INTERVIEWS

Elena speaks with Analisa Leaming on her Podcast A Balancing Act about her performance in Days of Wine and Roses at Atlantic Theater Company before its Broadway run. LISTEN HERE!

Concert Work

"Outstanding performances included Ms. Shaddow’s bright, passionate renditions of “The Man I Love” (cut from two Gershwin musicals) and “Vanilla Ice Cream,” from She Loves Me, and her delicate, pitch-perfect duet with Mr. de Haas of “I’ll Never Fall In Love Again,” from Promises, Promises. – The New York Times

"Other standouts included “Not Again,” by Tom Kitt and Neil Benjamin, from Dave: The Musical, sung by Elena Shaddow..." – The New York Times

As CINDERELLA in INTO THE WOODS at  The Muny

"Elena Shaddow makes a charmingly common-sensical Cinderella..." - St. Louis Post-Dispatch

"Elena Shaddow is a lovely Cinderella..." - BroadwayWorld

"Another standout is Elena Shaddow as a conflicted Cinderella, with superlative vocals." - Belleville News Democrat

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As FRANCESCA inTHE BRIDGES OF MADISON COUNTY at Williamstown Theatre Festival

"An absolutely luminous, deeply affecting Elena Shaddow..." - Jeffrey Borak, Berkshire Eagle

"Elena Shaddow as Francesca is just about perfect." - Larry Murray, Berkshire Onstage

"A luminous actress [is] born... Blessed with a silken mezzo and the dreamy distant gaze of a woman cheated of her youthful artistic longings, she’s extraordinary as Francesca." - Jeremy Gerard, Bloomberg.com

As CLARA JOHNSON in THE LIGHT IN THE PIAZZA, First National Tour

"Clara's character is challenging to pull off. Her impairment must register as believable, but not in such a way that it turns the plot into a sick joke. Shaddow finds the balance that was missing at Lincoln Center, and her light soprano delights." - Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times 

"Her onstage journey ... is filled with confusion, love, doubt and enthusiasm and she gets the right tone out of each emotion, switching one on and the other off and allowing no ambiguity to creep in." - Phil Gallo, Variety 

"In Guettel's sweetly, achingly soaring "The Beauty Is," Shaddow's clear, silvery soprano pours out her exhilaration with the new emotions she feels and astonishment that someone might love her… Shaddow captivatingly navigates Clara's inner roller coaster ride on the abrupt title song 'Tirade.'" - Robert Hurwitt, San Fransisco Chronicle 

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As MARIA VON TRAPP in THE SOUND OF MUSIC at Papermill Playhouse

"What makes this superb production work so well is the spot-on casting, starting with Elena Shaddow (La Cage aux Folles), who makes for a delicate and quirky Maria. If you didn't know better, you might think she was the eighth von Trapp child. Better still, Shaddow manages to breathe life into the rather flowery lyrics of the title song through her dreamy-eyed, wistful sincerity, while during "Do-Re-Mi," it appears as if she is actually improvising the lyrics as she goes along." - Matt Windman, TheaterMania

"Elena Shaddow is an adorable Maria without ever resorting to cutesy or tomboyish behaviors to win over her audience. Shaddow's unfussy performance emphasizes accurate, unforced, and lovely vocals, a modest mien, and the projection of deep feeling for Captain von Trapp and his children. Her performance of "Do-Re-Mi" (teaching the von Trapp children how to sing) will put a smile on the face of the most stony hearted viewers." - Bob Rendall, Talkin' Broadway

As FANNY in FANNY at City Center Encores

"Both Ms. Shaddow and Mr. Snyder make the most of their somewhat sketchy roles. Ms. Shaddow could easily pass for French and has a soprano of lovely warmth and agility. She sings her confession of love, "I Have to Tell You," with a soft ardor..." - Charles Isherwood, The New York Times 

"As Fanny and Marius finally confronted each other at City Center -- she imploring, "I love you," he crying out her name over and over -- the pure-voiced Shaddow and Snyder (Cry-Baby) felt like the last true lovers in town. Tear-jerking? You bet. And fantastic." - Elizabeth Vincentelli, The New York Post 

"As the young lovers, Shaddow and Snyder deliver powerhouse vocal performances. She rips into some of Rome's most soaring numbers with a remarkably clear soprano; they... deliver poised performances during several of the most critical moments in the second act when Fanny and Marius have begun to regret the choices that they made in the heat of youth." - Andy Propst, TheaterMania 

"Fanny couldn't have a more charming interpreter than Shaddow, whose bright soprano voice soars in the impassioned "I Have to Tell You."" - Simon Saltzman, CurtainUp 

"James Snyder and Elena Shaddow, as our sea-crossed loves Marius and Fanny, made a winning and winsome pair. Neo-classic movie idols transported in time, our strapping young hero and lithe and lissome heroine were a perfect French twist..." - Sherri Rase, QMetropolis.com

As OLIVIA in TWELFTH NIGHT at Shakespeare Theatre o f New Jersey

"This is a Twelfth Night in which the wonderfully well-cast women are brought to the fore, one in which the hopeless love of Olivia (Elena Shaddow) for Viola is neither ludicrous nor lascivious but deeply poignant." - Terry Teachout, The Wall Street Journal 

"Olivia, excellently played by Elena Shaddow ... gets one of the biggest laughs of the night just in the way she says, 'Oh.'" - Peter Filichia, The Star-Ledger 

"Shaddow emerges from the frost of her mourning in fits and starts that are adorable and humorous and, although at first her eye is cast on the wrong "man," watching the warming of her womanly nature is delightful." - Sherri Rase, QOnStage.com 

"...this dark romantic comedy better suits the approach given by Elena Shaddow, as the otherwise foolish Olivia..." - Simon Saltzman, CurtainUp

As MAGNOLIA in SHOW BOAT at Royal Albert Hall, London

"Vocal standouts among the other four couples are the Magnolia of Elena Shaddow, whose light but steely soprano grows stronger the higher she goes." - David Benedict, Variety

As LILI in CARNIVAL at Papermill Playhouse

"As the disarmingly naive Lili, a dewy-eyed Elena Shaddow adds a Raggedy Ann wistfulness to carny life. She has a sweet, creamy and expressive voice that brings a satisfying glow to “Mira,” in which she reflects on her hometown; the confident declaration “Yes, My Heart”; and the score’s most enduring hit, “Love Makes the World Go Round.” - Robert L. Daniels, Variety

"...the lovely Elena Shaddow, as Lili, possesses a well-trained coloratura voice and an enchanting demeanor." -  Naomi Seigel, The New York Times

Elena Shaddow is an ideal Lili. Pretty, with sad, doe eyes, Shaddow employs an eager smile and awkward, shy, child-like movement which makes her Lili, simply stated, adorable. Shaddow finds the precise tone to delightfully convey the humor in her adoration of Marco’s magic skills while retaining its sincerity. Furthermore, Shaddow has a lovely, classically trained voice which she employs to accurately capture the light operetta style in which composer-lyricist Bob Merrill composed Lili’s songs for Broadway’s original Lili, Anna Maria Alberghetti. From the moment that Shaddow sang the tender "Mira," describing her feelings about the town from which she has come, there can be no doubt that Lili is in safe hands." - Bob Rendall, Talkin' Broadway

As VIOLA in ILLYRIA at Shakespeare Theatre of New Jersey

"Elena Shaddow sings beautifully, and is a believably warm and sympathetic Viola... she is superb." - Bob Rendell, Talkin' Broadway

"Shaddow is a sweet picture of innocence in her boyish vest and knickers, and she sings like a morning lark." - Robert L. Daniels, Variety