Armida in Handel’s Rinaldo with maestro Nicholas Mcgegan at alice tully hall & the international handel festival in göttingen

Rinaldo’s villains ruled the evening: while Jessica Niles’s fiery emerald-green-clad Armida may not have won the hero’s heart, she handily stole the lion’s share of her audience’s applause. Before she had even sung a note, her supremely bold stride onto the stage announced that she intended to rivet our attention. Her glittering entrance arioso “Furie terribilli” revealed a bright and steely sound that melted movingly for her broken-hearted ‘Ah! crudel.’

Niles who made a splash last year when William Christie conducted Juilliard 415 in Handel’s Aminta e Fillide, again revealed she has star quality in spades.

—Parterre Box

Niles showed much promise with her crystalline soprano, which cut through the hall like a laser…she held nothing back with Armida’s first arioso ‘Furie Terribili,’ …

in a series of intricate melismas, Niles took Handel’s music by the horns.

—OperaWire

when Jessica Niles negotiated the role’s witchy coloratura with her knife-like high soprano, she sent off sparks of delight and astonishment that could be felt throughout the hall…

Niles’s aplomb in the role’s many bravura passages was delightful to witness.

—Opera News