He studied at Montclair State College and with Armen Boyajian (also the pedagogue of Marisa Galvany and fellow basso Samuel Ramey), and made his operatic debut with the Paterson Lyric Opera, in 1961.
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Plishka comes from Old Forge, Pennsylvania, and Paterson, New Jersey; his parents were American-born children of Ukrainian immigrants.
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In 1983, he appeared again at that theatre for their Centennial Gala and Don Giovanni (as Masetto), opposite James Morris, Edda Moser, Carol Neblett, Paul Plishka, Roberta Alexander and John Macurdy.
The soprano's Metropolitan Opera debut was as Mimì in La bohème (in 1983, with Patricia Craig, Dano Raffanti, Richard Stilwell, Mario Sereni, James Morris, and Italo Tajo, conducted by James Levine), subsequently performing Tatiana in Eugene Onegin (opposite Leo Nucci and Paul Plishka) and Emma in the new production of Khovanschina (with Martti Talvela) at the house.