The sixties-set story of a young pinball wizard — with a book by Des McAnuff and Pete Townshend and music and lyrics by Townshend, John Entwistle and Keith Moon — runs May 2-24 at the Brooklyn venue. Gallery Players veteran Tom Wojtunik directs.
In addition to Travis as Tommy, the production also features Tommy Foster (Captain Walker), Anna Lise Jensen (Mrs. Walker), John Ashley Brown (Lover), Nathan Brisby (Uncle Ernie), Marcie Henderson (The Gypsy), Tyson Jennette (Hawker), Blair Moore (Sally Simpson) and David Perlman (Cousin Kevin).
Completing the cast are Kennen Butler, Alexis DeDonato, Hayley Driscoll, Daniel Henri Luttway, Alex Pearlman, Jan-Peter Pedross, Anthony Pierini, Mia Romero, Chloe Sabin, Mitchell Scott Shapiro and Ryan Bruiser Stone.
Designing Tommy are set designer Michael P. Kramer, lighting designer Chris Walsh, costume designer Hunter Kaczorowski, sound designer Kate Foretek and projection designer Ron Amato. The Gallery Players production features choreography by Christine O'Grady and musical direction by Paul Seiz.
"It’s very different from the material I’ve worked on at The Gallery Players in the past," said director Wojtunik in a statement. "At its heart, The Who’s Tommy is a coming of age story, and rock music from its inception has always been about that defining moment in our lives when we break away from our parents and face the world on our own—the elation and fear of this moment has always thrilled me about this story. Our production of The Who’s Tommy will employ a number of technical elements to help tell the story and do justice to Townshend’s terrific rock score—most importantly an elaborate sound and projection design. The Who’s music still retains such invigorating power, it’s hard to believe the original album was released forty years ago. We’re looking forward to blowing the roof off the theatre with a cast of talented signers and a rocking band led by musical director Paul Seiz.” The Who's Tommy opened on Broadway at the St. James Theatre April 22, 1993, earning 11 Tony nominations. Des McAnuff won a Tony Award for his direction, and Pete Townshend won a Tony for the show's score in a tie with Kander and Ebb for Kiss of the Spider Woman.
For tickets call (718) 595-0547 or visit www.galleryplayers.com.
The Gallery Players is located in Park Slope, Brooklyn, at 199 14th Street. Those in Manhattan can reach the theatre by taking the F train to 4th Avenue or the R train to 9th Street.
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The Gallery Players, a Brooklyn theatrical institution, boasts numerous Broadway folk among its alumni, including Harvey Fierstein (A Catered Affair, Hairspray, Torch Song Trilogy), Jennifer Barnhart (Avenue Q), Manoel Felciano (Sweeney Todd), Diedre Goodwin (A Chorus Line, Chicago), Seth Rudetsky (Seth’s Broadway Chatterbox), Garrett Long (The Spitfire Grill) and John Rando (director of Broadway's Urinetown and The Wedding Singer).
