Laetitia Gerards on her character Marshenka: "She is everything. Smart, sweet, bubbly, feisty, opinionated. She knows what she wants and will do anything to get it. Mean is a big word, but she is very honest. She sticks close to her heart and therefore can react violently. I do understand her."

Gerards always looks for common ground in a character to give a believable portrayal. "If I don't understand a character well, I can't play her well either. I think you are always looking for a big part of yourself in a role. In Marshenka's case, I recognize her directness, her passion and her stubbornness."

Reviews

“Laetitia Gerards, as Marshenka, led the cast with a crisp and flawless voice and with an engaging stage presence. Her big scene in the third act, sung in front of a mural of a modernised poster of Czech artist Alphonse Mucha (now on display in Kunstmuseum Den Haag), stood like a house.
And her duets with the two potential grooms were also highlights. [...] Especially the duet with the stuttering Vasek was wonderfully sung and directed. ”

— Trouw

“Smetana offered Laetitia Gerards delightful melodies that she worked out with her clear soprano voice, to which conductor Spanjaard and the Phion orchestra added an excellent accompaniment. Her first entrance, in which she expresses doubts about Jenik’s love interest, was immediately hit with a grand aria. Gerards convinced with intense expression of her qualities. Also in her playing she characterised herself as a spirited and headstrong daughter. Her good diction made it easy to follow her singing, as was the case with Denzil Delaere and the rest of the cast.”

— Place de l'Opéra

“Marshenka, a star performance by soprano Laetitia Gerards. ”

— De Volkskrant

“But the big star of the performance is the young soprano Laetitia Gerards (now a BN-er thanks to her performance in Wie is de Mol), who turns the main role of Marshenka into a nice streetwise, slightly spoilt girl of nowadays.”

— NRC