The recent revival of the classic rock opera “The Who’s Tommy” has secured a nomination for Best Revival of a Musical at the Tony Awards. This isn’t the show’s first time in the Tony spotlight; the original 1993 production won five Tony Awards, including Best Direction and Best Original Score for Pete Townshend.
Currently in the electrifying and rather disturbing role of “The Acid Queen” is actress Christina Sajous. The gifted thespian is no stranger to the entertainment business, with credits including playing Mia in Starz’s “Run the World” and appearances in “Chicago Med” and “Blue Bloods,” to name a few. Her hefty theater credits include “SpongeBob SquarePants” (Sandy Cheeks); “Spider-Man: Turn Off the Dark” (Arachne); “American Idiot” (Extraordinary Girl); “Baby It’s You!” (Shirley); and “Tupac Shakur’s: Holler If Ya Hear Me.” She also flexed her directorial muscle by helming the director’s chair for the national tour of “R.E.S.P.E.C.T: Celebration of Aretha Franklin.”
Portraying the complex character of the Acid Queen in the Tony-nominated revival of the 1969 rock concept album, Sajous adds just the right touch of chilling intensity to the story of Tommy Walker. After witnessing his father shoot a rival, Tommy becomes lost in his own world, rendered speechless, and spending his days fixated on his reflection until he uncovers his unexpected talent as a pinball wizard.
Here’s what Sajous (CS) had to say about stepping into one of the most intricate roles on Broadway: the legendary “Acid Queen.”
Amsterdam News: What are your thoughts about who the “Acid Queen” is? What a powerful character, but I confess, I could not look away.
CS: The Gypsy, who is a self-proclaimed “Acid Queen,” attempts to heal a young Tommy considered to be “deaf, dumb, and blind” by an isolating trauma response to witnessing a murder. She tries to cure him with sex and drugs because that is the world that encompasses her existence of being a sex worker addicted to drugs. In her mind, drugs make you free…but in reality, like Tommy, she is also “deaf, dumb, and blind”—stuck inside her own isolating trauma controlled by narcotics.
AmNews: Do you recall the first time you heard the music from “Tommy”? I do. It was like my feet were plastered and my ears felt like they were stretching. Needless to say, like millions of fans, I loved it. I do love it.
CS: Yes, I remember listening to the whole album on vinyl, and hearing the crackling of the record that made it sound archaic. However, the subject matter, the music, and lyrics did not feel archaic but relevant and present. I could feel my heart beating to the rhythm of the emotional journey of this story.
AmNews: What are your thoughts on the story and this current production?CS: In this post-pandemic world, we have been forced to look in the mirror and truly face ourselves—our past, our present, and our future. I believe your breaking point is your making point, and the breakthrough starts by listening, seeing, and feeling the self within. The moment we allow ourselves to be touched by the power within, that is when true healin