American tenor Robert Watson, born in Kansas City, made his professional debut with San Francisco Opera in 2012 as a Brabant nobleman in Wagner’s Lohengrin. The following season, he returned to SFO to create the role of Henry Cox in the world premiere of Picker’s Dolores Claiborne.

In the seasons 2016/17 – 2019/20, Robert Watson was a member of the ensemble of the Deutsche Oper Berlin, where he was able to develop a broad repertoire. He has appeared on stage as Ismaele in Nabucco, Grigori in Boris Godunov, Bois-Rosé in Les Huguenots, Cavaradossi in Tosca, as Erik in Der fliegende Holländer, in Verdi’s Messa da Requiem, Alfred in Die Federmaus, Don José in Carmen and Narraboth in Salome, among others. His role debuts in the title roles of Les contes d’Hoffmann, Don Carlo and as Laca in Jenůfa were acclaimed by the audience and the press with great enthusiasm. As a guest, Robert Watson returned regularly to the Deutsche Oper as Hoffmann, Don José, Ismaele and Don Carlo.

In the 2022/23 season, he made his role debuts at the Deutsche Oper Berlin in the new productions of Fidelio as Florestan and in Richard Strauss’ Arabella as Matteo under the baton of Sir Donald Runnicles. He also made his debut as Siegmund in Dmitri Tcherniakov’s new production of Die Walküre under the baton of Christian Thielemann at the Staatsoper Berlin, his debut as Pinkerton (Madama Butterfly) at Palm Beach Opera, his house debuts as Ismaele at the Bavarian State Opera and as the Prince (Rusalka) at Santa Fe Opera.

In the 2023/24 season, Robert Watson’s guest appearances will include Erik at Lyric Opera Chicago, Deutsche Oper Berlin and Teatro Regio Torino. He will also make his house debut as Pinkerton at the Staatsoper Hamburg and as Števa Buryja (Jenůfa) at the Teatro dell’ Opera di Roma.

Guest engagements in recent seasons have taken Robert Watson to the Stadttheater Klagenfurt as the Prince (Rusalka) and Gabriele Adorno (Simon Boccanegra), to San Diego Opera, Opéra National de Montpellier and Fort Worth Opera as Don José, to Washington National Opera as Cavaradossi, to Des Moines Metro Opera as Tambourmajor (Wozzeck), to Dallas Opera as Don Carlo, as Canio in Pagliacci to Palm Beach Opera, as Ismaele to Opéra de Lille and Teatro Regio Torino, to the Metropolitan Opera in New York in Richard Wagner’s Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg and in Alban Berg’s Lulu, for his house and role debut as Turiddu in Mascagni’s Cavalleria rusticana to Zurich Opera and as Bacchus in Strauss’ Ariadne auf Naxos to Opéra National de Montpellier.

Robert Watson has won numerous singing competitions, including the Campbell/Santeramo Award at the Opera Index Competition 2015, third prize at the Gerda Lissner Competition 2016, as well as second prize at the Irene Dalis Award 2014. He was a two-time Richard F. Gold scholarship holder of the Shoshana Foundation, a grantee of the Catherine Filene Shouse Education and two-time finalist at the Metropolitan Opera National Council Auditions. He attended the San Francisco Conservatory of Music and is a graduate of Oklahoma City University Bass School of Music.