ALYSON CAMBRIDGE
SOPRANO/ACTOR
BIOGRAPHY
American soprano Alyson Cambridge is one of the most diverse and compelling vocal artists on the scene today. She is praised for her “powerful, clear voice” by The New York Times, hailed by critics for her “radiant, vocally assured, dramatically subtle and artistically imaginative” performances (The Washington Post), and celebrated for her “sultry and seductive readings” (Opera News). Combined with a striking stage presence and affecting musical and dramatic interpretation, she has nearly two decades of success on the world’s leading opera and concert stages, including The Metropolitan Opera, Carnegie Hall, Washington National Opera at The Kennedy Center, Lyric Opera of Chicago, Los Angeles Opera, London’s Royal Albert Hall, Deutsche Oper Berlin, Vienna Konzerthaus, and New York's Broadway Theatre, to name a few.
Last season, Alyson garnered acclaim for her return to Washington National Opera to sing Bess in Porgy and Bess and Opera Carolina to sing the title role in Carmen. This season, she will join Wheeling Symphony Orchestra and Sioux City Symphony for their concerts of Prohibition, and she will return to Lyric Opera of Chicago to co-produce and host the B.L.A.C. mainstage concert Echoes of Excellence: Celebrating the Legacy of Chicago’s Black Voices. Her most recent engagements include the title role of Tosca with Opera Carolina, leading as Hannah in The Merry Widow with Toledo Opera, and reprising Elsa in The Sound of Music with Arizona Opera. She also performed in recital for The Glimmerglass Festival and Holy City Arts & Lyric Opera and joined the Mostly Modern Festival in both the Netherlands and Saratoga Springs. In addition, Ms. Cambridge recently reprised her Elsa in The Sound of Music with the Lyric Opera of Kansas City, took her musical fusion show Rock Me Amadeus – Live! to Pensacola Opera, and returned to the title role of The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson with Pittsburgh Opera.
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A member of The Glimmerglass Festival Artistic Advisory Committee, Cambridge was a major feature at the 2022 festival, where she assumed the title role of The Passion of Mary Cardwell Dawson, performed as Elsa in The Sound of Music, and as Ann in the world premiere of Damien Geter and Lila Palmer’s Holy Ground. Ms. Cambridge also took on the role of Coretta Scott King in I Dream with both Opera Carolina and Charlottesville Opera. Outside of the opera world, she was featured in the season premiere of the reboot of the 21st season of NBC's Law and Order, appearing alongside Norm Lewis.
Ms. Cambridge’s operatic repertoire includes the beloved heroines of Puccini, Verdi, and Mozart (Madama Butterfly, Mimì in La bohème, Violetta in La traviata, and Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni frequently among them), as well as her signature roles of Carmen and Bess in Porgy and Bess. She has also made successful forays into musical theatre and jazz repertoire, most notably with award-winning and critically acclaimed performances as Julie in Show Boat, Vi in Gershwin’s rarely performed jazz-opera Blue Monday, and her Broadway début in Rocktopia. She has released three critically acclaimed classical and jazz albums: From the Diary of Sally Hemings, Until Now, and her most recent album, Sisters in Song. Recorded with soprano Nicole Cabell, it is a unique compilation of operatic and spiritual duets.
Scheduled performances for Ms. Cambridge in the 2020-2021 season included Bess in Porgy and Bess with Washington National Opera, Elsa Schrader in The Sound of Music with The Glimmerglass Festival, Mimì in La bohème with Opera Memphis, a series of holiday concerts with Portland Symphony Orchestra, and a return to Carnegie Hall for her annual ‘Tis the Season: Songs of the Season concert. Cambridge performed as Mother Abbess in Northern Stage’s The Sound of Music, Julie in Show Boat with The Glimmerglass Festival, reprised her role in Broadway’s Rocktopia on tour throughout the U.S., and performed as a soloist in Victory Hall Opera’s production of From the Diary of Sally Hemings. Additionally, she performed in various concerts and recitals including the Jacksonville Symphony’s New Year’s Eve concert, a solo concert, Tis the Sunday: Songs of the Season, at Carnegie Hall, Glimmerglass Festival’s virtual presentation of From the Diary of Sally Hemings, and Portland Symphony Orchestra’s The Magic of Christmas.
Ms. Cambridge joined The Metropolitan Opera for their production of The Merry Widow, which she later performed with Florentine Opera as Hanna Glawari; sang Carmen with Opera Carolina and Toledo Opera, and her role début as Bess in Porgy and Bess with Spoleto Festival USA; and performed in a multitude of concerts including the Harriman-Jewel Series’ recital and gala, the Glimmerglass gala, On Site Opera’s gala, an Italian opera concert with The Cleveland Pops, Leading Lady at the Irvine Barclay Center, From the Diary of Sally Hemings at the Church of the Intercession for the acclaimed concert series The Crypt Sessions, Sisters in Song with Lake Forest Symphony, Monticello Overheard with Victory Hall Opera, and a program of American song with the Laguna Beach Music Festival.
