The newly reimagined version of The Who's Tommy is set to open on Broadway Thursday, and director Des McAnuff, who also directed the original production, says the idea to bring it back was sparked by another Tommy project.
Based on The Who's 1969 album and 1975 film, the original production of Tommy opened on Broadway on April 22, 1993. It won five Tony Awards, including Best Direction for McAnuff and Best Original Score for Townshend.
McAnuff says that even though it's been 30 years since the original production, the story of Tommy is particularly relatable in our current climate, specifically in the second act, "when Tommy becomes this imam, guru, political leader, a rock star and has a kind of an epiphany about that." He notes that it's something "one would hope more leaders would do."
Tommy The Musical opens March 28 at Broadway's Nederlander Theatre. Tickets are available now.