"Come From Away" is a musical currently running at the Schoenfeld Theatre on Broadway and touring around the country. The musical is based on the true story of 7,000 plane passengers stranded on an island called Newfoundland when the 9/11 terrorist attack occurred. An ensemble of 12 explores many perspectives of the event through the eyes of the townspeople, who miraculously banded together to feed, clothe, and shelter the visitors, and the plane people or the "come-from-aways" and their experiences.
As an acting major and a big musical theatre junkie, listening to cast albums of new musicals is something that I do quite frequently. One random day at the beginning of my freshman year, I was cleaning my dorm room and I decided to listen to "Come From Away," a musical that I had previously seen perform a number at the Tony Awards. I had never really been interested in it before, but I decided to give it a shot. I was immediately captured by the music and the incredible story. My love for this musical continued to grow throughout the year. Anyone who would lend me the AUX chord was also introduced to this incredible piece of art.
When I got home for the summer, my mom had mentioned that she heard the show was coming to the Fabulous Fox Theatre in St. Louis. She was slightly interested, so I begged her to get tickets. Tonight, I finally saw the show that has captured my heart for almost a year now and it was absolutely incredible. There were so many things to be impressed by technically, stylistically, and more than anything the show was just so much fun!
Driving up to the theatre and I'm getting excited!!!
One of the most challenging parts of this musical to pull off is the fact that every performer plays at least three or more roles and has to switch between them very rapidly, including switching accents. I was blown away by everyone's adaptability. I was also very taken by the directorial interpretation of the variety of locations through the use of staging and the turntable. The set was very minimal but everything was used so well. Megan McGinnis, James Earl Jones II, and Becky Gulsvig all took my breath away (as did everyone but they were my stand-outs for sure).
9/11 was an event that impacted everyone in more ways than one. This musical reopens the conversation about this horrific event and sheds a light on the amazing acts of kindness that broke through the unending darkness of that time, while not shying away from letting us remember the pain that our country felt. It allows us to look back and see what has changed...and what hasn't.
Even if you are not a person who generally enjoys musicals, I would still nudge you to go see this show. The music has a lot of Irish-folk influences which makes it very unique and super fun. I think it has been flying under the radar for too long but it is finally being led out of the darkness. What a way to kick off my summer!
