Photo by Matthew Murphy

Everybody remembers where they were when they first saw the tragic pictures that shook New York City and the rest of the world on September 11, 2001. Now, thanks to the writing team of Irene Sankoff and David Hein, we can be witness to a story of how a huge group of strangers came together in the face of adversity on that day, and the few days that followed, and shared human connections that remind us of our capacity for good. The musical is based on true events and the very real people of the small town of Gander, Newfoundland - a town which unexpectedly was forced to host 38 planes of passengers, after the US airspace was closed down due to the horrific terrorist attacks. How the population of Gander coped with the mass influx of nearly 7,000 strangers from all over the world (almost doubling the size of the town's population instantly) and the relationships that were forged in the process are the basis for the musical that is as celebratory as it is moving.

'Celebratory' might be a peculiar choice of word to use given the heart-breaking events of 9/11, but the show does indeed have a predominantly positive aura about it. The score is wholesome and encouraging, fuelled by native folk music, and the cast resemble 'normal' people. They perform choreography that you would likely see at a social event in a Canadian bar, as opposed to the perfectionism regularly displayed on a Broadway stage. After all, this is a story about ordinary people in extraordinary circumstances, and that is why we 'normal' people are drawn to them.

As the actors take on multiple roles of Newfoundlanders and travellers, we wholeheartedly accept the scale of the events, despite only a few bodies on the stage. Director Christopher Ashley transports us effortlessly with a minimal use of set pieces and props (and Howell Binkley's clever lighting design) from the inside of a plane, to a school bus, to a school gym-come-refuge and to a local bar in the blink of an eye. It takes a great deal of complicated theatrical genius to allow a production to appear so simple. Kudos to this very talented creative team!

The characters we get to know over the course of 1hour and 40 minutes are as diverse as the corners of the globe from where they all stem - and we see individual arcs played out in abundance: a mother helplessly trying to find out whether her son (an NYC-based fireman) has survived, an innocent Muslim Egyptian coping with instant prejudice and suspicion, two lonely strangers from different countries reaching out for love and a connection with each other, and many more besides. The fact that we aren't just following two protagonists throughout the show, but are following a whole newly created community, is the jewel of this show.

"Welcome to the Rock" is sung in both the opening and closing numbers of Come From Away and you'd be a fool if you didn't let these characters welcome you to the Rock at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre and discover for yourselves what happened when this eclectic mix of plain people and plane people came together.

Click here for tickets to Come From Away for performances through to December 30, 2017 at Broadway's Gerald Schoenfeld Theatre.

- by Tom Millward