Seattle Cabaret festival presents our 2026 Artists

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Aaron Shanks is a Seattle‑based high tenor and Actors’ Equity performer whose career spans major regional professional theaters, including The 5th Avenue Theatre, Village Theatre, Seattle Children’s Theatre, TUTS, and the Ordway. Known for his warm, expressive vocals and vibrant stage presence, Aaron has appeared in more than two dozen productions, from The Hunchback of Notre Dame and The Secret Garden to La Cage aux Folles, A Little Night Music, and Titanic in Concert. A Western Washington University graduate with acting, dance, and marketing training, he now blends storytelling, humor, and musical craft in cabaret performances that explore joy, resilience, and the art of finding one’s way. www.shankscreative.com 

 Angie Louise is the longtime frontwoman and songwriter for acclaimed Weimar Berlin-inspired rock band The Love Markets ("Irresistible” - Seattle Magazine), guiding listeners through the night with her uber-expressive vocals and emotionally rangy songwriting. Record releases include World of Your Dreams, Beauty Factory, and 2025’s Ship of Light. She’s also a member of Actors’ Equity with a long list of principal credits at nationally recognized theatres (5th Avenue Theatre, Village, SCT, Ordway, TUTS); the screenwriter and songwriter for two award-winning feature films; and a winner of the Academy of American Poets Prize. “A singer, songwriter and actress with fearsome chops." - City Arts.
www.angielouise.com

 

New York Bistro Award winner Arnaldo! Drag Chanteuse has been “opening hearts and minds through music one cabaret at time”.  He has performed globally and continues to share his music, stage and spotlight with others as executive producer of Seattle Cabaret Festival.

 “… a gloriously talented singer” (Seattle Times 2025) 

“But it was on the more serious songs that you knew this was a special artist with depth and intelligence … like watching one of yesteryear's femmes caught up in the rapture of romance in a smoky nightclub from an old movie.”  (NY cabaret critic 2007)

 www.dragchanteuse.com

@dragchanteuse

 With his gently familiar “crooner” sensibility, Art brings a velvet touch to this year’s Cabaret Festival of outstanding acts. His voice — equal parts elegance and enchantment — invites audiences to pause, breathe, and let the world’s dissonant noise fall away. A longtime member of Actors’ Equity, he has spent more than three decades performing in theaters across Seattle and the region, earning a quiet reputation for presence and heart. These days, Art fully embraces the cabaret life, following the music wherever hearts might need a little “encanto”.

Order up some classic tunes, great harmonies and a side of cutie pie glamour! Blue Plate Special continues the tradition of three-member female harmony groups like The Andrews Sisters, The McGuire Sisters, The Chordettes, and The Supremes. Blue Plate Special features a repertoire spanning the 1920s to the 1960s with tune highlights that include Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, Something's Gotta Give, Mr. Sandman, Lollipop, One Fine Day and more!  

www.sunrosemusic.com/blue-plate-special.html  

Pirates by day, cabaret performers by night – Black Bra Pirate Cabaret is the latest incarnation of the family trio of singer Jayne Muirhead, her husband and music director John Engerman, and his daughter and violinist Ruby Grynberg.  Led by the infamous Captainess Black Bra, they loot and pillage the slimiest haunts of the Salish Sea to bring you silly, musically infectious songs and stories. 

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Cassi is an award-winning member of Actors’ Equity Association and has traveled the world as a performer. She graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in classical vocal performance and moved east, where she originated roles in musicals Off-Broadway, on international tours, and aboard the high seas! Cassi shares her life with her beautiful fiancee, the neighborhood cat she claims as her own, and a large collection of clowns. In Seattle, she has played nearly every major house and her versatility on stage ranges from being cast as an electric eel, a leading lady, a knife-slinging convict, or a Shakespearean fool.
@ThunderDyke 

 Claudine Mboligikpelani Nako is a multidisciplinary artist who writes, directs, and produces creative projects. Her musical Photosynthesis is about Black women's mental health and the search for light in dark times. It was commissioned by The 5th Avenue Theatre and Village Theatre, and developed with Goodspeed Musicals and Gaisma Theatre Group. Nako is a member of AEA, SAG-AFTRA, and Dramatists Guild of America. To learn more, visit  www.photosynthesismusical.com 

Craig Pomranz is an internationally acclaimed singer/song-stylist, actor, and author. He serves as Board President of the American Songbook Association, appears in clubs and festivals around the world, and teaches Vocal Master Classes. He is a regular panelist and vocalist at the Corfu Literary Festival and a recipient of New York’s MAC Award for Best Male Vocalist. Amanda McBroom and Michele Brourman wrote “Different,” inspired by his book Made by Raffi, which Craig premiered at the Edinburgh Festival. Craig’s albums More Than a Seasonal Thing and My Heart Don’t Skip a Beat are heard on radio stations worldwide and available on major streaming and music platforms. www.craigpomranz.com

