This spring, it's time to go on an "Amazing Journey." The first revival of The Who's TOMMY on Broadway, created by Tony Award® winners Pete Townshend and Des McAnuff, reinvents the five-time Tony®-winning rock musical for a new generation
Meet Tommy, the pinball wizard. As both a groundbreaking album and a spectacular stage show, the mythic yet moving story of how Tommy goes from a troubled child to pinball prodigy to local celebrity continues to exhilarate audiences with songs like “I’m Free,” “See Me, Feel Me,” “We're Not Gonna Take It,” and “Pinball Wizard.”
Experience The Who's timeless hits anew in this critically acclaimed production, now in a reimagined, technologically stunning new staging by original director/co-creator McAnuff. As Chicago Concert Review raved, "One of the most iconic concept collections makes history all over again."
That’s when this revival serves up “Pinball Wizard.” It’s one of the work’s most famous hits by Pete Townshend, who wrote the music and lyrics and co-authored the book with director Des McAnuff. Between the chronically catchy song, full-tilt performances, and movement to match, the number is electrifying. The great news is that what precedes and follows this moment also stirs and tickles the senses. That’s the way this rock opera rolls, as it spins the story of a boy so deeply damaged by life – first by his parents and later by his abusive uncle and creepy cousin – that he nearly shuts down completely.
Still, the songs, which are often bite-size, remain as distinctive as they’ve ever been (which is why “The Who’s Tommy” can also be effective in a semi-staged format, as evidenced by Josh Rhodes’s production at the Kennedy Center five years ago). The score was very theatrical for a chart-topping rock band in the late ’60s, but it’s also very rock by Broadway standards, even now. The company walks that line, at least vocally, better than the one from 1993, which was more Broadwayfied, and the orchestra, which is as loud as it needs to be, plays with a precision that does not forsake energy and the joys of riffage. What this “Tommy” is preaching might be a little murky, but when the entire cast lines up to face the audience and belts the “Listening to You” finale, by golly, you believe.
Digital Lottery:
Price: $40
Where: https://lottery.broadwaydirect.com/show/tommy-ny
When: Entries for the digital lottery open at 9:00am EST one day before the performance.
Limit: Two per customer
Information: Winners are drawn the same day at 3:00pm EST and will have one hour to pay for their tickets online.
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