Tommy

Tommy

Tonight I saw a live production of TOMMY, the rock opera by The Who. I was never really into
The Who, but still familiar with some of their work, and i remember the videos, especially Elton John as the Pinball Wizard. A few months ago, a friend said she intended to see the show in Ephrata, at the Performing Arts Center, did I want to join her. Sure, why not? An evening with friends, dinner at Applebee's........sounds like a good time. I had been to the Center last year, I had won a ticket for their 2011 season, and they were doing CHICAGO, a favorite of mine, Tommy sounded like fun. I had never seen the movie, but found a copy on ebay or Amazon, not sure which one, and watched it one day while on the treadmil. One wonders just what was going on in the minds of these artists when they wrote the music and the entire opera.........the entire concept seemed to be thought up while under the influence of more powerful drugs than I ever did in my youth! The film was a trip, and Roger Daltry certainly did a fantastic job of portraying that 'deaf, dumb, and blind kid.' I was excited to see it live. The theater has seating on 3 sides of the stage area, and our seats were in the center section, front row. We all kept tucking our feet in, fearful of tripping the performers as the stage is flat. There were 2 young boys that played Tommy as a child, and they were both fantastic, no expressions as the ensemble sang and danced around them,. I found myself feeling sorry for this young lad, traumatized as a child, molested by an Uncle, poked and prodded by doctors, teased and abused by his peers. I sat in my seat, mesmerized by the performance as the actors transported me to London in the '40's, and into the '60's when Tommy became free. I could relate. I've been through some rough patches, I imagine we all have, and many days I feel like I am also free. I didn't have the traumatic childhood Tommy had, but I guess we have all been in some sort of invisible prison at some point . I feel fortunate to have cast off my chains just as Tommy did. And I didn't need a Pinball machine. Bottom line........it was a great show. I love live theater. Can't really afford Broadway, but regularly attend local theaters when scheduling permits.