Brian Cerdelli as Uncle Ernie. Photo Copyright 2010 Ward Photography.

I played the roll of Uncle Ernie in The Who’s “Tommy” and I enjoyed the process very much. We had an amazing cast and crew working on the production, we had an amazing director (Adam Karsten), and we had amazing audiences every night of performances. There was nothing about anything we did as a cast, or any technical aspects of the show that I didn’t really enjoy. Although the run was only four shows, we will remember this experience for the rest of our lives, myself especially because I am a big fan of  The Who’s music and rock music in general. To do a rock opera for me personally was an amazing experience in itself. Thanks to everyone involved in making this show the amazing production it was, I will always cherish it.

-Brian Cerdelli

The Who’s Tommy was performed to sell-out audiences at DHPAC/Dix Hills Performing Arts Center at Five Towns College on March 11-14, 2010.

Walt Whitman, age 28

DHPAC/Dix Hills Performing Arts Center is located in Dix Hills, in the Town of Huntington. One of the wonderful links to cultural history the town has, is that the newspaper which Long Island poet Walt Whitman founded in 1838, The Long Islander, is still in print in Huntington! The Five Towns College Theatre Department production of Tommy received great coverage in The Long Islander, as well as in its sister newspaper, The Half Hollow Hills Newspaper.

Will Rivera ("Tommy" in the FTC/DHPAC production)

But…like many good things… you can’t find the article on line. It is only available in the print edition. So, FTC/DHPAC is not only famous, we are an exclusive! I will tell you that the title of the article is, “Rock Tour De Force Rivets Five Towns”, and it features an awesome publicity shot of Will Rivera as Tommy and Kiley MacDonald as Tommy’s mother, Mrs. Walker. You can find the listing: here. And, you can get the paper at local businesses. (Or, see a copy of the article posted in the hallway at Five Towns College.)

The Who’s Tommy: The Musical, will be playing at DHPAC March 11-14th. Ticket link is: here.

Since Five Towns College [FTC] is full of theatre, music, and audio technology students, it is easy to expect great things from FTC productions, including set design. Add into the mix that Tommy is directed by Professor Adam Karsten, who is known for his stylish productions, and you can expect a big WOW! for the Tommy set.

Here are some of the images in progress, that I collected on three different days of the set going up:

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Tommy: Next phase (second day I took photos)

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Tommy: Third day of photos. Ladder on set.

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That’s the end of my sneak peak. You’ll have to come see the play to see more of the set…

And…in case you missed it the first time around…here is the youtube promo the Sound/Video crew did for Tommy:

I heard from the Box Office that tickets are going fast for our March 11-14 (Thurs., Fri., Sat., and  Sunday matinee) showing of Tommy: The Musical.

In the video above, actress and Five Towns College student Kiley McDonald gives her thoughts on the music in Tommy, based on her perspective in the role of Mrs. Walker (Tommy’s mother).

Background:

The Five Towns College Theatre Department will present Tommy: The Musical on March 11-14. This Tony Award winning rock musical is based on The Who’s 1969 double album rock opera. The Director is Adam Karsten. The Music Director is Professor Christine Riley. The Assistant Music Director (pictured in the video on piano) is Marika Abe. The venue is DHPAC/Dix Hills Performing Arts Center, a 500 seat venue, located at Five Towns College in Dix Hills, Long Island, New York. There is bus service to DHPAC/FTC from several LIRR train stations.

If you missed The Who tribute at Carnegie Hall in NYC tonight — or if it left you wanting more — this is a great chance to experience excitement of The Who’s music live and local in the New York Metropolitan area.

Tickets are $15 for adults and $12 seniors/students. Online at www.dhpac.org or call (631) 656-2148.

This video was created by The Sound/Video Crew of the 2010 Five Towns College production of The Who’s Tommy.

