Come From Away, Theatre Royal, Plymouth *****
I admit I have never heard of Gander before this week. It is a remote town of about 10,000 people on the Canadian island of New Foundland. But I sure would like to visit it now.
The musical Come From Away takes us there, shining a spotlight on the people of Gander and its neighbours and how they stepped up in the wake of one of the most horrendous days in living memory.
It is based on real stories as scores of planes were diverted to New Foundland in the 9/11 terror attacks and American airspace was shut down. The small community ended up taking in and caring for 7,000 people for five days.
When I surmised the plot to family one reaction was ' that must be a barrel of laughs' but this, in fact, is a story of positivity, hope, kindness and is tremendously uplifting.
It reminds us of the goodness in the world and that is so welcome with the news currently dominating our headlines.
Unusually it has no interval but there is no danger of anything dragging here. It motors along with marvellous energy. It is compelling and the lack of an interval only adds to the building momentum, helping amplify the situation we find ourselves reliving.
The cast of twelve are excellent and it would be impossible to just mention one. They unify and collaborate to create this great piece. Each actor takes on many characters changing accents, costumes and performances are so incredible I thought there were even more people on the stage to begin with.
They all have a remarkable story of ordinary people to tell and they tell us it with absolute conviction. There is plenty of humour but at no point do we feel remote from the reality and devastation caused by that moment in time.
The songs of Irene Sankoff and David Hein add to the story and rather than be catchy numbers they elevate the plot created by the couple. It is easy to see why it has won so many accolades with four Olivier Awards including Best New Musical in London and the Tony Award for Best Direction of a Musical on Broadway.
Along with the superb cast the band's fantastic prowess cannot be ignored. They take to the stage in key moments and when usually we may be shuffling out of the theatre as the band plays on, here these guys provide an epic finale/encore to showcase their skills one last time and blow our socks off.
It is a finale embodiment of the joy and positivity of this show. I'll accept this may not resonate so deeply with those who were not alive in 2001 but for those of us who saw the world change that fateful day this powerfully and smartly captures a moment in our time.
Amazing story, amazing cast, amazing music, amazing night. Amazing!
Come From Away is on at Plymouth's Theatre Royal until Saturday, April 13.
