'Come From Away' is, quite literally, a musical that seems to have come from away. When the air disasters and terrorist action that will forever be known as 9/11 were taking place, all other aircraft in the sky had to be diverted and sent elsewhere until it was safe to fly again and US airspace open. It is something that one until just now, I simply did not consider. This musical tells the story of the passengers of one such diverted aeroplane which was sent to a small town in Newfoundland , and their incredible welcome and reception by the townsfolk. Make no mistake, this is not a fantasy or fable, but absolutely real. All the characters portrayed on stage are real, and all the things which happen on stage, happened to their real counterparts during the long days during and following 9/11. Admittedly, some of the characters are amalgams of two or more people in real life, and a little theatrical magic does the rest, but this is a documentary of a small town community coming together and showing solidarity and support, with the very best the human spirit has to offer without thought of self, and, as such, is truly heartwarming in a way that a fantasy story could never be.
Book, music and lyrics are by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, and their show is a winning formula of upbeat Irish-based folk music, heart-rending ballads, and a condensed version of the unlikely events that took place in Gander, Newfoundland. It tells of the bonds and friendships made, of a community coming together to help their fellow humans (and animals!), and of the resilience of those facing the unknown. It is far from maudlin however, as there is also some excellently placed humour within the score too, making this the perfect mix and a true rollercoaster ride of the emotions. The script also cleverly probes ideas of and reactions to race, sexuality, gender, and religion... things which undoubtedly came from both a reaction to knowing who the terrorists were and being housed with hundreds of other unknown and multifarious passengers of all ages, genders, nationalities etc.
The musical is a fully ensemble production. There are just 12 actors / actresses but somehow it felt like more, since they are all tasked into multi-rolling; yet the character switches are not contrived, and feel totally natural, with each performer switching seamlessly with just a change of body language, hat, or accent. The band, placed mostly at the stage's edges, also gets involved a couple of times too, and under the musical direction of Andrew Corcoran, it is immersive but not intrusive and sounded superb.
Directed by Christopher Ashley, this is a truly wonderful musical. The 12 cast simply could not put a foot wrong the whole evening, and despite it having a running time of 100 minutes without interval, it did not feel long and I could easily have stayed for more!
I cannot end without crediting these 12 superb ensemble performers, all of whom gave their hearts and souls to this (hi)story, and the long standing ovation at the end of the performance, tells just how much we appreciated their telling of it. Natasha J. Barnes, Daniel Crowder, Mark Dugdale, Rosie Glossop, Amanda Henderson, Kirtsy Hoiles, Oliver Jacobson, Dale Mathurin, Nicholas Pound, Sara Poyzer, Bree Smith, and Jamal Zulfiqar.
Reviewer - Matthew Dougall
on - 30.4.24
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