were zombies moments later. And Lucia’s spirit came gliding in to help Edgardo kill himself and joined him on a stairway to heaven.”
— William Albright, Jan 2025 in Opera Magazine with Opera News
“Whether you're an opera aficionado or a newcomer, this production is sure to leave you spellbound. […] Opera in the Heights begins [its season] with enthusiasm and almost perfection with this production. This production is a feast both audibly and visually and left the audiences in shock at its performers' acting choices and vocal ability. A few times, I had goosebumps after specific arias and moments, leaving myself brimming with excitement. I quickly left, wanting to buy another ticket and treat other friends and family to this exquisite production. […] It's a beautiful reminder of why Opera still captures hearts across generations.”
— Armando Urdiales, Sep 2024 with Broadway World
On Anything Goes:
“full of hit dance numbers choreographed by Jenkinson and Alyssa Weatherby with bright and spirited songs that are just delicious. […] The [“Buddy Beware”] dance scene is upbeat and fun with many lifts including a fantastic lift at the end where the sailors carry Erma off the stage while she lays on her belly and winks and smiles. […] Overall, Anything Goes is an over-the-top musical filled with amazing singing talent, many excellent dance numbers, and costumes that are exquisite to behold.”
On Guys & Dolls:
“Choreographers George Pinney and Alyssa Weatherby use dynamic movement to establish various characters and scenes. […] Guys and Dolls at the Utah Festival of Opera & Musical Theatre is a great production that can fill a soul with joy. The gambles and foibles of dice games, saving sinners, courting showgirls, and finding love blend beautifully with song and dance. Plenty more than lady luck makes this production worth the odds to attend.”
On Cupid & Death:
“under the banner of the Early Music Access Project and the direction of Alyssa Weathersby the piece thrived as an amalgamation of period and more modern traditions, reworking the incongruous entertainment to find its wit and beauty.”
On Elisir d’amore:
“scored a home run with this production. […] But the production absolutely sparkled, thanks to incredible stage direction from director Alyssa Weathersby. From the moment conductor Ken Yanasigawa came onstage to finish setting the chairs to reveal his baton sitting in one of them, and then the subsequent bit with the audience he had after the fact (well, more specifically, me, actually), I was absolutely laughing my behind off through the entirety of the performance. There was a lot of stagecraft that was thrown throughout the beer hall […with] bubbly and hilarious stage work, from when the four-person chorus threw popcorn at Belcore during his very first aria in the show; to Dulcamara breaking out into the Gangnam Style dance in the wedding banquet that opens the second act; to the pause as Nemorino waits for Dulcamara to “brew” the elixir; to even Nemorino softening his volume and then roaring back to Dulcamara trying to pull away later in that same moment.
Both the direction and the singer-actors were strong enough that, for just a moment, I was able to mostly forget a lot of my issues with Donizetti as an opera composer and just enjoy the antics happening onstage. For sure, L’elisir is still not an opera I actively seek out most of the time, but as I have had to say recently in other spheres, a great performance can uplift a mediocre piece, and by God did this production lift up its source material. The result was a very fun time, and when dealing with a piece I’m not as fond of, what more can one ask for?”
On scenes from Chicago and Il turco in Italia:
“And those six women who owned the stage in their take no prisoners “Cell Block Tango” […] confidently executed Alyssa Weathersby’s aptly aggressive choreography and belted with delectable derision.
[…] Jason Zacher and Chang Lui gave a commanding account of “Per piacere alla signora” from Rossini’s Il turco in Italia, a duet replete with vocal pyrotechnics and gymnastic choreography—again cleverly designed by Alyssa Weathersby. Zacher may have literally swept Lui off her feet at the duet’s final cadence, but I think it safe to say that Opera NEO also swept its audience off its feet with an evening of such musical prowess and sophisticated amusement.”