Jake in Porgy and Bess with the Spoleto Festival USA
“A number of the performers, through strong singing and dramatic conviction, surmounted the hurdles the maladroit production placed in their paths. . . Sidney Outlaw, as Jake, sang “It take a long pull to get there” with anthemic authority.”
-Opera News | 2016
“Clara’s husband, the fisherman Jake, sings “A Woman is a Sometime Thing.” This is Sidney Outlaw’s first big moment, and the charismatic baritone takes full advantage of it, producing an appealingly warm and fluid vocal line and strutting comfortably on stage.” -Post and Courier | 2016 “Sidney Outlaw as Jake shows off his earth-shaking baritone with “Woman is a Sometime Thing” and “It Takes a Long Pull to Get There.”
-Charleston City Paper |2016
Golaud in Pelleas and Melisand with Floating Opera New York
“Sidney Outlaw brought a rich baritone to the brooding role of Golaud, and projected the clearest diction of the evening. He clearly delineated the path from enthrallment with Melisande, to eventual jealousy and rage.”
-Opera Today | 2015
Dandini in La Cenerentola with Greensboro Opera
“Baritone Sidney Outlaw used his even and rich voice with great skill pulling off some really fast passages with remarkable clarity. Outlaw has had a flair for comedy since CVNC first reviewed him when he was a UNC-G undergraduate.”
-Classical Voice North Carolina | 2015
“Donald Hartmann and Sidney Outlaw couldn’t have better comedic chemistry. Their moments together were remarkable and brought the house down with laughter. They were helped by very clever make-up that brought a smile to the public’s faces from the moment they first entered the stage. Singing-wise, both artists were rather perfect, with good pitch control in the lower register and excellent agility during the patter songs.”
-Opera Lively | 2015
“The cheeky dynamic between the disguised prince and the squire who takes his place is one of the most enjoyable aspects of “La Cenerentola,” and Outlaw was spot on. His hammy bossiness toward the prince and his hyperbolic courting of the stepsisters were side-splitting.”
-Greensboro.com | 2015
“[Outlaw’s] Dandini for Greensboro Opera revealed that his abilities include plucky instincts for Rossinian comedy. Of course, the best histrionic intentions are of little importance if the voice is not equally refined, but Outlaw’s first notes withered this concern like Dandini’s deflated pride. Singing the cavatina ‘Come un’ ape ne’ giorni d’aprille va volando leggiera e scherzosa’ with unctuous self-approbation, discharging top Fs like firecrackers, the baritone sauntered through Act One like a great sprinter entering the home stretch without a competitor in sight. . .Outlaw uttered ‘Sotto voce a mezzo tono’ as though plotting to infiltrate Fort Knox and then unleashed a torrent of spot-on coloratura in the duet with Ramiro. He and Hartmann squabbled and swashbuckled through Dandini’s and Magnifico’s Act Two duet [the Act Two finale in Greensboro Opera’s production], ‘Un segreto d’importanza,’ Outlaw matching his colleague roulade for flawlessly-executed roulade. Outlaw’s blazing coloratura in the Sextet brilliantly imparted Dandini’s rôle as the fulcrum upon which the drama pivots. . . Musically and dramatically, Outlaw’s Dandini was a sidekick who scored many of the performance’s most spectacular runs.”
-Voix des Arts | 2015
Figaro in Il barbiere di Siviglia with Atlanta Opera
“Outlaw’s perpetually grinning Figaro is established as the clever servant, the trickster with a good heart in his confident “Largo al factotum della città.”
-Atlanta Observer | 2014
Raphael in Haydn’S Creation with Oratorio Society of NY
Sidney Outlaw possesses a fine, flexible baritone that dealt smoothly with Haydn’s demands in both legato and ornate passages. Expressive recitative delivery showed an engaging platform manner. He managed the lowest notes — really in bass- baritone country — creditably.
-David Shengold, Opera News | 2014
Guglielmo in Così fan tutte with North Carolina Opera
“I was especially pleased with Mr. Outlaw thanks to his beautiful timbre and great projection”
-Opera Lively | 2013
Apollo L’orestie d’eschyle with the UMS Choral Union (Grammy Nominated)
“Mr. Outlaw is among the ranks of America’s finest young baritones.”
