The Marriott Theatre’s Come From Away is Filled with Goodness and Altogether Wonderful
So here I am reviewing the Marriott Theatre’s production of the Newfoundland classic, Come From Away, written by the Canadian husband-and-wife duo Irene Sankoff and David Hein, and I am not impartial, not even close. I’m not unbiased, and I don’t want to be. I can offer no unsentimental theater criticism when it comes to this brief, dreamy, kind Canadian musical delight. I love it.
I love Come From Away. I just do. It’s as simple as that. And the Marriott Theatre’s production is as good as any I’ve seen, as good as it gets.
This should come as no surprise because the show’s filled with goodness. It brings out the best in us. It’s wonderful. It’s a 20% happiness boost, at least, in a time when we could all use it.
I suppose it’s a weak spot, or maybe it’s a little piece of the best part of me, but when I fall in love with a show, I fall hard and forever. Tell me you’re “kinda over Hadestown”, and I’ll wonder who broke your heart. Say Ted Lasso is “overly sweet”, and I’ll listen, smile, and quietly question why you hate fun. Tell me Field of Dreams is “too sentimental”, and, well, I’ll just hope you’re ok. When it comes down to it, I’m just incapable of seeing a show so inherently filled with goodness and altogether wonderful as anything but that. And thank goodness, with this production I don’t need to.
So that’s the size of it (and the title of the review): The Marriott’s Come From Away is filled with goodness and altogether wonderful.
There’s nothing about this show not to like. The premise is that a community of regular folks straight outta the Tim Hortons in Gander, Newfoundland, come together to care for “38 Planes” full of scared, stranded passengers from around the world forced to land on their island in the wake of the terrorist attacks on 9/11. Along the way, they dance, sing, laugh, cry, and tell an amazing story about kindness and generosity. And it works. Come From Away hits every note. Every moment works. Even parts that feel a little clunky are instantly forgiven. It’s about regular people doing extraordinary things for each other, and regular people are clunky, so I’m just happy to chalk up the clunk as part of the charm.
I think you should see it. We all should. And here’s why…
Maybe you love good theater. Yep, this is good theater.
The Marriott’s Theatre-in-the-round, with the whirling turntable stage, suits the production to perfection, and Jessica Fisch uses the space and her ensemble of talented actors to extraordinary effect. Fisch, Choreographer Katie Spelman, Scenic Designer Scott Penner, and Costume Designer Jessica Pabst pull off what appears to be a seamless feat of wonder. With actors playing multiple roles with multiple accents as Newfoundlanders and travelers from around the world, with mid-scene costume changes and characters and set pieces coming on and off stage down the aisles, with the better part of two hours of dialogue and singing and dancing with no breaks and no intermission, Come From Away is an immersive theater experience, to say the least. I can’t imagine a better show for the space. The setup brings us straight into Gander. It feels big and fun but also close and intimate, and in a very real sense it goes on all around us.
Maybe you love good music. Yep, not a bad song in the bunch.
With Music Direction by Ryan T. Nelson, Conductor Cecilia Villacres and the band are outstanding. Featuring Carmen Ableson on violin, Sean McNeely on flute and whistles, and José Guzman, Dave Saenger, and Trevor Jones on guitars, Andy Wilmoth and Tom Hipskind on drums and global percussion, and Villacres and Kailey Rockewell on keys, the band plays the score of Newfoundland’s greatest Canadian-Americana hits non-stop, straight through, from the first drum beats that announce the town and story to the joyful Newfoundland traditional folk, Celtic-infused fiddle tune that plays the cast off stage and the audience out of the theater. And it’s infectious. I would have sat and listened to them for another hour. In my heart, they’re still playing away now.
Maybe you love good acting. Again, yep.
The Come From Away cast is the definition of a true ensemble: No Stars, All Stars. Justin Albinder, Sarah Bockel, Matt Crowle, Denise Devlin, Devin DeSantis, Alex Goodrich, Sharriese Hamilton, Madison Kauffman, Heidi Kettenring, Michael Earvin Martin, Jonathan Shaboo, and Lexie Dorsett Sharp flow from moment to moment, song to song, in and out of characters and dialects, up and down from emotional highs and lows, never slowing, never stopping. “I’m an islander! I am an islander!” they sing together, and suddenly we all are. As individual performances, they’re extraordinary. Together, they’re genius.
Maybe you’re looking for a way to remember 9/11 on the 25th anniversary. You want to remember it, maybe teach your kids what that day was like with a show that acknowledges the tragedy but focuses on the best parts of human nature, people coming together to take care of each other. Come From Away is just about the perfect way to do that.
“You are here, at the start of a moment, on the edge of the world, where the river meets the sea…” the cast sings at the beginning and the end of the show. As I watched for what I’m sure won’t be the last time, I was reminded of how much has happened in these past 25 years, how the world has changed, how some things have gotten better, and a whole lotta other things, not so much. But Come From Away serves as a reminder of what once was, what might have been, and what still could be filled with goodness and altogether wonderful.
And now more than ever, we need that.
