It is no secret that Come From Away is one of my favourite musicals ever and the recent release of the amateur performance has seen a plethora of performances both locally and across the country, meaning I get to relive the magic of this show again and enjoy different interpretations. I was particularly looking forward to this one due to the unusual outdoor setting.
For those that have not seen Come From Away is set around 9/11 and tells of the passengers who were attempting to travel into American airspace when it got shut down and instead they were all diverted to Gander. Its themes of kindness and acceptance shine through as we meet ‘plane people’ from across the world including Captain Beverly Bass, the first female captain for American Airlines, Hannah a mother who is desperately trying to reach her firefighter son along with Nick and Diane who meet on the plane along with people from Gander who welcome them with open arms.
The staging is kept deceptively simple on a static set and transitions from the plane to various locations in Gander are demonstrated by ‘chairography’. Director Gemma Matthews made this look seamless although with the amount of transitions needed it is clear that a huge amount of work would have gone into this. I also cannot review the show without mentioning the fact that it was in the open air. This added enormously to the atmosphere, especially as the night drew darker and fitted in well with the fact that Gander is supposed to be rural and a world away New York and looking beyond the stage you could simply see trees. Watching this moving production underneath the stars proved to be a genuinely unique experience and it never felt like a gimmick and instead became one of the productions greatest strengths, making this already uplifting musical feel even more communal and heartfelt.
Performing outdoors does pose its own set of unique challenges, one of the biggest being the sound. The band for Come From Away are often placed on stage and become an integral part of the action in moments like Screech In, however possibly because of these sound challenges the band were placed in a small shed-like structure to the side of the stage. Despite the disappointment of not being able to see them interact DAODS had clearly got the sound balance spot on, not only was the band itself well-balanced with each other and the cast but the sound design by Joe Tomlinson was incredibly clear, especially for an outdoor production. Under the control of MD Paul Berry the 8 piece band sounded incredibly tight, which is especially impressive considering the volume of music, particularly given the show’s almost continuous underscoring.
Lighting was another thing that becomes particularly difficult in an outdoor production, especially in an amateur show that often only have a matter of days to plot an entire show. Lighting design by James Shaw really came to the fore in the latter part of the show and added to the overall atmosphere although sometimes individuals needed to find their light more. In addition the design lighting design could have assisted the audience in picking up which character was singing in the busier songs.
Come From Away is a particularly difficult show from a cast point of view as all of them are required to play multiple roles. Alli Scott Brock played Beverly as well as Anette and the contrast between her characters was particularly well realised She also had a real energy whenever she was the focal point of the story, from her iconic song Me and the Sky through to her as Annette swooning over a pilot. Rebecca Coker Harrison played Hannah and she stood out as someone who consistently delivered full realised characterisation even when the focus was not on her and her journey throughout the show was one of the real emotional highlights. I also particularly enjoyed Meg Walsh as Diana and Liam Winter as Nick. Whilst they were both on the younger side for the characters they were portraying they brought a strong and believable connection to the fledging romance they portrayed on stage
Having seen numerous productions of the show I love to spot particularly unique moments in the show and for me the use of simple movement motifs throughout were among the production’s most distinctive choices. They helped with some of the more stylised moments of the show and provided a pleasing contrast to the more naturalistic moments and was one of the numerous ways the show veered away from simply being a replica of the West End production.
Come From Away is a musical built on the extraordinary kindness show in unimaginable circumstances and DAODS capture this spirit well. Rather than attempt to replicate the West End production beat for beat they find their own identity through subtle creative choices, coupled with the unique atmosphere of an outdoor performance this was a production that served as a fitting reminder of why Cone From Away continues to resonate so deeply with audiences.
Come From Away is running until 25th July at Dartford Park Outdoor Theatre. You can find out more or check out their website here.
If you like this review you might also like my review of The Curious Incident of the Dog In The Night Time by Sedos, Catch Me if You Can by Geoids and We Will Rock You by Cygnet Players.