Broadway Review: Come From Away

Broadway+Review%3A+Come+From+Away

   Come From Away is a 2013 Canadian musical that went to broadway in 2017, about the week following 9/11 when 38 planes landed unexpectedly in Gander, a small town in Newfoundland, Canada. On Sunday, January 16th, I saw Come From Away at the Orpheum Theatre, so you’ll get more of my opinion on this show.

 

Plot

   On September 11th, 2001, the citizens of Gander, Newfoundland, welcomed the 7,000 passengers of the 38 planes with open arms. Some characters include Captain Beverly, the pilot of one of the planes; Diane and Nick, Diane being from Texas, and Nick from England, who met on the plane, and fall in love; Hannah, whose son was one of the firefighters in New York, and becomes friends with Beulah Davis after she comforts her; Bonnie, the manager of the animal shelter who helps the animals on the planes; Kevin J and Kevin T, a gay couple from Los Angeles, and Ali, a Muslim man who, after the plane crashes, everyone is suspicious about just because of his religion.

Music

   The music in this show reminded me a lot of Hamilton, because after the songs would end, before the audience is given a chance to applaud, they start talking again, and it would go a bit fast.

 

   The music, for example, songs like Welcome to The Rock, Heave Away, and Screech In, give the same feeling as Irish music, plus their accents are Irish.

 

   The music is my favorite part about the show, ranging from emotional songs like Prayer, I Am Here, and Me and The Sky, to upbeat energetic ones like Welcome to The Rock and Screech In.

Cast

 

Before you get confused on who “others” is, they had around 12 people play multiple characters each, some being unnamed, so that means they would switch, for example, Jenn Colella from playing Captain Beverly to Annette without costume changes or anything.

 

Mayor Claude Elliott and others played by Joel Hatch

 

Annette, Captain Beverly Bass, and others played by Jenn Colella

 

Doug, Nick Marson, and others played by Lee MacDougall

 

Diane Gray and others played by Sharon Wheatley 

 

Garth, Kevin Tuerff, and others played by Chad Kimball

 

Ali, Kevin Jung, and others played by Caesar Samayoa

 

Hannah O’Rourke and others played by Q. Smith

 

Beulah Davis and others Astrid Van Wieren

Beverly Bass

   Beverly Bass was the captain of one of the ships that landed in Gander, and was the first female captain of American Airlines. Her song, Me and The Sky, was one of the most amazing songs in the show, in my opinion. She shares the same opinion, as she has seen the show 158 times, no joke.

Awards:

Come From Away has been nominated for 34 awards and won 19 of them. If you think that’s a lot, it shows how great this musical is. Since there’s so many nominations, I’ll only show the wins.

 

2017 Helen Hayes Awards for the Original Washington DC Production:

  • Outstanding Musical
  • Outstanding Direction of a Musical for Christopher Ashley
  • Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Musical for Jenn Colella
  • Outstanding Ensemble in a Musical

 

2017 Tonys for the Original Broadway Cast (OBC):

  • Best Direction of a Musical for Christopher Ashley

 

2017 Drama Desks for the OBC:

  • Outstanding Musical
  • Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical for Jenn Colella 
  • Outstanding Book of a Musical for Irene Sankoff and David Hein

 

2017 Outer Critics Circles for OBC:

  • Outstanding Book of a Musical for Irene Sankoff and David Hein
  • Outstanding Director of a Musical for Christopher Ashley
  • Outstanding Featured Actress in a Musical for Jenn Colella
  • Outstanding Sound Design of a Musical for Gareth Owen

 

2019 Laurence Oliviers for Original West End Production:

  • Best New Musical
  • Outstanding Achievement in Music for David Hein, Irene Sankoff, Ian Eisendrath, August Eriksmoen, Alan Berry, and the band
  • Best Sound Design for Gareth Owen
  • Best Theatre Choreographer for Kelly Devine

 

2020 Critics’ Circle Theatre Awards:

  • Best Musical

 

2020 Casting Directors’ Guild Awards:

  • Best Casting in Musical Theatre for Pippa Ailion, Natalie Gallacher, and Katherine Skene

 

As for me, I give this show a 9/10. I was a bit confused on the plot at first, and the actors switching characters, but the music is what drew me in, and seeing it in person at Orpheum made it even better. (By the way, the Orpheum Theatre is one of the most beautiful places I’ve been to) If you have Apple TV+, the pro-shot is available there.