Adam Smith
With “solar timbre with perfectly held piercing high notes” (Resmusica) and “...valiant and homogeneous, bold in the risks he takes” (Forumopera), Adam Smith is known for his voice that “overflows with dramatic conviction and heroic impact” (Opera Now Magazine). Recent standout roles include Don José in Carmen at the Royal Ballet and Opera, Cavaradossi in Tosca at the Staatsoper Hamburg and Roméo in Roméo et Juliette at Washington National Opera.
Adam Smith’s 2025/26 season begins with his return to the role of Radamès in Verdi’s Aida at Washington National Opera, in a production directed by Francesca Zambello. He then makes his house debut at Opéra national de Paris as Cavaradossi in Puccini’s Tosca. The Guardian praised Mr. Smith’s 2022 performance as Cavaradossi at English National Opera, noting that he “makes a tremendous Cavaradossi, his arias gloriously phrased, his way with words often immaculate, and his high notes thrillingly sustained…”. In early 2026, he appears at Opéra National de Lyon as he reprises the role of Julien in Charpentier’s rarely performed opera Louise. Mr. Smith makes his Metropolitan Opera debut as Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly and later in the season returns to the Met to sing Rodolfo in Franco Zeffirelli’s legendary production of La Bohème. On the concert stage, he makes his debut with the Liverpool Philharmonic, performing the Prince in Rusalka.
Born in the UK, Mr. Smith began his musical studies with the violin at the age of four. Throughout his youth, he played in many orchestras including the National Children’s Orchestra of the United Kingdom. He graduated from the RNCM with a first-class honours degree in music with additional degrees from the International Opera Course at the Guildhall and a Master of Music with Distinction. From 2014-2017 Adam was a member of the ensemble at Opera Vlaanderen in Antwerp, during his time there he performed a diverse collection of roles. An active presence on social media, he can be found on instagram, Facebook, X and TikTok @adamsmithtenor.
Recent highlights include his heralded debut at the La Monnaie de Munt as both Luigi and Rinuccio in a new Tobias Krazer production of Puccini’s Il Trittico conducted by Alain Atinoglu. Bachtrack commented on the performance: “[the] tenor knows how to pierce the orchestral wall with insolence without however neglecting the line and the most subtle nuances,” as well as Luigi under the baton of Sir Mark Elder at the BBC Proms. Further highlights include Julien in Louise at the Festival d’Aix-en-Provence, Florestan in Fidelio at the Glyndebourne Festival, and his South American debut at Teatro Mayor Julio Mario Santo Domingo as Cavaradossi in Tosca, a role which he also performed with the English National Opera and at the Staatsoper Hamburg, Radamès in Aida at Opéra de Rouen Normandie, Turiddu in Cavalleria rusticana with Kansas City Opera, Roméo in Roméo et Juliette with Washington National Opera, Don José in Carmen at the Royal Ballet and Opera, Rodolfo in Puccini’s La bohème, Duca di Mantova in Verdi’s Rigoletto at Scottish National Opera, and the Prince in Dvořák’s Rusalka at Les Arts Valencia and Teatro di San Carlo. On the occasion of his debut in France, at Opéra national de Bordeaux as the title role in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, he was praised for his French diction, “The pronunciation, to which we French are so attached when it comes to opera in our language, is neat, the natural emission of the voice has the ideal timbre so that the poet stands out from the other tenors without forcing the line.” (Forumopera) Mr. Smith made his Greek debut at the Greek National Opera portraying Hoffmann in Les Contes d’Hoffmann, in a production directed by Krzysztof Warlikowsk, and his Italian debut singing the role of Erik in Wagner’s Der fliegende Holländer at the Teatro Comunale di Bologna. In addition, Adam Smith has performed Boris in Káťa Kabanová at the Opéra National de Lyon and Pinkerton in Madama Butterfly with Cincinnati Opera, San Diego Opera, Opéra National de Lyon, Staatsoper Berlin, and at the Festival d'Aix-en-Provence.
Adam Smith has worked with a distinguished list of conductors and directors including Calixto Bieito, Christof Loy, Dmitri Cherniakov, Daniel Ettinger, Andrea Breth, Mariame Clément, Alexander Joel, Daniel Kramer, Emmanuel Villaume, Sir Jonathan Miller, Tomaš Netopil, Giacomo Sagripanti, and Alberto Zedda among many others.