Tommy, Can You Hear Me?

The Who’s Tommy

The Who’s Tommy started life in 1969 as a concept album, was made into a 1975 movie, and was turned into a Broadway musical in 1992. It tells the story of young Tommy, traumatized by events in his childhood into near catatonia. The only thing that seems to reach him is a chance encounter with a pinball machine as a teenager. He’s a virtuoso and it changes the course of his life. The Broadway show was written by The Who’s Pete Townsend and co-author Des McAnuff. McAnuff comes to Chicago to direct Goodman’s amazing new production.

Rock operas play by a slightly different set of rules than traditional musicals. The same would go for any show that starts life as a ‘concept album.’ The narrative doesn’t need to be quite as tight, but there still needs to be something there to make it more than a concert by another name. For a source album over fifty years old, and a stage show over thirty, I was impressed by how elegantly the show handled some pretty heavy material. If I wanted to nitpick, the resolution in act two is a little abrupt, but for establishing the series of events that push Tommy to retreat from the world, the show handles some dark material in a way that is affecting but manages to not tip into maudlin.

The set design by David Korins and lighting design by Amanda Ziev are nothing short of spectacular. I’m on record more than once bemoaning the transition to projected screens in place of real sets, but in their hands, the set and lighting show how those elements can be incorporated into and expand what a live show is capable of, rather than substitute for that work. Bold lines made of light divide the stage into stark, contrasting colors. Combined with the incredible and kinetic choreography by Lorin Lattaro, the visual experience of the show is compelling from beginning to end. One element I found particularly effective was how the pinball machine was rendered, essentially as an empty, lit frame. Rather than try to portray the mechanics of the machine to an audience too far away to see them, it relies on Tommy’s movement’s to sketch in the working of the pinball machine. The moments when the show explodes in a riot of color and light, it is more powerful set against smaller moments like those.

All of this amazing work from the behind the scenes crew supports a stellar cast. Ali Louis Bourzgui plays the title role and he is amazing in it. He flies effortlessly between the extremes of the sights and sounds around him and the vulnerable little boy still struggling to process a world that was never safe for him. It’s an astonishing performance. Other standouts in a standout cast were Alison Luff as Tommy’s mother Mrs. Walker, whose performance finds all the complex layers to a character who loves but doesn’t fully understand her child, and Christina Sajous as the Acid Queen. Tina Turner’s turn as the Acid Queen in the movie version is iconic and Sajous’ performance stands proudly beside it.

The last element of the show that really completed the experience was the audience I was with. This was not a show I was very familiar with, nor is it a genre of music I listen to much on my own. So, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect when I sat down at the Goodman. However, both the friend I went with, and friends I ran into at the theater were diehard Who fans, and their energy was really infectious. So, I think it’s safe to say that if you are a fan of The Who, you will absolutely love this show, if the response of the army of self-professed fans I attended the show with are any indication. If you are not familiar with the band or the show, I can say that this show is truly incredible and will absolutely amaze you.

Highly Recommended

Reviewed by Kevin Curran

Presented June 13 – August 6 by Goodman Theatre, 170 N. Dearborn, Chicago.

Tickets are available in person at the Goodman box office, by calling 312-443-3800 or by going to www.goodmantheatre.org.

Additional information about this and other area productions can be found by visiting www.theatreinchicago.com.