-Joseph Newsome, Vois des Art | 2013
2nd Priest in Il Prigionero with NY Philharmonic
“Sidney Outlaw was effective in a short scene as a self-absorbed priests.”
-Anthony Tommasini, NY Times | 2013
San Francisco Opera (Recital debut)
“An opera powerhouse, his sound was weighty and forthright, his phrasing alert, his interpretive approach astute…sung with quiet eloquence…”
-Joshua Kosman, San Francisco Chronicle | 2011
Elijah With Oratorio Society of NY
“Sidney Outlaw used his deep, resonant baritone and thoughtful approach to phrasing — powerful but shapely — to create a strong, nuanced portrayal of Elijah.”
-Alan Konzinn, New York Times | 2011
Recital with Warren Jones – North Carolina Music for a Great Space
“Baritone, Sidney Outlaw was a riveting success, delivering his lines with authority and a wonderfully full and well-rounded sound.”
-Carolina Classical Voice | 2011
Leonard Bernstein Gala at NYC Opera
“In the little-known “Seena,” from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue, the young baritone Sidney Outlaw made a beautiful effect, especially in his dulcet yet firmly supported piano singing.”
-Opera News | 2010
Malcolm X with NYC Opera
“Sidney Outlaw, a baritone with a deep, rich timbre, sang the title role with passion and dignity.”
-New York Times | 2010
Recital – Wigmore Hall
“Sidney’s Outlaw’s first notes proclaimed- and all the followed confirmed- a singer in quite a different category. This is a sumptuous, closely textured voice of moderate power but distinctive character…. He held the audience as nothing in the evening’s programs had done, and his applause was overwhelming.”
-Opera Now | 2009
“Another stand-out performer at this year’s competition is the American baritone Sidney Outlaw. Technically, he is very secure, especially in the high register. But it’s the compactness of his voice, communicating text and mood with absolute precision, that most delighted the audience.”
-London Telegraph | 2009
“… The loudest applause from the famously demanding audience in the acoustically near-perfect London hall was reserved for African-American fourth-place finisher Sidney Outlaw, from Brevard, North Carolina. Outlaw captivated the packed hall with a program that ended with a moving setting of a text from the final sermon by the slain U.S. civil rights leader Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., and a spiritual.”
-Reuters | 2009
Orchestra Concert with Opera Montreal
“Outlaw earned an ovation, and rightly, for his nicely focused and completely heartfelt rendition of “Mein Sehnen” from Korngold’s Die Tote Stadt. Good work also in Bizet, Mahler and Tchaikovsky (Queen of Spades). With his old-fashioned hand- on-heart bow, this American seemed to convey warmth from another time.”
-The Gazette | 2009
“Mr. Outlaw is also a high baritone. The voice is compact-sized, pleasant and warm in timbre – perhaps not so fantastic in terms of beauty of tone, but the way he uses it is very impressive – this guy is an artist. He communicates the text and the moods of a piece of music exceptionally well – this guy likes drama! Technically he is very secure, especially in the high register – top notes hold no terror for him. While he is best in the very dramatic pieces, he also shows that he can sing quietly, as in Fritz’s aria from Die tote Stadt. This aria is a surefire audience favorite and Outlaw sang it beautifully. Overall, his performance was wonderful tonight, and he was rewarded with vociferous applause.”
-La Scena Musicale | 2009
Handel’s Messiah with Musica Sacra “Mr. Outlaw was commendable and made the most impressive contributions, singing with a lyrical voice, crisp diction and dramatic conviction.”
-Vivian Schweitzer, New York Times | 2008
Soloist with the New Juilliard Ensemble
“The frozen look on the face of Sidney Outlaw, the baritone soloist, as he sang “Heil, Sachsenhausen” in gorgeous tones that Josef Schmidt might have used to apostrophize Vienna, perfectly expressed the ambivalence of the experience. That Mr. Outlaw is a terrific singer only underlined the power of the anger beneath the velvet glove of a luxuriously good performance.”
-Anne Midgette, New York Times | 2007
Recital with Warren Jones at Greensboro Opera
“Sidney Outlaw’s “star” is rapidly ascending! His voice is beautiful and demonstrated commendable elegance, grace and even humor.”
-Greensboro News and Record | 2008