“A creative pairing of music from crooner Frank Sinatra and composer Peter Ilyich Tchaikovsky will make up a special one-time performance by Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre and the Westmoreland Symphony Orchestra,” writes Mary Thomas in Thursday’s (3/6) Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. The March 23 program in Greensburg, Pennsylvania “comprises Tony-winning choreographer Twyla Tharp’s ballroom-ballet fusion ‘Nine Sinatra Songs’ and the entire moonlit Act II and dark twin, the Black Swan Pas de Deux, from Swan Lake.… The Tharp and Tchaikovsky works were both part of longer programs during the ballet’s 2013-14 season…. Forty-four symphony musicians will perform the 1877 Russian classic, the full orchestra number reduced slightly to those who may fit in the orchestra pit. However, ‘all parts of the orchestra will be represented,’ said Symphony Managing Director Morrie Brand. Fourteen ballet theatre dancers will perform the Sinatra works and most of the 29-member company will be represented in the overall program…. ‘Nine Sinatra Songs’ … a glamorous portrait of seven couples that traces the arc of romantic relationships … premiered in 1982 and is among [Twyla Tharp’s] most often performed pieces,” featuring songs including “Softly As I Leave You,” “My Way,” “Somethin’ Stupid,” “All the Way,” and “Forget Domani.”
Posted March 13, 2014
