Tharp working on Sinatra show
NEW YORK (AP) - American musical theater's latest collaborators - Twyla Tharp and Frank Sinatra.
Atlanta's Alliance Theatre says it will present "Come Fly With Me" - a new musical conceived, directed and choreographed by Tharp. The show, which concerns four couples who fall in and out of love, uses more than a dozen classic Sinatra vocals backed by an on-stage 17-piece band.
"Come Fly With Me" will open Sept. 23 in Atlanta for a run through Oct. 11. Previews begin Sept. 15. A Broadway-bound tour will go out on the road next summer.
Jennifer Hudson gives birth to a son
NEW YORK (AP) - Jennifer Hudson has a new role - that of a proud mother.
The 27-year-old Oscar winner gave birth to her first child, David Daniel Otunga Jr., on Monday, according to her publicist, Lisa Kasteler of WKT Public Relations. He is named after her fiance, David Otunga. The baby weighed 7 pounds, 14 ounces.
"The baby is beautiful and perfect," says Hudson's publicist Lisa Kasteler. "His parents are ecstatic."
Hudson, who is also a Grammy-winning singer, had not confirmed she was expecting before announcing news of the birth.
The entertainer suffered a tragic blow last fall when her mother, brother and nephew were slain in her native Chicago. Her sister's estranged husband is charged with the killings.
Hudson, who gained fame first as a top contender on "American Idol," won an Academy Award for best supporting actress for her portrayal of Effie in "Dreamgirls" in 2007. Earlier this year, she won a Grammy for best R&B album for her self-titled debut CD.
The birth was first reported by the Hollywood Reporter's Showbiz411
.com.
Chef Flay tries his hand at announcing
SARATOGA SPRINGS, N.Y. (AP) - Celebrity chef Bobby Flay traded pots and pans for a microphone to call a horse race at Saratoga on Sunday.
"And they're smokin' out of the gate!" Flay exclaimed as the horses broke in the eighth race, won by long shot Freddy The Cap, who paid $67 to win.
At the end of the race, track announcer Tom Durkin said, "Thank you, Bobby, and thank goodness you know how to cook a souffle."
Flay also signed copies of his book "Burgers, Fries and Shakes" at the track.
He first attended races at Belmont Park as a boy along with his grandfather. Flay has owned and raced horses in New York state for several years.
'The View' star Hasselbeck has child
NEW YORK (AP) - Elisabeth Hasselbeck of "The View" is the mother of a third child, a boy.
Hasselbeck gave birth Sunday afternoon to her second son, Isaiah Timothy, at a New York City hospital. She's married to former NFL quarterback Tim Hasselbeck.
The couple has two other children: Grace Elisabeth, who's 4, and Taylor Thomas, who's 20 months.
Isaiah weighed in at 7 pounds, 7 ounces.
The new dad reports: "Elisabeth and Isaiah are doing great."