Welcome Whitney Claire Kaufman!
Ms. Kaufman is delighted to return to the stage with the Dearborn Symphony following her memorable debut with the orchestra in 2022 under the baton of her dear friend Maestro Steven Jarvi. Born and raised in Los Angeles, California, Ms. Kaufman made her symphony debut at age 7 singing in the children’s chorus in the West Coast premiere of music from John William’s Home Alone with Orange County’s Pacific Symphony. After receiving a BFA in theatre performance from Chapman University, she spent two years with the North American Broadway Tour of the smash-hit ABBA musical Mamma Mia! Her performance as Sophie garnered this review from The Boston Globe: “With her pure, clear voice, gentle or forceful as called for, but always beautifully placed – she really deserves to vault straight to Broadway. Plus, her acting is as compelling as her singing.”
Ms. Kaufman has performed as principal guest soloist with 30+ symphony orchestras spanning the globe including the Malaysian Philharmonic in Kuala Lumpur, Calgary Philharmonic, Atlanta Symphony, Blossom Festival Orchestra, Florida Orchestra, Dallas Symphony, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra in Australia, National Symphony at the Kennedy Center, and Toronto Symphony Orchestra. Ms. Kaufman has spent several seasons touring with “Disney in Concert” bringing the magical music of the films of Walt Disney to audiences all over the world, and was chosen to sing the world concert premiere of a deleted song from Mary Poppins in the Sherman Brothers tribute concert “A Spoonful of Sherman” put on by the Golden State Pops Orchestra. Most recently, Ms. Kaufman has been celebrating the music of Oscar nominated and Oscar winning songs from film music greats including Henry Mancini, Dimitri Tiomkin, and Leslie Bricusse. She is delighted to bring these wonderful songs to Dearborn on tonight’s program.
Ms. Kaufman’s favorite theatrical appearances include Cabaret, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, Marisol, The Robber Bridegroom, and The Los Angeles Theatre Ensembles’ original production of Wounded which premiered at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. TV credits include General Hospital and the hit ABC series Modern Family. As both a singer and voice-over performer in film and television, Ms. Kaufman’s voice has been heard on productions including That Championship Season, The Secret of NiMH 2, and two MGM animated series: All Dogs Go to Heaven and Noddy.
She can be heard on the Grammy-nominated recordings of songs written by Oscar-winning composer Dimitri Tiomkin.
You can find more information on Ms. Kaufman at www.whitneyclairekaufman.com, or give her a follow on Instagram @whitneyclairekaufman
Lodging for Ms. Kaufman courtesy of The Henry, Autograph Collection