Cynthia Clarey joined the cabaret world after 35 years as an international opera singer. She can be seen on film in “L’incoronazione di Poppea” with the Glyndebourne Festival Opera and in the award-nominated “Porgy and Bess”, directed by Sir Trevor Nunn and conducted by Sir Simon Rattle. She also spent two years performing the role of Carmen in the iconic “La Tragedie de Carmen”, directed by Sir Peter Brook, throughout Europe and on Broadway at the Vivian Beaumont Theater. Cynthia is a member of Chicago Cabaret Professionals and made her New York City cabaret debut at the Laurie Beechman Theatre in 2022. She now resides in Portland.   www.cynthiaclarey.com 

Derek Eisel sings the good news from a little island in the Salish sea: songs of Lesbian Potlucks and husbands who fix tractors. He covers Tammy Wynette and Bonnie Raitt and sells pasture raised eggs. You'll leave feeling a bit more hopeful about the weirdos of this beautiful region we call home.

http://derekeiselmusic.com 

The Drunken Tenor is the Northwest’s only standup comedian opera singer. He’s a Grammy Award winner and a Metropolitan Opera veteran who somehow makes Puccini and punchlines pair well, mixing high notes with lowbrow jokes and arias with absurdity. He spent three years selling out his twisted holiday hit A Very Drunken Christmas Carol for Seattle Opera and has created full original shows for Tacoma Opera and Vashon Center for the Arts. His blend of killer vocals and sharp comedy has landed him everywhere from Bumbershoot to The Royal Room, The Knife Room, Solo Bar, and the Seattle Fringe Festival.   www.thedrunkentenor.com 

Jace, a soulful singer based out of Seattle, boasts a dynamic vocal range. His deep passion for jazz, big band, and blues drives a vibrant career, performing with big bands and ensembles across the Pacific Northwest and beyond.  www.jacefogleman.com 

Jhasmine Rabara is a vocalist in the Seattle area who always had a love for singing as a child. American jazz standards have heavily influenced her style, and she enjoys bringing her audience back in time when she sings classic tunes. You can watch her performances on YouTube, Instagram, and a jazz show near you!

Joanne has performed as an actor, singer, and comic in most every theatre and venue in Seattle. She’s also appeared all over the USA and in Costa Rica, Paris, Scotland, and Disneyland, a world unto itself. 

www.joannekleindiva.com

Singer-songwriter-pianist John Allman has performed his own songs in venues such as Seattle Cabaret Festival at Egan’s; Redmond Pride; the Calico Café and the Palace Saloon in Santa Fe, New Mexico; and Village Gate and Deanna’s in New York City. As a composer/lyricist, John’s stage works have been seen in Seattle, Santa Fe and New York City. John produced staged readings of his new original musicals The Miracle of the Salt and Fur Pajamas at Seattle Center Armory. Selections from The Miracle of the Salt were showcased at Aspire Kinetic Arts and the Gaisma Theatre Group launch party.

John Stassen is a singer-songwriter and philosopher. His piano-driven songs combine reflection with melody, inviting listeners into a quieter, more attentive way of being. John began singing with his sisters at age five, studied piano as a child, and theatre at Wilkes University under Adam Hill. An original choral piece of his was performed by the 18th Street Singers at the Kennedy Center. He released the album Alfred P Ginney's Thought Campaign in 2009 and performed in the band Six Second Yellow. After a long hiatus, he is returning to music with a focus on deepening thought, compassion, and connection.

Julie has been performing cabaret since 1980 in Seattle, Los Angeles, New York and Paris. Attending the International Cabaret Conference at Yale, Julie honed her performance techniques from New York's best cabaret artists. The daughter of a Sicilian butcher and a cool blonde Norwegian beauty, Julie grew up in Seattle's multi-ethnic Ballard neighborhood: "Retro jazz and popular music of my parent's era was bombarded into my psyche. I didn't have a choice and I loved it." Julie originally intended to be a teacher, but the lure of the limelight proved too powerful – as her international career proves. In 2025 Julie published her memoir, “I Love Being Abroad.”
www.juliesings.com

Kat Jimenez is a tech investor by day and a storyteller by night. With roots in the musical theater scenes of Seattle and New York, she has performed across the country and released her debut album, Nothin’ but Love. Her soulful vocals find a perfect partner in David Liu, a classically trained virtuoso. Having graced stages like Carnegie Hall and Benaroya Hall, David brings a brilliant, expressive touch to the keys. Together, they blend the precision of a master pianist with the raw emotion of a cabaret singer, creating a seamless musical dialogue that brings every lyric and melody to life.

