Broadway "Come From Away" New York Shows | The Odyssey Online
Start writing a post
Entertainment

Broadway's ​'Come From Away' Recounts 9/11 From a new perspective

"On 9/11, the world stopped. On 9/12, their stories moved us all."

53
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b3/Come_From_Away_on_Broadway%2C_January_22%2C_2017_%2835119537240%29.jpg
Wikimedia

At the time of the historic 9/11 terrorist attack, I was just short of two years old. Having said that, my recollection of the event and any sort of media coverage it received is nearly nonexistent, and all I have from September 11th, 2001 are stories that have been told by others. While the news stations blared for weeks about the occurrence of something so dreadful, a lot of secondary pieces (though equally as important) of information within the myriad of details surrounding 9/11 were not heavily recognized in the media following the attack.

Recently, I was lucky enough to have seen the Broadway musical "Come From Away," which recounts the experiences of 7,000 "plane people" who happened to have been on flights within close proximity to New York City on September 11th, 2001. In a state of utter confusion and panic, pilots flying all around the world knew they needed to avoid the New York area at all costs. For their own safety, flights were redirected away from New York and towards Gander, Newfoundland, while America was left petrified after two planes had crashed into the World Trade Center just days before. These "plane people," as they were referred through in the musical, came from all different walks of life and areas of the earth. They gathered in Gander and remained there for five days. The majority of these days were spent worrying about their loved ones and if they were safe from the terrorist attack. However, the time in Gander became more of an experience to remember as days went on.

Performed by a cast of 12 characters, these actors were to represent 7,000 citizens who were more or less trapped in a foreign country where many of them knew no one. Each character played multiple very strong personas, each of which emerged within different plotlines throughout the performance. The interchangeable storylines helped keep the audience on their toes and undoubtedly sparked my interest in this sidebar of such a memorable event in history.

The characters acted in such a way that their performance brought about a sense of reality across the theatre, as it could have been any of us stranded in Gander had the circumstances been different. The authentic casting contributed to the understanding of the seriousness of this time period in history, for it seemed as though nearly everyone was impacted in some shape or form. The most emotionally stirring plot by far displayed the emotions of a helpless mother of a New York City firefighter, as her days of worrying only brought her to the news that her son had died within the blaze of the World Trade Center.

The narrative is both sung and spoken, but as the show progresses, the story of 9/11 is clearly portrayed in an entirely different approach than we've ever seen in entertainment before: cheerfully. The cast sings fun and happy-go-lucky style songs and tells a completely different side of a story which Americans collectively remember as horrifying. After experiencing everything "Come From Away" offers its audience (which, to be fair, tested a lot of my emotions) I feel more informed about a crisis that will be prevalent in our telling of American history for years to come.

Report this Content
This article has not been reviewed by Odyssey HQ and solely reflects the ideas and opinions of the creator.
ross geller
YouTube

As college students, we are all familiar with the horror show that is course registration week. Whether you are an incoming freshman or selecting classes for your last semester, I am certain that you can relate to how traumatic this can be.

1. When course schedules are released and you have a conflict between two required classes.

Bonus points if it is more than two.

Keep Reading...Show less
Student Life

12 Things I Learned my Freshmen Year of College

When your capability of "adulting" is put to the test

1677
friends

Whether you're commuting or dorming, your first year of college is a huge adjustment. The transition from living with parents to being on my own was an experience I couldn't have even imagined- both a good and a bad thing. Here's a personal archive of a few of the things I learned after going away for the first time.

Keep Reading...Show less
Featured

Economic Benefits of Higher Wages

Nobody deserves to be living in poverty.

301117
Illistrated image of people crowded with banners to support a cause
StableDiffusion

Raising the minimum wage to a livable wage would not only benefit workers and their families, it would also have positive impacts on the economy and society. Studies have shown that by increasing the minimum wage, poverty and inequality can be reduced by enabling workers to meet their basic needs and reducing income disparities.

I come from a low-income family. A family, like many others in the United States, which has lived paycheck to paycheck. My family and other families in my community have been trying to make ends meet by living on the minimum wage. We are proof that it doesn't work.

Keep Reading...Show less
blank paper
Allena Tapia

As an English Major in college, I have a lot of writing and especially creative writing pieces that I work on throughout the semester and sometimes, I'll find it hard to get the motivation to type a few pages and the thought process that goes behind it. These are eleven thoughts that I have as a writer while writing my stories.

Keep Reading...Show less
April Ludgate

Every college student knows and understands the struggle of forcing themselves to continue to care about school. Between the piles of homework, the hours of studying and the painfully long lectures, the desire to dropout is something that is constantly weighing on each and every one of us, but the glimmer of hope at the end of the tunnel helps to keep us motivated. While we are somehow managing to stay enrolled and (semi) alert, that does not mean that our inner-demons aren't telling us otherwise, and who is better to explain inner-demons than the beloved April Ludgate herself? Because of her dark-spirit and lack of filter, April has successfully been able to describe the emotional roller-coaster that is college on at least 13 different occasions and here they are.

Keep Reading...Show less

Subscribe to Our Newsletter

Facebook Comments