The show is directed by Professor Adam Karsten. Appearing in the show and this promo are:

Matt Eisen as Young Tommy
Will Rivera as Tommy
Tiana Salmon as Sally Simpson
Alicia Jagrup as The Acid Queen
Tim Howard as Captain Walker
Kiley McDonald as Mrs. Walker
Jean Bonavita as Cousin Kevin and
Brian Cerdelli as Uncle Earnie.

Show info:

On March 11-14, 2010, the musical, Tommy, based on The Who’s double-album rock opera, will play at DHPAC/Dix Hills Performing Arts Center at Five Towns College in Long Island, New York. The venue is convenient to the LIRR. See schedules for train/bus info.  Tickets by phone at: (631) 656-2148.

Tonight, the rest of the world was watching a medley of Tommy songs, on a VH1 special, classics rerun of a 2008 tribute to The Who. Did you see it? It was pretty cool, with performances by Pearl Jam, The Foo Fighters, and Adam Sandler. Flaming Lips did the Tommy medley. The link to the VH1 page, with lots of videos to view is: here. A video of the Tommy medley is below. (Well, commercial first, sorry.)

We hope that if you liked seeing a Who tribute on tv, you will be even more excited to come see our live, local tribute. Imagine, a chance to see the 1993 Tony Award winning rock musical by Pete Townshend and Des McAnuff, performed right here in Long Island.

Only at DHPAC! Tonight I had the pleasure of seeing John Blenn’s comedy, “Better Hue”, on stage, on the opening night of a world premiere. Lots of great moments, and lots to think about concerning life, office politics, and motivational speakers. And…

On the same night, at overlapping times, in a studio off of another hallway, I was able to tape a rehearsal of the musical Tommy. The show is about 3 weeks away, and I found the actors to be comfortable in their roles enough to move me. It was also very surreal to be in a room with twenty-something twenty-year-olds doing rock harmonies. For rehearsal, there is no band, just a piano and the voices. I think it gave the music an almost angelic feel. And, I have decided that The Who should consider re-recording their rock opera Tommy a cappella.

I am excited about the footage I took of the Tommy rehearsal, of some Tommy cast members, and of writer/director/professor John Blenn. It is downloading right now onto my other computer. I will try to get some video up this weekend. And, besides all of that action and productivity, I had one more great experience at DHPAC/Dix Hills Performing Arts Center…

There is a couple who my husband and I know from the folk music and poetry scene. They are very into culture, and we often run into them at very exciting events, and sometimes, in unexpected places. We always tell them that we are honored to see them, because if we are where they are, we are in the coolest place. So…tonight, I ran into them on the way out of the theater doors from Better Hue. So, it’s official: DHPAC/Five Towns College was the cool place to be tonight. (If you missed it tonight, there are still two more chances to see John Blenn’s play this weekend. And, the musical Tommy begins Thursday, March 11th.)

Well, we aren’t really going to have The Who on stage. Though, we are excited to be performing The Who’s Tommy, the 1993 Tony Award winning rock musical based on the 1969 double album rock opera, Tommy. Our show is coming up in March (tickets available now: here.)

I am not a football fan. So, of all things, I learned this bit of synchronicity today, that The Who would be playing at the halftime show at the Superbowl. And it is reported that they will play a mash-up which will include “Pinball Wizard” and the finale from Tommy.

I wasn’t even going to watch the game. But, now I think I will find a way to catch the halftime show. And, I will try to make another blog post soon with reflections on Tommy and DHPAC. (With questions such as: “Who is more competitive — a football player or a pinball wizard?”; and, “Do football players really listen to The Who?”)

For now, I will mention that our version of Tommy the musical will be directed by Adam Karsten. And, among the cast will be Will Rivera as Tommy, and Alicia Jagrup as the Acid Queen.

Four chances to schedule yourself in for Tommy at DHPAC:

Thursday, March 11, 7:30 pm
Friday, March 12, 7:30 pm
Saturday, March 13, 7:30 pm
Sunday, March 14, 2:00 pm

$15 Adults, $12 Seniors & Students

(I’m going on Thursday. Got my tickets already. Wouldn’t miss it for the world. Imagine, getting to see a rock opera right here on Long Island!)