Review | An apotheosis of suffering: Poignant ‘Come From Away’ is an impetus to repair the Wells
With the 9/11 terror attacks, flights to the U.S. were diverted, many to Canada. "Come From Away," now being performed by Virginia Stage Company, tells the story of that time on the ground at Gander, Newfoundland, which welcomed nearly 7,000 people. (Courtesy/J. Stubbs Photography)“We had to drain the sky.”
That remark comes from a book by Laurence Maslon incorporating the background, libretto, music and lyrics of “Come From Away,” the musical by Canadian couple Irene Sankoff and David Hein.
“Drain the sky.” That’s what the air controllers at Gander International Airport in Newfoundland, Canada, were told to do with their share (38 flights) of the 238 incoming international flights diverted from the U.S. East Coast on 9/11. Any of those flights could have been as deadly as the four that struck New York City, the Pentagon and — abortively — a field in Pennsylvania, killing nearly 3,000, on that terrible day 25 years ago. Until the full nature of the attack was understood, all flights to (and within) the States had to be grounded.
To mount this rare Canadian Broadway hit at Norfolk’s Wells Theatre, the Virginia Stage Company had to do some major literal draining of its beloved home — flooded not once but twice by recent storms.
But wasn’t the same show performed relatively recently at Norfolk’s Chrysler Hall, on a Nederlander Broadway tour? (This critic’s positive review of that version ran on March 2, 2023, in this paper.)
Yes, but the artistic director of Virginia Stage Company, Tom Quaintance — who also directed the version now playing at the Wells — clearly thought it worthwhile to do the show to mark the 25th anniversary.
That show also helps us reconsider its pertinence to American affairs in the world today: undeniable without even a syllable changed in its script — immunity to the ravages of time being, after all, an unmistakable sign of an artwork’s true worth.
Quaintance, of course, did not know he’d be battling Norfolk’s dangerous proclivity to flood — twice. Costly repairs to the Wells remain to be done. But the show must and will go on, giving our region’s residents new reasons to appreciate their architectural, cultural and civic heritage.
Doing this production likewise offers an opportunity to compare the virtues of a regional theater (such as the VSC, a member “by letter of agreement” of the League of Resident Theatres), with those of a Nederlander Broadway series touring show. Membership in the league is based on strict rules of conduct, including, as VSC Managing Director Jeff Ryder explained to me, the hiring of at least five actors in the Actors’ Equity Association union (plus two Equity stage managers) for each VSC show of a certain-size cast. (Other backstage personnel at Virginia Stage sometimes belong to different unions, based on their particular stagecraft.)
The Equity members for “Come From Away” were, not surprisingly, among the acting standouts of the show I attended, including Marika Aubrey as Capt. Beverley Bass, Annette and others; Travis Murad Leland (as Kevin J., Ali and others); Donovan E. Mitchell (Bob, Muhumuza and others); Elliott Scott Smith (Garth, Kevin T. and others); and local Equity standout Scott Wichmann (a chief petty officer in the Navy Reserve, when he’s not treading local boards). A true fixture of the local scene, Wichmann plays all of Newfoundland’s many mayors along with an antsy passenger named Claude on one of the grounded-in-Gander flights.
The cast of "Come From Away." Not long before the show opened, two episodes of flooding in late August seriously damaged the theater, the historic Wells. (Courtesy/J. Stubbs Photography)That’s the way this fast-moving theatrical treadmill works, with a cast of 15 playing everyone: Canadians, Americans, one Egyptian (regarded by his fellow passengers with trepidation, once they learn what’s been happening in the U.S.), Brits, Germans and assorted other nationalities. The plot focuses somewhat on Bass’ particular flight grounded at Gander. Following the design of the show (where actors play rapidly changing Newfoundland locals as well as rapidly changing air travelers) takes commitment and concentration from an audience, but it was readily granted at the Wells, especially on this first opening night since the floods. Quaintance had spoken but one word of welcome in his traditional curtain speech of greeting before the audience leapt to its feet in appreciation of the challenges he and all have been facing.
For Nederlander’s Broadway touring productions, the costumes, sets and actors are generally brought in by buses, trucks or both, lending such companies the sobriquet of “bus and truck companies.”
The 2023 Chrysler Hall version of “Come From Away” was well performed, but it cannot compare with the VSC’s fully “handmade” version. The greater intimacy of the Wells is, of course, a big factor, but so is the mix of talents from Batten University, Norfolk State and, for this show, especially Christopher Newport University, with local and imported ones. Equity-level actors, usually from Los Angeles or New York, also have the opportunity to work in a gem of a Beaux Arts theater.
Both versions of the show require remarkable rigor, vigor and seamless switching of roles and costumes by the actors — playing, as they do, some of those nearly 7,000 people who descended on Gander and its population of under 10,000. But in our local regional theater version, the angst of the air travelers is more palpable, as is their eventual joy at survival. The funereal air finally gives way to an Irish-style celebratory gathering called a céilí. (The onstage band is terrific throughout, with some actors such as Richmonder Patrick Rooney both acting and playing music.)
Yes, it helps to have seen local actors such as John Cauthen (playing a Brit passenger and, of course, also a Newfoundlander), Wichmann, Wallis Herst and ShaaNi Dent many times before, thus offering chances for comparison. Dent, by the way, plays both a possibly bereaved mother of a 9/11 NYC victim (she tries in vain to communicate with her son by phone) and a years-younger Canadian woman. Yes, it’s great to see our local talents get well employed locally.
Simply stated, the regional model has virtues inherent in its intimacy, more familiar casts, and mix of local and imported talent.
The horrors of 9/11 were on such a grand scale that our theater so recently flooded would seem unable to hold them. But that’s the genius of this play. In both versions it’s the excruciating uncertainty afflicting the characters that so moves us. And it’s the profound kindness of strangers that comes across as its only possible antidote.
A final thought might be given to the deterioration in political relations between the U.S. and Canada just since this play was written. Then-Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, writing a foreword to Maslon’s book in 2018, said: “ ‘Come From Away’ is a Canadian musical, written by Canadians, about Canadians. It brought Canadian creativity to Broadway and showcased the Canadian spirit of compassion, resourcefulness and generosity.”
Canadians helped the U.S. enormously (and vice versa, of course), during World Wars I and II, and on 9/11 issued those orders to “drain the sky” of planes at their own peril too, hosting 33,000 passengers all told, from hundreds of diverted flights. From 2001 to 2014, Canada sent more than 40,000 service members to Afghanistan as part of a U.S.-led coalition’s war on terrorism; 158 Canadians were killed, thousands wounded.
As for the Wells Theatre: If readers wish to help fix its serious water damage, Virginia Stage Company is eager to accept donations for that. The VSC has also offered 200 free tickets for local first responders to see the show. Contact the theater for more information.
Page Laws is dean emerita of the Nusbaum Honors College at Norfolk State University.
If you go
When: 2 and 7:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Sundays, through Sept. 20
Where: The Wells Theatre, 108 E. Tazewell St., Norfolk
Tickets: $15 to $68
