Tommy is a 1957 graduate of HISD's Lamar High School, and a gay dancer. He has been called "Broadway's six-foot-six answer to Fred Astaire".

He is the only person in theatrical history to win Tony Awards in four different categories (choreography, director, lead actor, and featured actor) and to win the same Tony Award two years in a row (choreography, 1990 and 1991).

Tommy was inducted into the Theatre Hall of Fame in 1991. His reminiscence, Footnotes: A Memoir, has been published recently.