Notable operatic highlights include her Lyric Opera of Chicago début as Giulietta in Les contes d’Hoffmann; Musetta in La bohème with Washington National Opera; her Deutsche Oper Berlin début as Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni; Mimì in La bohème with San Diego Opera for their 50th anniversary season and for her début with London’s Royal Albert Hall; Violetta in La traviata with Polish National Opera; her role début in the title role of Madama Butterfly with Florentine Opera; and the title role in a newly commissioned opera, Clarimonde, by renowned French composer and conductor Frederic Chaslin. One of her most celebrated roles, Julie in Show Boat, has taken her to a début with Dallas Opera and performances with Washington National Opera and Kentucky Opera. Additionally, she performed Juliette in Roméo et Juliette with the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis, Donna Elvira in Don Giovanni and Musetta in La bohème with Opera Maine, Clara in Porgy and Bess with LA Opera, and Mimì in La bohème with the Florentine Opera, Boston Lyric Opera, and the Opera Theatre of Saint Louis.
Alyson’s vast and diverse breadth of experience both on and off stage and behind the scenes has also led to her work as a producer. She co-produced New York’s Viennese Opera Ball at the famed Waldorf-Astoria for four consecutive years and served as co-host for two. She has produced three philanthropic concerts at Carnegie Hall with the proceeds benefiting various charitable organizations. Alyson produced the inaugural Tis the Sunday: Songs of the Season, which was met with critical acclaim and returned the following year. She is currently the co-creator, co-producer, and star of a new musical show, Rock Me Amadeus, which fuses opera and classical music with classic rock, pop, and soul, and features a star-studded ensemble cast.
As a model and fitness enthusiast with a penchant for fashion, Alyson has been featured in a wide range of print and television commercial advertising campaigns in the fashion, beauty, health, and wellness spaces. She has also enjoyed collaborations with designers and other lifestyle companies for her concert performances and off-stage appearances. Her comfort both on stage and on camera has lent itself to numerous acting and hosting engagements.
As part of Ms. Cambridge’s personal mission, and with a strong desire to give back and make an impact beyond the traditional confines of the theatre, she lends her time and talent to charities and causes close to her heart, including The Fresh Air Fund, Sing for Hope, Daniel's Music Foundation, The Humane Society, K9s for Warriors, Hope for Hearts Foundation, and the American Red Cross.
Current as of August 7, 2025
CRITICAL ACCLAIM
"... It was the whole package…” – Opera Wire
Tosca – "Instead of Tosca’s dominatrix-like entrance, Alyson Cambridge‘s Floria Tosca arrived on stage jovial, irty, and a bit naïve. But it worked. She wasn’t this all-knowing stage being, she was a person after all. She was a person in love...In “Vissi d’arte” Cambridge gave a lovely heartfelt performance. It was the whole package. The thread that tied this work together. This was Tosca’s turning point where she morphed from a gullible girl into a passionate and driven woman. At the climax of the aria, as she begs to know why her god would abandon her, Cambridge gave in to the overwhelming emotions and sang as someone would in this state."
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"... electrifying..." – Classical Voice North Carolina
Tosca– " In singing the famous "Vissi d'arte" aria before nodding her consent to Scarpia, Cambridge drew upon all the additional anguish Puccini had written for her. All of the art she had lived for, all of her passionate love, all her charitable deeds, and all her fervent prayers have been for naught in the face of this perverted monster... electrifying as Cambridge's signature aria...Cambridge and Viscardi poignantly lit up the stage one last time before fate cruelly closed its st on them. Stunning – and grand.”
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"... stunning..." – Toledo Blade
The Merry Widow – “Sometimes you just accept the fact that the soprano will be fantastic, and Alyson Cambridge, the titular merry widow who was stunning in her widow’s weeds upon her entrance in the first act, didn’t disappoint. Her “Vilja Lied” in the second act brought chills. It’s always just tempting to blame the air-conditioning system, but for me, it always happens when voice and orchestra combine to form a powerful performance.”
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"...delivers breathtaking notes of music..." – Broadway World
The Merry Widow – “Cambridge embodies the effervescent widow, her eyes dancing as she delivers breathtaking notes of music with palpable magnetism.”
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"...compelling visually and vocally as Bess..." – Financial Times
Porgy and Bess – “Alyson Cambridge, singing opulently, was compelling visually and vocally as Bess, whose genuine love for Porgy is compromised by her loose morals…”
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"...sensual, smoky readings..." – Opera News
Porgy and Bess – “Cambridge’s sensual, smoky readings were revelatory.”
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"...powerful, clear voice...” – The New York Times
Carmen – “Worthy of mention is the company debut of Alyson Cambridge as a Frasquita with a powerful, clear voice.”
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"...the most interesting person there...” – Washington Post
L'elisir d'amore – “Her Adina was radiant, vocally assured, dramatically subtle and compelling and artistically imaginative. Even amid a stage full of singing and dancing, she could sit off to the side reading quietly and be the most interesting person there.”