Charne Rochford

For Der Zwerg at Wexford Festival:

“The handling of the dwarf was sympathetically done…Rochford’s performance was so vividly engaged. His voice had a thrilling, high-tension element to it which seemed to set the character apart and physically he was a nice combination of anxious and self-absorbed with a sense of a little boy lost faced with the elaborate court ritual. There was a real difference to this character as opposed to the rest of the court. Rochford did not so much elicit our sympathy as wrench it from us and he held us in the palm of his hand throughout. The final scenes leading to his death had a wonderful tension to them.” Robert Hugill, Planet Hugill, 4 November, 2025

“The uncontested star of the show was British tenor Charne Rochford as the Dwarf. He is both an excellent singer and actor. The role is written for a dramatic tenor and lies high…Rochford is endowed with a bright heroic tenor with squillo. His timbre remained even throughout and did not lose any of its beauty under pressure. As an actor, he brilliantly portrayed his timidness upon entering Court…In this segment of the opera, he convinces as an innocent ingénue, making the public cheer for him.” Ossama el Naggar, Concerto.net, October 2025

“Charne Rochford stattet die Titelpartie mit kraftvollem Tenor aus, der in den Höhen bewusst zu pressen scheint und stets an seine Grenzen geht, um zu zeigen, wie sehr sich dieser Zwerg selbst überschätzt. Umso ergreifender zeichnet er die Erkenntnis, wenn er sein Bild im Spiegel wahrnimmt. Zuerst begreift er überhaupt nicht, dass das Wesen, das er dort im Spiegel sieht, er selbst ist, da es dafür ja viel zu hässlich erscheint. Doch die weiße Rose in seiner Hand lässt ihn in Zweifel geraten, und die grausame Antwort der Infantin gibt ihm schließlich Gewissheit und lässt ihn leblos zusammenbrechen.” Thomas Molke, Online Musik Magazin, October 2025

[Charne Rochford imbues the title role with a powerful tenor that seems to deliberately strain in the high notes, constantly pushing itself to its limits to demonstrate how much this dwarf overestimates himself. His portrayal of the realization when he sees his reflection in the mirror is all the more poignant. At first, he doesn’t grasp that the figure he sees is himself, as it appears far too ugly. But the white rose in his hand casts doubt upon him, and the Infanta’s cruel reply finally confirms his suspicions, causing him to collapse lifelessly.]