The Metropolitan Opera
New York. Debut as Amina in La Sonnambula, in Rolando Villazón's production, after covering six roles across previous seasons.
Lyric Coloratura Soprano
Alexandra Nowakowski
Polish-American soprano, praised by Opera News for her “impassioned singing”. She made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Amina in La Sonnambula — and, between contracts, sings a few feet from ten guests at a dinner table in Barcelona.
Who she is
Alexandra Nowakowski is a lyric coloratura soprano, born in the United States to Polish parents. She holds an Artist Diploma from the Academy of Vocal Arts and a degree in vocal performance from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.
She made her Metropolitan Opera debut as Amina in Rolando Villazón's production of La Sonnambula. Before that she covered repeatedly at the Met — Zerbinetta in Ariadne auf Naxos, the title role in Lucia di Lammermoor, Gilda in Rigoletto, Olympia in Les Contes d'Hoffmann, Sophie in Der Rosenkavalier and Voce dal cielo in Don Carlo.
As a Cafritz Young Artist at the Washington National Opera she sang Papagena and the Queen of the Night in The Magic Flute at the Kennedy Center, and Anna Gomez in The Consul. She has since joined LA Opera, Ópera de Oviedo as Gilda and in the title role of Manon, and the Buxton International Festival for her role debut as Violetta in La Traviata.
She has also sung for Ruth Bader Ginsburg.
Selected Engagements
Where she has sung
Carnegie Hall
New York. Citywide Concert Series, with programmes of Polish art song alongside pianist Michał Biel. Also soloist in Vaughan Williams' Serenade to Music.
Palau de la Música
Barcelona. Solo recital as a finalist in the El Primer Palau competition, and later with programmes of Polish repertoire.
Washington National Opera
Kennedy Center. Queen of the Night and Papagena in The Magic Flute, and Anna Gomez in The Consul, as a Cafritz Young Artist.
Kraina — an album of Polish music
As a recipient of the Beebe Fund Scholarship, Alexandra spent several months in Poland studying Polish repertoire. The result was Kraina, her debut album, a programme of Polish art song released on Lexicon Classics. It's on Spotify and Apple Music.
Why she started The Opera Kitchen
Alexandra believes opera thrives in intimate settings, where the distance between singer and listener collapses. Opera houses are magnificent and also enormous; a voice that has to fill three thousand seats is doing something different from a voice singing to ten people across a table.
That conviction became The Opera Kitchen, which she founded with chef Riccardo Riccio in the El Born district of Barcelona. Between two and ten guests sit at one table. Riccardo's tasting menu arrives course by course, and Alexandra sings between them — no microphone, close enough that you can hear her breathe.
The dinners are currently fully booked, with the next table opening in November 2027. If you'd like to hear her sing this way, the waiting list is the only route to a seat.
Elsewhere
- alexandranowakowski.com — her own site, with current engagements
- YouTube
Barcelona
Hear her at the table
Ten guests, one table, no microphone. Fully booked until November 2027 — the waiting list is offered in order as dates open.