SATYAGRAHA
"Satyagraha is also the perfect vehicle for Indian-Australian tenor Shanul Sharma (Gandhi) with his superb purity of tone, lovely sound throughout the range and almost mesmeric stage presence (yes, even in a concert performance).
Visibly moved by the rapturous applause, Sharma briefly broke into tears, a touching moment."
"There was an ethereal quality about tenor Shanul Sharma’s interpretation of Gandhi, especially in his solo that brought the performance to a close; his voice gently shimmered like the dark, embroidered tunic he had changed into (having previously sported a creamy linen suit)."
"All were stunning, but Shanul sung Glass like it was written for him. No, like it was him. It came from that place that transforms skill to art. I am a cliche of a modernist fan and I have never heard Glass sung like this. It was like the difference between eating an apple picked from a wild hidden tree compared to one that's been sitting in a supermarket for weeks. It's one of those performances that has made the audience a secret club that will be talking about it for a very long time."
-Anne Marie Peard, @sometimesmelbourne via Instagram
"In a career that has seen him taking stride after stride, switching from heavy metal to opera on a path to success, Indian-Australian tenor Shanul Sharma’s Gandhi was an achievement like few others.
Vocally gleaming in quality, Sharma impressively navigated the role’s often lower written range with effortlessness.
Matched impeccably to meet the demands of a charismatic leader and attired in a white suit, Sharma embodied the spirit of Gandhi with calm command. From the first few notes accompanied by pensive bass strings and with heartfelt humility, Sharma brought immediate attention to the man whose elevation to the echelon of greats he went on to stunningly depict in the work’s divine silken-threaded conclusion.
Wearing an embroidered Nehru jacket and appropriately honouring the title ‘Mahatma’, meaning “venerable” and “high-souled”, Sharma’s was an astonishingly emotional performance that no doubt brought tears to more eyes than mine."
"Shanul Sharma, performing the role of Gandhi, had a captivating element to his voice – a sense of romantic heroism that followed through to his performance, presenting a princely interpretation of the well-known historical figure."