THEATRE: TOMMY.
Pinball wizardry makes a return to Melbourne with The Who’s Tommy set to rock a new generation.
To modern audiences, the rock opera Tommy may be new, however, its origins go back to 1968 when it was created as a concept album by British band The Who. Tommy transformed from rock opera into a 1975 film with Elton John and Tina Turner, and eventual a Broadway musical in 1992.
Written with The Who’s Pete Townshend at the helm, the story was inspired by the Indian spiritualist Meher Baba, who took a 44-year observed silence. The show’s title character is a psychosomatically “deaf, dumb and blind” teenager, who becomes a pinball machine prodigy, leading to fame and fortune, and an unsettling cult status.
Having last played in Australia in 1973 with Daryl Braithwaite in the lead, Tommy marks its return to the Victorian Opera with a cast including Matt Hetherington, Amy Lehpamer and Paul Capsis as The Acid Queen. In his first leading role, Mat Verevis (Beautiful: The Carole King Musical) had his casting approved by Pete Townshend himself.
Tommy has increasingly been seen as a portrait of someone with severe autism…
“This is my first title role and it’s a huge honour,” says Verevis. “I’ve been reading about Pete’s life and how it so closely intertwines with the story of Tommy. I’ve also been listening to The Who’s live recordings of the show, which are seriously amazing. So I’ve been super inspired, especially by the lead vocals and trying to discover that tone in my own voice.”
For Verevis, the role also needs great physical preparation, especially given the amount of required singing.
“It’s a relatively big sing for Tommy,” he says. “I’ve built up my stamina by making sure I sing the material every day, and have a vocal rest at night. There’s also the deaf and blind elements that come into play, so I’ve watched a lot of material online and worked closely with our director Roger Hodgman.”
For Hodgman, who’s won awards for directing Grey Gardens and Who’s Afraid Of Virginia Woolf? this production is the chance to present an acclaimed and somewhat forgotten work. “The New York Times described Tommy as the first rock and roll masterpiece,” points out Hodgman. “But it wasn’t until the ’90s when Pete Townshend got together with the Canadian/American director Des MacAnuff that the material was developed into a coherent stage musical opera. This is the Australian premiere of that version, which won several Tony awards.”
The music and production are indeed unusual, but also relative to an era where the concept album was embraced by other bands including Pink Floyd and The Moody Blues. Townshend originally referred to his work as “a deaf, dumb and blind boy who sees life through vibrations,” which were translated through music. Daring for its time, its leading character was not the standard boy next door.
“As time passed, Tommy has increasingly been seen as a portrait of someone with severe autism,” says Hodgman. “It’s a condition we are much more aware of now than in the late ’60s. Townshend has talked about this and how the show riffs on the nature and pitfalls of celebrity. The story of the young autistic Tommy, sexually abused by his uncle and bullied by his peers is a terribly familiar trope,” says Hodgman.
“Tommy finds himself when he starts to play pinball and becomes a champion. It’s not a stretch to see that as a metaphor for the guitar that brought fame to Townshend.”
Also set to return to Broadway, it will be interesting to see how today’s audiences will take to a rock opera inspired by themes of bullying, disconnection, fame and forgiveness, not to mention ’60s hard rock.
“Many will be familiar with Tommy but there’s a younger generation that doesn’t know it,” says Hodgman. “Many young artists who auditioned confessed they hadn’t heard the music, but had fallen in love with it. I hope the audience will be fascinated and moved by the story of the young boy who retreats into an autistic haze after witnessing a terrible event, but finally finds himself.”
For Verevis, the show and its story is a bold new experience, which he hopes will be embraced by others.
“I’ve done a few jukebox musicals now, but nothing as grandiose, abstract, metaphorical and spectacular as this,” he says. “I hope people will leave this show with lots of nostalgia from hearing the music, but also be inspired from its story, and larger metaphor of hope.”
MORE: Tommy plays at Melbourne’s Palais Theatre from 13–21 August.
For more, victorianopera.com.au