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Twyla Tharp's Come Fly Away, An All-Sinatra Evening, Is Coming To Houston

Frank Sinatra is coming to town, and you'll never see him like this again.

Twyla Tharp's Broadway production of Come Fly Away, set to the vocals of Ol' Blue Eyes blended with a live 19-piece band, is coming to Houston. An all-star cast of phenomenal dancers will reinvent ballroom to classics such as "That's Life" and "Fly Me To The Moon," according to a press release.

The setting: a sultry nightclub, populated by four couples that change lovers like dirty clothes. But the real focus here is the powerhouse dancing. To say Come Fly Away is dance-heavy is like saying Sinatra was well known.

Tharp's most famous works are choreographed to the repertoire of her favorite musicians. She did it most successfully with the work of Billy Joel in Movin' Out in 2001, then again with the songs of Bob Dylan in The Times They Are a-'Changin' in 2005, says the press release. But Frank has always been her muse. She choreographed a duet set to Sinatra that she danced with Mikhail Baryshnikov in 1976 and created a work called Nine Sinatra Songs. She then created a second duet called Sinatra Suite, one Sinatra himself requested be performed when he accepted an award. According to the press release, Sinatra called it "one of the purest expressions of his body of work."

Just as she's loyal to Sinatra, Tharp's dancers are loyal to her. John Selya, who will be included in the Houston tour, danced in the original Broadway cast of Movin' Out. Almost half of the touring cast danced in the Broadway debut of Come Fly Away in March 2010. Those vets coming to Houston include John Selya, Cody Green, Laurie Kanyok, Meredith Miles, Marielys Molina and Ron Todorowski.

The tour hits Houston April 10 through 15. We know that's a long time away, but let's face it: you've got a lot of Sinatra songbooks to memorize before then.

Hobby Center for the Performing Arts, Sarofim Hall. April 10, 11, 12, and 15 at 7:30 p.m., April 13-14 at 8 p.m., April 14-15 at 2 p.m.

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Mandy Oaklander
Contact: Mandy Oaklander