Baritone Nicholas Ward has been hailed as a performer of “effortless voice and agile presence” (Houston Press). He appears regularly with the Lyric Opera of Chicago, having most recently stepped in for the role of Moralès in Bizet’s Carmen, as well as recent productions of Proximity, Tosca, and Dead Man Walking. Additionally, with Lyric Unlimited, he has portrayed the Father in Hansel and Gretel, Charles Knight in Rhoda and the Fossil Hunt, and multiple roles in a filmed version of The Scorpion’s Sting. More recent operatic highlights include the role of Schaunard in La Bohème with Opera Birmingham, the title role in Signor Deluso with Florida Grand Opera, Mr. Stubb in Moby Dick with Chicago Opera Theater, Taddeo in L’Italiana in Algeri with Winter Opera St. Louis, and Papageno in Die Zauberflöte with Opera in the Heights.

He is a passionate concert artist, participating regularly in recitals and concert programs across the country. He has appeared in concerts for WFMT’s Rush Hour Series, Opera Birmingham, Governors State University, Central City Opera, the Steinway Gallery in Miami, the Saugatuck Center for the Arts, the Chicago College of Performing Arts, and the Crested Butte Music Festival. He also performs regularly for the Chicago-based LYNX Project, an art song collective that focuses on new works by local composers and amplifying underrepresented voices. Discography includes LYNX’s debut album, beautiful small things, and composer Elizabeth Rudolph’s album A Horse With Wings.

He is a three-time Regional Finalist of the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions, First Place Winner of the Opera Birmingham Competition, a finalist for the Luminarts Competition, and prize winner for the Opera Guild of Dayton Competition, and FAVA’s Grand Concours de Chant. He holds degrees from The University of Michigan and The University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music. He was born and raised in Pontiac, Michigan and currently resides in Chicago, Illinois.