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Those old '60s feelings
‘The Who’s Tommy’ in Norristown
Steve Cohen
Tommy — Pete Townshend’s metaphorical rock musical about his own troubled childhood and youth — has evolved over the past 45 years in three distinct forms. First was the 1969 rock concert, in which Townshend, Roger Daltrey, Keith Moon, and John Entwistle played and sang Townshend’s songs (even the songs written for women). That album morphed into a 1975 film by Ken Russell that largely consisted of campy star turns by Ann-Margret, Oliver Reed, Eric Clapton, Tina Turner, and Elton John. In 1993 came a Broadway musical spectacle assembled by Townshend and director Des McAnuff with a cast of 14.
As to the plot: A father is declared missing in action in World War II, only to return unexpectedly to kill his wife’s lover in front of his four-year-old son Tommy. The traumatized child consequently goes deaf, dumb, and blind; he’s sexually abused by his Uncle Ernie and bullied by his Cousin Kevin. As an adolescent, he becomes a pinball superstar.
When Daltry sang, "See me, feel me, touch me, heal me," Tommy invoked the yearnings of Townshend’s generation for love and community.
Now a new troupe, called New Cavern Productions, is presenting Tommy with emphasis on the music. It’s a decidedly different kettle of fish. A youthful cast displays excellent singing voices that transcend the belting of normal rock artists — a good thing, since many of Townshend’s songs demand wide ranges and difficult changes of register. Special charisma was projected by Jason Armstrong as Tommy, Zach Latino as his father, and Chris Infantino as Cousin Kevin.
A five-piece band, led by Evan Rieger, plays with power without upstaging the cast. (Surprisingly for a rock musical, Tommy’s orchestration makes prominent use of a French horn.)
Steven Burke’s straightforward direction, including breaking glass and guns firing, put the story in context. A pinball machine and other games in the lobby provoke curiosity about the show. Burke, a sophomore at the Universty of the Arts, says his aim is to attract nontraditional audience members and to use immersive media to demonstrate how exciting theater can be.
He succeeded. And in one aspect he topped the original. When I went back and listened to the Who’s 1969 album, I heard beautiful but controlled harmonies (unusual for a band consisting of flamboyant individualists). This cast in Norristown gave us more full-throttled emotionalism. The closing anthem's lyrics, “Listening to you, I get the music,” reawakened those old ‘60s feelings today, at least for this elder baby boomer.
What, When, Where
The Who’s Tommy. Music and lyrics by Pete Townshend; book by Townshend and Des McAnuff; Steven Burke directed. New Cavern production through July 27, 2014 at Theatre Horizon, 401 DeKalb St., Norristown, PA. www.newcavern.org.
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