Without a doubt, one of the hippest, most relevant, most engaged AND engaging musicians on the face of the planet, Gilberto Gil has answered to many titles—from the King of Brazilian Pop to Brazil’s Minister of Culture. In a career that has spanned four decades, with over 30 albums released, Gil has six gold records, four platinum singles, and five million records sold. The Tropicalist genre he helped to introduce has secured his fame internationally as well as at home in Brazil. On the forefront of the digital revolution, Gil believes that music should be integrated into contemporary culture via all means of communication including mobile phones, the internet, cable, digital TV, ringtones, truetones, and downloads.

Now Gil is taking North America by storm with his 2010 “The String Concert” Tour. Alongside his son Bem Gil (guitar and percussion) and the super talented cellist/producer/conductor Jaques Morelenbaum, Gil is re-imagining acoustic interpretations of his enormous catalogue. Get ready, Houston, for intricate sambas, delicate bossa novas, and soulful ballads as only Gil can deliver!

On this captivating evening, two singular entertainers celebrate their extraordinary careers on the Broadway stage and the silver screen with songs that conjure goose bumps! From nominated compositions “Nobody Does It Better” and “Sophie’s Choice” to music from A Chorus Line, The Way We Were, The Sting, and The Swimmer, composer and pianist Marvin Hamlisch will conduct the orchestra with hilarious antics onstage in between numbers! Remarkable in every way, Hamlisch—like no one except Richard Rodgers before him—has won an Oscar, a Grammy, an Emmy, a Tony, and a Pulitzer Prize. Marvin Hamlisch holds the position of principal pops conductor for the National Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony and San Diego Symphony.

Truly unforgettable as the Master of Ceremonies in the stage and film versions of Cabaret, Academy and Tony Award-winner Joel Grey will take the audience on a virtual tour of his career—dancing; singing songs by Kander & Ebb, Rodgers and Hart, and Billy Joel; sharing stories about shows like Cabaret, George M! and Chicago.

It’s a natural for Joel Grey and Marvin Hamlisch to share the same stage, as their friendship goes back many years to when they worked together on the very first tour Liza Minnelli and Joel Grey tour in 1973. Here is your exclusive chance to join them for one special evening!

Direct from South Africa, the 26-member Soweto Gospel Choir is an awe-inspiring vocal ensemble, performing in six different languages, in a stunning program of tribal, traditional and popular African gospel music as well as other inspiring songs. Earthy rhythms, rich harmonies, a cappella and charismatic performances combine to uplift the soul and express South Africa's great hopes for the future.

Under the direction of notable choirmaster David Mulovhedzi and South African Director and Executive Producer Beverly Bryer, the Soweto Gospel Choir, draws on the best talent from the many churches and communities in and around Soweto. Since the Choir began touring internationally in early 2003, they have performed to nightly standing ovations, sold-out houses and rave reviews.

The choir is particularly concerned for families/establishments caring for orphans in the townships who receive no government or outside sponsorship and in most cases, feed and clothe these orphans from their meager earnings or old age pensions. As a result, the choir has opened its own Aids Orphans foundation called Vukani (Zulu for Get Up, Do Something!). Administered as a joint association by Nkosi's Haven and the Soweto Gospel Choir, the charity supports these families by purchasing food, clothes or products that are needed. The choir takes an active part in meeting the orphans and families as their way of giving back to society.

South African gospel music is indeed unique. It has strong roots in traditional music and conveys a powerful spiritual message. The Soweto Gospel Choir carries forward this rich heritage, celebrating the spirit of South Africa.

Sitting in a semicircle and playing music in a lively conversation, this nine-member string ensemble performs more than 350 concerts a year in Venice at the San Vidal Church, where Vivaldi used to play. Now the group sprinkles Venetian magic wherever they tour. From the Bayreuth Festival to the Tokyo Suntory Hall, audiences and critics alike have applauded the Interpreti Veneziani for the high level of their playing and their expertise as soloists and ensemble musicians. Their Houston debut program features Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, Paganini’s La Campanella, Handel’s Concerto Grosso, and Preludio e Allegro by Pugnani/Kreisler.

The Interpreti Veneziani made their debut in 1987, immediately gaining a reputation for the youthful exuberance and all-Italian brio characterizing their performances. Their important achievements include appearances in the Bayruth Festival, concerts at Stockholm’s Royal Palace, participation in the World Vision telemarathon at the Kirov Theatre to mark the reinstatement of the name St. Petersburg, a concert at the Osaka Symphony Hall in live broadcast for Japanese radio, concerts at the Tokyo Suntory Hall and Kjoi Hall and appearances in glamorous concert seasons such as those of Sapporo and Yokohama during four tours of Japan.

