“Savournin himself was thoroughly at home as the Pirate King, his bass depths shivering timbers, his posh accent confirming him as a nobleman gone wrong.”
Opera
“…an effortlessly physical performer who carries himself as gracefully, and as engagingly, as he sings.”
The Spectator
“…a suave Pirate King…”
The Stage
Priest & Badger: The Cunning Little Vixen, Opera Holland Park 2021
“John Savournin as the Greek-quoting Priest manages to move us with little introduction as he reflects on his way home from the pub.”
The Arts Desk
“John Savournin, managing a nifty change from Badger to Priest, was particularly effective in the latter role where he continued to badger his flock with moralising homilies.”
The Standard
Fotis: The Greek Passion / Opera North
“John Savournin in commanding from as the refugees’ priest, Fotis, touchingly acted.”
Bachtrack
“John Savournin as Fotis was almost mystical in his intensity and with a powerful feeling of working to his own time. A moving portrayal…”
Planet Hugill
“Chorus and soloists, especially John Savournin, excelled.”
The Observer
“…with a special mention for John Savournin (Priest Fotis).”
Opera Online
“John Savournin commands our sympathy as the refugees’ spiritual guide…”
Opera Today
Leporello: Don Giovanni / Opera Holland Park
“John Savournin was the perfect foil as Leporello, a bluff cove who presents his Catalogue Aria winningly in a warm bass-baritone.”
Bachtrack
“…with his strong comic timing, John Savournin makes an excellent Leporello.”
The Financial Times
“John Savournin’s dry, sardonic, brilliantly timed Leporello…”
Opera
“John Savournin was equally good as Leporello, delivering the character’s trademark patter with brisk efficiency. His comic timing was impeccable throughout and he displayed an ability to think on his feet as he moved from one crisis to another. The catalogue aria was exceptionally fine…
Seen and Heard International
Leporello: Don Giovanni / Opera North
“…the slick-moving, quick-reacting John Savournin, who also boasted a firm bass-baritone.”
Opera
“…excellent Leporello, John Savournin.”
The Times
Sarastro: The Magic Flute / Opera North
“John Savournin is a smart and elegant Sarastro…”
Bachtrack
Gangster 2: Kiss Me Kate / Opera North
“The other possible show-stealers in any production of this musical play are, of course, the two gangsters, here played by Joseph Shovelton and John Savournin, who do not disappoint: their “Brush Up Your Shakespeare,” delivered with plenty of comic business in front of the curtain, is really hilarious.”
Bachtrack
“…delightful comic turns from Joseph Shovelton and John Savournin.”
The Mail on Sunday
“Joseph Shovelton and John Savournin’s pair of hapless hoodlums are a joy.”
The Guardian
“The showstopper was Bruch Up Your Shakespeare, expertly performed by Joseph Shovelton and John Savournin…”
Opera
Colline: La bohème / Opera Holland Park
“John Savournin’s eloquent Colline was the pick of the men, real warmth to his soft bass.”
Bachtrack
“Two performances stand out, Colline is a secondary character, but John Savournin invests his mock-serious farewell to his coat with immense dignity.
Evening Standard
“John Savournin was first rate in the role of Colline and he gave a dark sonorous account of Vecchia zimarra in Act 1V.”
Seen and Heard International
“…the class act that is John Savournin…”
WhatsOnStage
Alidoro: La cenerentola / Opera North
“As the fixer and straight man, the equivalent of a Fairy Godmother, he has a kind of instant dramatic authority, and his warm tones fit the part.”
Bachtrack
“Alidoro is the tutor / philosopher who supplants the story’s Fairy Godmother and John Savournin distinguished with a voice both powerful and movingly lyrical.”
Seen and Heard International
“John Savournin twinkles as the manipulative Alidoro.”
The Times
“Alidoro, here sung by the vocally stylish and urbanely hilarious bass-baritone John Savournin, who makes light work of his big aria, “Là del ciel.””
WhatsOnStage
Barone di Kelbar: Un giorno di regno / Chelsea Opera Group
“John Savournin, with his easily flowing bass-baritone, made an elegantly obsequious Barone di Kelbar.”
Opera
Count Horn: Un ballo in maschera / Opera Holland Park
“Benjamin Bevan and John Savournin tread a fine line between comedy and darkness as the two would-be assassins.”
Bachtrack
“Benjamin Bevan and John Savournin as Ribbing and Horn were a pair of well-contrasted conspirators…”
Opera
Sante: Il segreto di Susanna / Opera Holland Park
“With John Savournin in fine form as Susanna’s dumb waiter, this was first-class entertainment.”
Daily Mail
“The priceless antics of John Savournin in the mute role of the servant Sante are straight out of the Basil Fawlty school of faux obsequiousness.”
Evening Standard
“The show was very nearly stolen by John Savournin in the silent role of the butler…”
Opera
“John Savournin’s deliciously tongue-in-cheek, long-suffering manservant Sante…”
Opera Today
“John Savournin as the butler Sante can raise a laugh with a flick of the little finger.”
The Spectator
Heart’s Delight / Opera Holland Park in Concert
“…no-one gets laughs more easily and naturally than G & S supremo John Savournin: the Lord Chancellor’s Song from Iolanthe was a model of deft economy in suggestive hand gestures as well as the necessary clarity of diction.”
The Arts Desk
“…a voice that’s so pregnant with comic gravitas.”
The Spectator
