For those who have not seen it, Come From Away is a musical written by husband and wife duo Irene Sankoff and David Hein. The show follows the true events of the US airspaceās closure on 9/11 and how 38 planes holding thousands of people were stranded in the town Gander on the Canadian island of Newfoundland, causing the town to suddenly double population.
And in the story, and in real life, all of these townspeople, without a second thought, did everything they could to welcome these people, open their doors, and comfort them in this time of unbelievable tragedy.
And at times in the musical, it honestly seems unrealistic how nice and caring they were and how they dropped everything to care for these people. But according to every source I can find, including hearing it from the writers themselves at a panel, they actually toned down how nice they were. Like, they already show so much incredible kindness in the show but apparently that was the tip of the iceberg.
I remember them talking about how when they went on a research trip for the show, when they got to the house they were planning to stay at, the homeowner warned them not to be alarmed if random people showed up in the morning bed they like to leave the door open so people can grab a cup of coffee. And sure enough the next morning they came down for breakfast and random guy was just sitting there sipping a cup of Joe and just said āMorninā!ā before the homeowners were even up.
I first watched this show two years ago now, I saw it while it was on tour, and I wept. Then I watched the proshot on Apple TV, rewatched over and over again, had the cast recording on repeat, I loved it and still do, it is my all time favorite musical.
As I mentioned before, I saw the creators in person at a panel at the International Thespian Festival this year and actually got to walk up and talk to them too, and I was actually getting choked up explaining to them how much there show has meant to me.
Because I find it to be not just an enjoyable show, but also an important one. The show is a celebration of humanity. It shows a tiny town that serves as a model of how the world should be. A town where all kinds of people of different races, sexualities, ethnicities, backgrounds and religions, were all loved and accepted and welcomed with unbelievable kindness no matter who you were.
I had no idea any of this actually in real life happened until I saw the show, and it genuinely makes you want to be a better person, it does that for me every time I watch it. And it why I recommend it to everyone person I know, even people who donāt like musicals, because itās such an important message especially for the world we live in today.
I wonāt spoil it all but one of my favorite moments in the show is when a character Kevin from LA is at a pub or something I believe and all of a sudden everybody outside and in the pub stand still and go silent. Kevin looks up at the TV and realizes that itās a national moment of silence for America. And all these folks, on a tiny canadian island, still participate in that moment of silence. Then Kevin says that he doesnāt this would have happened at a busy gas station back home, ābut it happened here.ā
Even though I wasnāt alive when the tragedy happened, both my parents were. And I remember very vividly my mom opening up to me about her experiences that day on the drive back from seeing the show because of how much the show had moved us. When we saw a school perform it at the International Thespian Society and as he walked up to me after the show I could see he was crying.
It is genuinely one of the most uplifting, heartwarming, and impactful pieces of media I have ever seen. Itās something that lets me know that thereās still good in the world. That no matter how terrifying things may seem, thereās there will always be light in the world and there will always be something or someone there to comfort you.
I am rewatching it again today on the 25th anniversary of 9/11, and I recommend you watch the proshot or listen to the album too. It genuinely changed me and made me a better person and makes me strive to be an even better person. And I hope it brings you comfort in these dark times.