Our Sinatra
In 1999, the musical revue Our Sinatra, conceived, created, and performed by Eric Comstock, Christopher Gines, and Hilary Kole, made its debut at the Algonquin Hotel’s historic Oak Room. It transferred to Off-Broadway, has played two national tours, numerous regional runs, and many nightclub engagements. The popular show has now returned to the NYC stage with a reunion of the original cast, in a full production presented by Jack Lewin at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater.
Directed by Kurt Stamm and supervised by Tony winner Richard Maltby, Jr., this, musical celebration of the legendary Frank Sinatra (1915-98) features selections from his hits and lesser-known numbers from the ‘40s to the ‘70s. It also includes direct-address introductions and between-song banter from the star vocalists, sharing their personal memories and connections to “Ol’ Blue Eyes,” how he influenced their own careers, and their favorites from his extensive canon. While Comstock joked that they would be covering all of his nearly 1500 works, the set list of the non-stop chock-full, 90-minute show did fit in almost 60, in top-notch solos, duets, and trios of single songs and smartly themed fluid medleys.
Performed in elegant formal attire on an intimate stage, furnished with a Steinway grand piano topped with a framed photo of Sinatra, a bass and a music stand, and wooden stools set before a blue curtain backdrop (Peter R. Feuchtwanger,scenic consultant), the design suggests a cabaret format. The musical stylings (music direction by Comstock) and repartee also evoke an authentic Sinatra vibe, paying tribute to the artist and his era without impersonating him. Instead, the tone of the show embraces the emotional expressiveness “The Chairman of the Board” brought to the stage, screen, and recording studio, with the joy, pain, passion, and longing contained in the lyrics of each of his songs. He, and the cast here, are not just singers but empaths, whose affecting, heartfelt performances bring it all to life.
Masterfully accompanied by Comstock on piano and Marco Panascia on bass (at the performance I attended), the numbers highlight the satin-smooth crooning and suave moves of Gines, the crystal-clear notes, extraordinary range, and rhythmic scatting of Kole, and the virtuosity of Comstock on both the keys and vocals, from bouncy and playful (as are his witty asides) to serious and reflective, and every mood in between. The changes in tone, songs, and lead vocalists, as they move around the stage, standing and sitting on the stools or piano, are enhanced with shifts in lighting by Matt Berman, (also credited with the rich sound design).
Among the renowned ballads, saloon and torch songs, swing and pop hits included in the captivating performance is the opening number “Where or When,” followed by such standards as “Too Marvelous for Words,” a movie medley featuring “Time after Time” and “My Kind of Town,” and the classics “Without A Song,” “I’ve Got the World on a String,” “For Once in My Life,” and “All the Way.” As if those aren’t famous and beloved enough, there is also a “Mother of All Medleys,” with “Night and Day,” “The Way You Look Tonight,” “They Can’t Take That Away from Me,” “Come Fly with Me,” “Fly Me to the Moon,” “The Lady Is a Tramp,” “I’ve Got You under My Skin,” “The Best Is Yet to Come,” the self-affirming “My Way,” and many, many more, too numerous to mention (in addition to a humorous reference to his daughter Nancy and her signature 1966 chart-topper “These Boots Are Made for Walkin’”).
Of course, no Sinatra revue in NYC (or anywhere!) would be complete without “New York, New York, A Helluva Town” by Leonard Bernstein (music) and Betty Comden and Adolph Green (lyrics), from his 1949 film On the Town (adapted from the 1944 stage production), and his iconic 1979 cover of Kander and Ebb’s “Theme from New York, New York,” originally sung by Liza Minelli in the 1977 Martin Scorsese film of the same name. Both epitomize the heights of Sinatra’s fame and his love of our city, clearly reciprocated by the cast and creators of this outstanding homage.
And, of course, a stellar performance like this demands an encore. They obliged with a stand-up downstage three-part harmony, softly backed by Panascia, on the tender “Put Your Dreams Away” of 1963, which was included on the 1965 album release Sinatra’s Sinatra: A Collection of Frank’s Favorites. It was a beautiful and fitting way to end the show.
Our Sinatra plays in repertory at the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater with Going Bacharach, another musical revue produced by Lewin, featuring selections of the more than seven decades of work by the award-winning songwriter and pianist Burt Bacharach (1928-2023). For Theaterscene.com’s review of the January-February production of Going Bacharach, click here. If you’re a fan of the popular music of the mid-to-late 20th century by two of its greatest artists, these two shows are, unanimously, a must-see.
Our Sinatra
At the Marjorie S. Deane Little Theater
10 West 64th St.
Running time: 90 minutes, no intermission
Through November 29, 2026
