Reviews

"Herodes and Herodias are also of the highest caliber with Michael Hendrick and Dubravka Musović... Hendrick is King Herod with (his) extroverted acting and, in the top register, scintillant tenor. His portrayal of his sexual attraction to his step daughter is absolutely believable. Equally convincing is his portrayal of consternation at the end with which he orders the execution of Salome."

Deutsch: "Herodes und Herodias sind mit Michael Hendrick und Dubravka Mušović ebenfalls hochkarätig besetzt. Mušović stattet die Herodias mit einem dramatischen Mezzo aus und macht darstellerisch deutlich, wie zerrüttet das Verhältnis zu ihrem Mann aufgrund ihrer ganzen Vorgeschichte ist und wie sehr sie das Verhalten ihrer Tochter während des Tanzes missbilligt. Hendrick gibt den König Herodes mit extrovertiertem Spiel und in den Höhen funkelndem Tenor. Die Hörigkeit seiner Stieftochter gegenüber setzt er dabei absolut glaubwürdig um. Ebenso überzeugend gelingt ihm die Fassungslosigkeit am Ende, mit der er dann die Hinrichtung Salomes anordnet."

"Michael Robert Hendrick took on the tragic role of Canio . . . You’ll remember him as the brilliant acting-singer whose portrayal of Lennie in the operatic setting of Steinbeck’s “Of Mice and Men” at Sarasota Opera a few years ago, brought us all to tears. This time, he brought a depth of character seldom seen in this role. Rather than riding on the gleaming quality of his voice, as most tenors do in “Pagliacci,” Hendrick added his profound ability to embody a role, making his Canio more than just a striking voice."

Tenor Michael Hendrick and baritone Sean Anderson starred as Lennie Small and George Milton, respectively, in the Sarasota Opera production, and it's hard to imagine these two outcasts portrayed any better... As the hulking, childlike Lennie, Hendrick gave a performance that contained both scary violence and tenderness, as in his superbly nuanced Act III soliloquy in which, having just killed Curley's Wife, he waited in the dark woods for his protector once again to save him: "Hurry up, George, an' find me/ I'm so cold."
~ John Fleming, Opera News

The vocal cast is mostly composed of Brazilians and Mexicans, reinforced by American tenor Michael Hendrick as Parsifal and Russian soprano Olga Sergeeva as Kundry.

In the final tragic moments of Carlisle Floyd’s Of Mice and Men, a handsome, well-dressed woman began quietly weeping, continuing without letup until the end of the opera. “I’m sorry,” she said after the house lights came up. “I knew what was coming but I couldn’t help myself. It was just so powerful.”... Floyd’s 1970 adaptation of John Steinbeck’s tragic tale of George, his retarded friend Lennie and their thwarted American dream received a deeply moving and emotionally harrowing performance Sunday afternoon, presented by Sarasota Opera. The production was not only the high point of the company’s American Classics Series, but one of its finest efforts over the last decade... Michael Hendrick came in at the 11th hour to save the production. The veteran tenor sang with a mellow tone and sweet top notes. Dramatically, Hendrick conveyed the endearing vulnerability of the handicapped man who likes to stroke soft things as well as his propensity to sudden, fearful reactive violence.

Hendrick, a last-minute replacement for the tenor originally slated to sing Lennie, has made this role his own by slipping into the skin of this lovable but dangerous galoot with such a tight fit, vocally and emotionally, it’s hard to think of him as anyone else. Hendrick, who’s sung everything from Bacchus in “Ariadne” at the Met to Parsifal with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, has a soaring tenor voice that seems endless in range, color and depth. Yet, his acting is so skilled, his characterization so complete, you forget he’s singing; with remarkable enunciation and body language, he totally personifies Lennie.
~ June LeBell, The Observer Group

Tenor Michael Hendrick and baritone Sean Anderson star as Lennie Small and George Milton, respectively, in the Sarasota Opera production that opened Saturday night, and it's hard to imagine these iconic outcasts portrayed any better.... As the hulking Lennie, Hendrick combines child-like tenderness and scary violence in superbly nuanced singing.

"Their final scene is tragically gripping and bestows the finality this strange work demands. On Saturday evening, that reward was greatly appreciated by a hushed audience as the impressive protagonists (Michael Hendrick as Lennie and Sean Anderson as George) and the superb orchestra, under the direction of David Neely, brought the opera to its inevitable close."

The tenor Michael Hendrick assumed the title role and awakend many mixed feelings; like the character of his wife, Mina, who was played Adriana Damato and put them on my nerves.And let's not forget Vladimir Stoyanov! The strong baritone in of Verdi always shakes score. In short, an evening worthwhile.To the health of Verdi!

El tenor Michael Hendrick asumirá el rol titular y despertará muchos sentimientos encontrados; como el personaje de su mujer, Mina, que encarnará Adriana Damato y les pondrá de los nervios.

as Paul in Die Tote Stadt @ Opéra National de Lorraine à Nancy

C’est une forte mais audacieuse idée de donner Die Tote Stadt (La Ville morte) sans entracte, 2 heures 20 d’une continuité souvent paroxystique : il faut seulement que Paul, protagoniste ténor, constamment dans une tessiture crucifiante, s’y prête. Le jeune américain Michael Hendrick le fait, capable encore d’une ligne piano qui tire des larmes à la reprise finale, comme remémorée dedans, du lied Glück das mir verblieb.

English: It is a strong but bold idea to give Die Tote Stadt (The Dead City) without intermission, 2:20 of continuity, often furious : requires only that Paul, the tenor protagonist, lends himself constantly to a crucifying tessitura. The young American Michael Hendrick does, still capable of a piano line that draws tears at the final reprise, as remembered in, the song Glück das mir verblieb.

as Bacchus in Ariadne auf Naxos @ Festival Amazonas de Ópera (Manaus, Brazil):

... a remarkable Bacchus (American Michael Hendrick)

as Menelas in Die Ägyptische Helena @The Metropolitan Opera

Newcomer Michael Hendrick assaulted the stratosphere with steely stamina.

as Menelas in Strauss' Die Ägyptische Helena @ The Metropolitan Opera

He was replaced by Michael Hendrick, who had sung the dress rehearsal on Monday and was all set to go. Making your Met debut in such tense circumstances has to be intimidating. Still, Mr. Hendrick saved the day, singing with husky sound and energy.

Michael Hendrick prend son rôle très au sérieux, comme il l'avait fait dans le prologue. Son Bacchus, dont les aigus sont sûrs et bien projetés, gagne en beauté vocale ce qu'il perd en caractérisation. Ces réserves tombent toutefois lorsque, dans l'extatique duo final, Shaguch et Hendrick atteignent une justesse et une sincérité d'interprétation qui montrent bien la profondeur de la métamorphose, nouveau départ qui redonne vie à la vie.

English: "Michael Hendrick takes his role very seriously, as he did in the prologue. His Bacchus, whose high notes are secure and well projected, gains in beauty what it loses in vocal characterization. These reserves, however, fall when, in the ecstatic final duet, Hendrick and Shaguch reach a precise and sincere interpretation which shows the depth of metamorphosis, new beginning that gives life to life."