If you have not been to the Stanley Theatre in Utica for a show, here is what you need to know: the room was built to make you feel something before the curtain ever goes up. Opened in 1928 and designed by Thomas W. Lamb as a movie palace for Warner Brothers, the Stanley Theatre holds 2,963 seats and has the bones to match every one of them. Saved from demolition in 1974 and brought back with a $20 million renovation in 2006, it is the kind of house that earns what it puts on its stage.
What it is putting on this spring is The Who’s Tommy — the North American touring production of the reimagined rock opera Pete Townshend first unleashed as an album in 1969. The story follows Tommy Walker, a boy who retreats into himself after witnessing his father shoot a rival, shutting the world out until a pinball machine starts pulling him back. The original Broadway production won five Tony Awards in 1993. The 2024 Broadway revival earned a Best Revival nomination. This tour has been called “thunderous and thoroughly intoxicating” by the Wall Street Journal — and that feels about right for a 2,963-seat room on Genesee Street.
Collin Matthew Flanagan leads the cast as Tommy Walker, with the production directed by Tony Award winner Des McAnuff — the same director behind the original Broadway run. The show runs 100 minutes with no intermission, so the whole thing lands in one unbroken shot: “Pinball Wizard,” “I’m Free,” “See Me, Feel Me,” “Sensation” — no pause to catch your breath. Content heads-up: the production includes loud music, theatrical haze, strobe and flashing light effects, and gunshot sounds. Recommended for ages 16 and up.
Wednesday’s performance is the second night of a two-night Utica engagement — part of the Broadway Theatre League of Utica’s 2026–2027 Adirondack Bank Season. If you are anywhere in Central New York, the Stanley is worth the trip on the building alone. Add a show this good and it is not a question. Tickets range from $37 to $364, available through Ticketmaster or directly at the Stanley box office by phone at 315-724-4000.
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