Come From Away, which is a musical by Irene Sankoff and David Hein, is currently embarking on a UK and Ireland tour after an acclaimed run in London's West End. As the festive season approaches, the message of the importance of community and looking after each other in this life-affirming and joyous musical is more prominent than ever.
Come From Away tells the remarkable, true story of how 7,000 passengers were welcomed to the town of Gander for five days after planes being diverted there in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks. Sankoff and Hein have created a story that respects and honours the incredible stories of the small town residents of Newfoundland who welcomed the passengers with open arms and opened their homes, selflessly uprooting their normality to look after these people.
This musical is very much an ensemble piece, with the 12-piece cast all working tirelessly throughout, multi roling a range of different characters and weaving together the individual narratives of both the distressed and emotional passengers, and the warm yet overwhelmed residents of Gander. It's hard to give a standout performance when each member of the cast bares their soul on the stage in this musical, never stopping to gather themselves as they seamlessly change character with just a subtle costume change or a change of accent. Bree Smith gives an emotionally charged performance as Hannah, a parent desperate to hear off her firefighter son. Daniel Crowder and Kirsty Hoiles are charming and provide the joyous moments of finding the positives out of a hard situation. Oliver Jacobson as Oz (local police officer), Dale Mathurin as Bob, Natasha J. Barnes as local news reporter Janice and Amanda Henderson all bring the light-hearted moments of the show to life with great comedic timing and a real warmth to their characters.
Sara Poyzer gives a passionate performance as Beverley Bass, one of the pilots, particularly with her rendition of Me and The Sky. Mark Dugdale and Jamal Zulfiqar are the perfect duo as partners who have different outlooks on the situation that they are in and bring real heart to this piece. Rosie Glossop and Nicholas Pound compliment the cast wonderfully, with Glossop being a kind-hearted spirit and Pound showing gusto in his role as the Mayor of Gander.
Christopher Ashley's direction maintains the momentum and pace of this incredible piece, never once faltering as the audience are completely immersed and whisked away in the journey. Kelly Divine's musical staging ensures that the story flows well without the use of props and with Beowulf Boritt's simple, yet striking set design, the focus is majorly at the heart of the storytelling through the performance, which is necessary for a piece as poignant as Come From Away.
Howell Binkley's lighting design perfectly captures the emotions of the piece, with warm tones for the bar scenes in which the sense of community is greatly felt, to the blue tones in moments of sadness or loneliness.
Sankoff and Hein's folk-driven score is really what sets this piece apart, with its outstanding ability to tell the story through song. With the band being present on the stage throughout and the incredible performances from the cast, particularly in the moments of group harmonies, the music serves as the community within this piece of theatre. Each song serves its purpose and reminds one of the remarkable situation that the townsfolk of Gander and the stranded passengers found themselves in back in September 2001.
From the very first note to the final bow, Come From Away serves as a prominent reminder of the importance of kindness and looking out for one another. Joyous, emotive and incredible life-affirming, Come From Away is the perfect musical for this festive period.
Come From Away runs at The Lowry until 5th January, where it concludes its UK and Ireland run before transferring over to Italy.
★★★★★ (5*)
Gifted tickets in return for an honest review | Photography by The Lowry
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