Nicole Heaston completed her master’s degree in voice at the Cincinnati Conservatory of Music and received her undergraduate degree in music at the University of Akron. She is a distinguished graduate of Houston Grand Opera’s Butler Studio.

In the 2024–25 season, the soprano returned to the role of Claire Devon in the North American premiere of Mazzoli/Vavrek’s The Listeners at Opera Philadelphia. A native Chicagoan, she headlined Lyric Opera of Chicago’s spring 2025 performances in her company debut. With the National Symphony Orchestra, she sang the title role in Samuel Barber’s Vanessa. Other engagements included a Christmas program with Houston’s Mercury Chamber Orchestra, and the fiery role of Armida in Detroit Opera’s production of Handel’s Rinaldo.

A richly varied 2023–24 season included Nicole’s returns to Los Angeles Opera, as Mary in Still’s Highway 1, USA, and Houston Grand Opera, as Alice Ford in Verdi’s Falstaff. During the spring, she made her title-role debut in Massenet’s Thaïs with Utah Opera. Nicole began the 2022–23 season with the long-awaited world premiere of The Listeners at Den Norske Opera, and concluded it with her first career performances of Vanessa.

Since her debut at the Metropolitan Opera as Zerlina in Don Giovanni, Nicole has appeared several times with the theater, singing Ilia in Mozart’s Idomeneo, Pamina in Die Zauberflöte (conducted by James Levine), and Echo in Ariadne auf Naxos. Nicole recently sang Despina in Così fan tutte and Countess Almaviva in Le nozze di Figaro with San Francisco Opera; Countess Almaviva with Boston Lyric Opera; and Musetta in La bohème with the Fort Worth Opera and Lyric Opera of Kansas City, and for her debut with New York City Opera alongside Rolando Villazon. She made her debut at the Glimmerglass Festival in New York as Susanna in Le nozze di Figaro, performing the same role at the Wolf Trap Opera. Nicole has a long-standing relationship with Houston Grand Opera. She debuted with the title role in Roméo et Juliette and has since been heard as Mimì in La bohème, Liù in Turandot, Adina in L’elisir d’amore, Gilda in Rigoletto, Susanna, and Pamina.