The Interpreti Veneziani have toured Australia twice and have been invited many times to Mexico and Central and South America. They toured the U.S. for the first time in 2007, followed by tours in 2008 and 2009. For the last 20 years, the Interpreti Veneziani have performed their own season consisting of more than 200 concerts at Venice’s San Vidal Church.

Brilliant Canadian choreographer Aszure Barton has burst on the scene with “works that are quirky, deep, cheeky, and poignant,” says The Globe and Mail. Mikhail Baryshnikov calls her dances “extraordinary” and “uncompromising.” She has choreographed for Sydney Dance Company, Les Ballets Jazz de Montreal, The Juilliard School, films, and the Broadway stage. Now she brings her own company of consummate, dazzling dancers to Houston in her latest work Busk, set to Russian composer Ljova’s gypsy-inspired score, and Blue Soup, a collage of highlights from recent works, including A Travelling Show, Mais Oui, and Come In.

Aszure Barton and Artists is an organization dedicated to the growth of artists and production of contemporary dance performance. Since its founding in 2002, the company has developed its activities as an international contemporary dance project based in New York City. With her intimate ensemble, Aszure Barton continues to develop critically acclaimed productions around the globe. These works have toured to Europe, Brazil, Argentina, Asia, Africa, Canada, and the United States.

Her creative process is rooted in a celebration of music and movement, and a love for collaboration with dancers, filmmakers, designers, photographers and musicians. Her work explores the tragic and comic drives within the human body and psyche, often dramatizing inner thoughts and impulses, using idiosyncratic movements to paint a psychological portrait. Like a danced form of Commedia Dell’arte, the work looks at how our natural peculiarity, gestures and ways of moving can conjure up humor, cacophony, suspense and pathos – revealing a rich, dynamic landscape.

Born and raised in Alberta, Canada, where she studied with Cathy Hauptman, Sandra Gray, and Deborah Morgan, Barton has been dancing and making dances since early childhood. She received her formal training at the National Ballet School in Toronto, where, as a student, she helped originate the ongoing Stephen Godfrey Choreographic Showcase. She also studied at The Royal Winnipeg Ballet, Alberta Ballet School, and the John Cranko Schule in Stuttgart, Germany. She has performed internationally with many celebrated dance companies including The National Ballet of Canada, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal [bjm_danse], Mikhail Baryshnikov's Hell's Kitchen Dance, Wendy Osserman Dance Company, and her own, Aszure Barton & Artists. She is the Resident Choreographer for Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal [bjm_danse], and has been an Artist-in-Residence at the Baryshnikov Arts Center/BAC for 2005, 2006, and 2008.

Ms. Barton has been commissioned to choreograph new works for Mikhail Baryshnikov, Fang-Yi Sheu, Sydney Dance Company, The National Ballet of Canada, The Juilliard School, Les Ballets Jazz de Montréal [bjm_danse], The Martha Graham Dance Company, American Ballet Theatre II, Hubbard Street Dance Chicago, and the UK Laban Institute, among others. Barton choreographed the Broadway production of The Threepenny Opera starring Alan Cumming, Jim Dale, Nellie Mackay, and Cyndi Lauper (in a new translation by Wallace Shawn, directed by Scott Elliott). She also choreographed an excerpt for the production of Salome starring Al Pacino, Kevin Anderson, and Jessica Chastain, directed by Estelle Parsons.

This performance is followed by a NiteSPA party. Only $50 for both! Call 713.632.8113 to reserve your spot!

Get ready to laugh out loud when David Sedaris, one of America’s pre-eminent humorists, returns for an evening of incisive social critique, tall tales of odd jobs, and humiliating family anecdotes. First discovered by radio host Ira Glass in the clubs of Chicago reading excerpts from his diaries, Sedaris catapulted to fame after recounting his experiences as a Macy’s Christmas Elf on NPR’s “Morning Edition.” Labeled a “minor phenomenon” by The New York Times, Sedaris went on to challenge that assessment by becoming a major phenomenon, publishing six New York Times best-selling books including Me Talk Pretty One Day, Dress Your Family in Corduroy and Denim and When You Are Engulfed in Flames. His newest book, a collection of fables entitled Squirrel Seeks Chipmunk is due fall 2010. Make plans now—this is sure to be a sold-out performance. Adult content.