Songs and Stories of the Cabaret

Vocalist Stephanie Acraman and pianist Liam Wooding take the stage for an evening of songs and stories by the extraordinary collaborative combination of William Bolcom and Arnold Weinstein.

This will be one of the only times you will hear the unusually performed “Cabaret Songs” in their entirety. Four books of intriguing, and highly entertaining stories and songs of the people that Bolcom and Weinstein encountered in their travels, with particular highlights being the colourful characters they met living and working in New York City.

Fans of poetry, classical and cabaret music alike will enjoy the broad range of musical styles explored in these works.

“To perform with such original virtuosity that even crusty old conservatives and habitual lovers of fine arts would be exploding into their classical flat white conversations about such a voice and such stage presence turning cabaret music into an hour of sheer delight?

The poetry was tantalisingly filled with evocative images of the lives ordinary people live, and packaged by Acraman and Wooding to fire it, like Cupid’s arrows, straight to the heart of the unsuspecting audience."
- Sam Edwards, NZ Review

Stephanie Acraman began her performing life training in dance from age four, before before commencing vocal training.

Having performed as the featured soloist extensively throughout Australia and New Zealand, Italy, Dubai, Hong Kong, Singapore and South East Asia, highlight performances include appearances with the Vietnamese National Symphony Orchestra at the Hanoi Opera House, the Angkor Wat Temples in Cambodia, the role of Kitty Hart with Alexander Productions Sydney premiere season of Jake Heggie’s Dead Man Walking with Teddy Tahu-Rhodes.

Role performances include Fiordiligi in Mozart’s Cosí fan tutte, Michael Williams’ opera The Prodigal Child in the roles of Mary and Anna (separate productions), The Countess Almaviva in Mozart’s Le nozze di Figaro, Nedda in Leoncavallo’s I, Pagliacci, Adina in Donizetti’s L’Elisir d’amore, Antonia and Giulietta in Offenbach’s The Tales of Hoffman.

Stephanie has performed as jazz soloist for the Kunahura Resorts Easter Festival (Maldives), The Peace Hotel (Shanghai), Raffles Hotel (Singapore and Cambodia), Burg Kalifa (Dubai), Marina Bay Sands (Singapore), Inter-Continental Danang Sun Peninsula Resort (Vietnam), Inter-Continental Hotel Natadola (Fiji), and in classical, cabaret and jazz contexts with the New Zealand Festival of the Arts, Auckland Arts Festival, CubaDupa Festival, Sydney Festival, and the Adelaide Fringe Festival.

Stephanie recently took up the position as Artistic Director for Adelaide’s Co-Opera company.

Liam Wooding
Described as “one of the most consummate musicians I have seen on stage” (Radio NZ), Liam Wooding is one of New Zealand’s leading emerging pianists. He was a prize winner in the 2015 National Concerto Competition, performing with the Christchurch Symphony Orchestra and has since performed as a soloist with the Auckland Chamber Orchestra, Wellington Chamber Orchestra, and on several occasions with Auckland Philharmonia Orchestra.

Liam is graduate of the Australian National Academy of Music (ANAM) where he studied with Timothy Young, supported by a Creative New Zealand scholarship. On leaving ANAM, he received the Volunteers Prize for an Outstanding ANAM Citizen.

Liam is based at the University of Waikato where he is a doctoral candidate researching New Zealand piano music. At Waikato he was recently named the Creative and Performing Arts Person of the Year.

Recent and upcoming appearances include the Auckland Arts Festival, Wakatipu Music Festival Chamber Music New Zealand, Melbourne Recital Centre, University of Western Australia, University of Adelaide, and Flinders University. Last year, Liam was an artist in residence at the Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity in Canada.

Stephanie and Liam have also recently completed a CD recording of the complete William Bolcom Cabaret Songs, under the Rattle music label.