Kiela is delighted to be returning to Seattle Cabaret Festival. With an extensive background in acting, musical theatre, cabaret and an all-around Renaissance Woman in NY, Seattle and LA, she looks forward to giving you a peek into her deliciously entertaining personal life. Kiela would like to thank her fellow artists and fans for continuing to inspire her to Step onto the Stage (of Life & Theatre), making both Art out of Life & Life out of Art. She likes to say, “You can take the Showgirl out of the Theatre. But you can’t take the Theatre out of the Showgirl.”

 The Love Markets are a Weimar Berlin-inspired cabaret rock band who make songs of love and revolution. Described as “ruffle-clad ruffians” (City Arts) and “a unique group of Seattle super-talents” (TalkinBroadway) and led by singer-songwriter Angie Louise, the Love Markets have brought their trademark brew of subversive wit, political bite, and rollicking soul to all manner of stage shows, TV and radio appearances, and critically acclaimed record releases. In 2025, The Love Markets released their third record, SHIP OF LIGHT, a luminous vessel carrying songs about hope, longing, joyrides, beatdowns, and billionaires in space. “Irresistible… Intoxicating… A deliciously dark carnival.” – Seattle Magazine. www.thelovemarkets.com
https://thelovemarkets.bandcamp.com 

 Lynn Wyckoff has been performing, teaching, and choreographing in Seattle for a while. She sings regularly at open mics in Seattle and California, specializing in standards, chanson, and samba. She has delved deeply into historical performing arts, performing Baroque and Renaissance dances with Seattle Early Dance for 17 years. She sang with Continuo Ensemble (17th C. Italian and English song), Ave Renaissance Choir, Medieval Women’s Choir, Radost Folk Ensemble, and The Tarantellas at Vito’s. She has choreographed 14 musicals, one opera, and numerous ballet, jazz, and character dances. She currently sings with Manzwi, a trio devoted to vocal harmonies of Zimbabwe.

Matt Dela Cruz (he/him) is a Seattle-based performer, producer, and professional vibe-curator with a deep love for pop hooks, storytelling, and theatrical joy. His stage credits include RENT, First Date, Romeo & Juliet, and Bloodletting, alongside musical improv productions across the city. As a cabaret artist, Matt blends millennial nostalgia, humor, and heart—turning personal moments into musical joyrides. He was also a featured performer in the Seattle Cabaret Festival in 2024. Offstage, Matt is a theatre teacher and currently an Associate Producer with Pork Filled Productions.   www.mattdelacruz.com 

Matthew is an actor, singer, and founder of the groundbreaking  & Grammy-nominated vocal group The Bobs.   www.matthewstull.com

Since 2018, Richard Gray has been teaching Cabaret Performance at Cornish College of the Arts for the graduating musical theater seniors. In addition to his theatrical experience as an actor, director and composer, Richard has been a frequent performer of cabaret for the last three decades. He performed/created several shows for the Cabaret de Paris including Forbidden Xmas, The Donk Sisters, BummerShoot!, Nightclub Gentlemen and The Mom & Pop Show. He performed in a concert celebrating the work of Richard Rodgers at the 92nd Street Y in NYC and has performed his solo cabaret show (Gray Matter) all over the Pacific Northwest.

Roger Schmelzer leans into the American Songbook to deliver an upbeat message of hope and kindness. Directed by the legendary Marilyn Maye, he brings fresh interpretations of timeless standards to create a warm and intimate evening where truth matters and presence is the point. His critically acclaimed NYC solo debut at the Metropolitan Room led to an appearance at Carnegie Hall, performances around the U.S. and a BroadwayWorld nomination for Best Cabaret/Solo Performance.

The Sirens of Swing features three Seattle cabaret luminaries - Karen Kay Cody, Joanne Klein and Jayne Muirhead - with music direction by John Engerman. First produced in the 1990s, their tributes to the infectious sounds of classic vocal trios such as the Boswell Sisters and the Andrews Sisters were hit shows at the Cabaret de Paris. With lush harmonies and jive rhythms, they take audiences on a musical journey back to the 1930s and 1940s full of sass and romance.

If Elton John and Bette Midler had a love child, it would be Vita Drew! This three-time EMMY award-winning cabaret star and Las Vegas headliner in the worldwide smash musical comedy hit “Menopause the Musical” will take you on a zany ride filled with sing-along songs, heartfelt stories, dirty little ditties, and jokes that will leave you laughing ’til tears run down your legs!