IT CERTAINLY has been an Amazing Journey . . . Indeed the tale of Tommy the rock-opera is almost as fantastic as the story it attempts to tell of the deaf, dumb and blind boy who becomes a cult hero through his wizardry on the pinball machine.

Originally conceived by Who lead guitarist Pete Townshend as nothing more than a longer than usual track for one of the group's albums, the storyline was extended to accommodate a double LP and has since become a rock money-spinner second to none.

Inevitably the Phoenix Theatre's presentation of Tommy, which opened last night is going to bear comparison with the album, the first stage presentation at the Rainbow Theatre, and perhaps most of all, the recently released Ken Russell film version. And at the outset I should warn all Who fanatics not to expect too much.

Lacked bite

From a purely musical point of view — and as a so called rock opera with hardly any dialogue at all it must be judged on this basis — the production leaves much to be desired.

Instrumentally the house band coped fairly well with Townshend's complex numbers, while admittedly lacking the bite and hard edge of The Who. But vocally the standard wasn't that high.

In fact had the show proceeded in the manner it opened — a disastrous rendering of 'It's a Boy' — I'm sure the audience wouldn't have lasted the pace. But the standard of singing rose as the evening progressed, thanks mainly to inspired performances by narrator / guitarist Joss Buckley and organist Russell Henderson.

Now the good news. In every other respect — particularly the visuals — Michael Bogdanov's imaginative direction more than makes up for my previous misgivings.

The star

Bogdanov's concept of Tommy as an autistic child — undreamt of, I'm sure, by Townshend — is another brainwave and Bev Willis as Tommy brilliantly conveys the total detachment and introspection of the mental condition until he's liberated from his isolation by the symbolic smashing of the mirror (in this case a car windscreen).

The director allows the songs themselves to tell the story and some of the sequences are truly stunning. Heather Tobias proved a most erotic Acid Queen and Michael O'Donoughue introduced just the right amount of villainy into his portrayal of the evil Cousin Kevin.

But in my mind the star of the show was John Darrell, who somehow found time to play guitar and take the parts of the Doctor and wicked Uncle Ernie.

He brought to the latter part just the required degree of sycophancy and insincerity.

The finale featuring Tommy's rejection by his fans and his subsequent spiritual confirmation proved to be somewhat of a damp squib — only because the audience weren't expecting the show to end so soon after the interval.

But nevertheless — I'm sure Tommy will be a rip-roaring success and with house-full signs right through till June 14. Don't despair if you can't get tickets because the show will be presented at the De Montfort Hall on June 25 and 27.