20 – 31 August
On the face of it this could be somewhat of a bland tale – 38 planes have been diverted to Gander, Newfoundland as the Twin Towers in New York are under attack, doubling the local population at a stroke. Kind residents rise to the occasion and give food and shelter to the nearly 7,000 bewildered passengers and 19 animals who suddenly find themselves miles from anywhere. Five days pass before their planes are allowed back into American airspace and they can proceed on their journeys.
But Come From Away celebrates, in a way that stays just the right side of mawkish, the selflessness that can materialise when humans see an overriding need to help others who, through no fault of their own, need basic help. It does this with a single act of an hour and 40 minutes of non-stop action and music making, with a sizzling ensemble of 12 players who take multiple roles throughout and an eight-piece band that brings all the zest of an Irish cèilidh to the Hippodrome. The show is a carnival for the chorus – all 12 players remain on stage throughout – yes, heroes exist, but only as part of the whole.
Originally conceived by Toronto lawyer and theatre producer Michael Rubinoff, the husband and wife writers/librettists Irene Sankoff and David Hein interviewed original Gander residents and returning passengers on the tenth anniversary of the attacks, adding flesh to the overarching story.
Few left Gander, it seems, without experiencing profound changes to their lives. Love was in the air for Englishman Nick and Texan-born Diane (Daniel Crowder and Kirsty Hoiles); gay couple Kevin and Kevin (Mark Dugdale and Jamal Zulfiqar) found rifts in their relationship, while local teacher and mother Beulah (Amanda Henderson) experienced heart-wrenching empathy for New York mum Hannah (Bree Smith), whose son was missing on fire duty at the towers. Ed (Oliver Jacobson), a local Holocaust survivor, finds the strength to own his Jewish heritage when he meets Rabbi Leivi, who has been re-routed to Gander.
On another level there is unflinching detail in the treatment of Egyptian chef Ali (Jamal Zulfiqar) who is held in suspicion as the only Muslim in the passengers’ midst, while Sara Poyzer as Beverley Bass lets rip in her self-affirming song Me and the Sky about becoming the first female Air Captain for American Airlines. Tallest-man-in-the-room Nicholas Pound cuts a commanding figure as Claude Elliott, mayor of the ‘besieged’ town, while Amanda Henderson as Beulah Davis is the epitome of a no-nonsense, get-on-with-it school teacher with new responsibilities to grapple with.
On Beowulf Boritt’s simple but effective weather-boarded backdrop set, lit to great effect by Howell Binkley’s design, we experience the claustrophobia of the passengers as they are held on board for 28 hours, and later the stark beauty of the island off the Atlantic coast of North America. With the use of nothing except a plethora of wooden-backed chairs, scenes are rapidly changed from aircraft interiors to school halls and bars where the locals entertain their unexpected guests, climaxing in a no-holes barred hootenanny at which the visitors are invited to become honorary Newfoundlanders. It was party time at the Hippodrome – the audience rose as one to roar approval for this (perhaps much-needed and timely) tale of kindness and inclusion.
★★★★☆ Simon Bishop, 21 August, 2024
Photo credit: Craig Sugden
