Oklahoma native buffo THOMAS HAMMONS joined The Metropolitan Opera in 1996 as the Sacristan in Tosca. Since then his Met assignments include Le Nozze di Figaro, Billy Budd, L'Elisir d'Amore, Die Meistersinger, La bohème and Werther. His acclaimed portrayal of Henry Kissinger in Nixon in China by John Adams originated with Houston Grand Opera in 1987 and subsequently traveled to Amsterdam, Paris, Frankfurt and Los Angeles. In 1991 he participated in another Adams world premiere, The Death of Klinghoffer, at Opera de la Monnaie in Brussels prior to performances in Lyons, Vienna, San Francisco and The Brooklyn Academy of Music. He can be heard on the Nonesuch recordings of these works.

Since his operatic debut in The Duchess of Malfi at Santa Fe opera he has performed with such companies as New York City Opera, The Washington Opera, The Atlanta Opera, Florida Grand Opera, L'Opera de Montreal, Opera Pacific, Michigan Opera, Opera Company of Philadelphia, The Cincinnati Opera, Opera Theatre of St. Louis, Spoleto Festival USA and at Barcelona's famed Teatro Liceu in such works as Il Barbiere di Siviglia, Don Pasquale, Don Giovanni, La Cenerentola, Regina, La Fille du Regiment,
Così fan tutte and Midsummer Night's Dream.