A spectacular musical proshot, Come From Away is the amazing real-life story of what happened in a small town that accepted 38 airplanes full of people while the airspace was closed after 9/11.
I absolutely love that we have proshots of musicals now. So many of us cannot get to the theater as often as we want or don’t have the opportunity and finances to fund the habit, so being able to watch a show from the comfort of your living room is priceless. And for people like me, it is also soul filling in much the same way listening to music can be.
Come From Away is a stage musical set around the tragedy of 9/11 and what happened when 7,000 stranded plane people landed in the small town of Gander, Newfoundland after the U.S. airspace was suddenly closed. Passengers have no idea what has happened, only that they have been diverted from their flight course, forced to land, and, after being made to wait on their planes for an additional 28 hours, evacuated into a town they’d never heard of before with people they don’t know.
This is one of those shows that will make you laugh and cry. You become invested in many of the characters, all of whom are based on real people and real stories. To create this show, the writers visited Gander during the 10th anniversary of the attacks to interview passengers and townspeople about what happened in the days after 9/11. Taking many of the stories, writing them, and then setting it all to music, Come From Away was born.
This show has a very sparse set, mostly using only chairs and tables along with various props. Costumes are basic everyday wear, and each character plays various parts throughout the show. This is the epitome of an ensemble show, as actors do have highlighted moments, but it always comes back to the group working together.
One of my other favorite things about proshots like this is that there are no odd cuts. The choreography is static, so there is never any editing where someone is suddenly looking the wrong way or has a different expression when cutting to the next frame.
I love this show so much – it makes my heart happy. It has amazing voices, fantastic actors, an incredible book and score, captivating choreography, and an overall message of love and acceptance found among strangers. It just doesn’t get much better than that.
Also, be sure to watch the credits, as you get to see photos of the actors with their real-life counterparts. Some actors play two people at once (for example, the reporter in the show is actually two real-life reporters, so the character has the first name of one and the last name of the other) and it’s huge fun to see the faces of the real people. If you want even more, here’s a short YouTube video about the origins of Come From Away.
Runtime: 107 minutes
Motion Picture Rating: PG-13
Languages Spoken In The Film: English
Should You Watch It? Yes
Did I Cry? Yes, several times
My Rating: 5/5 Stars
Available: On Apple TV or may be available for free on other streaming platforms
I absolutely love that we have proshots of musicals now. So many of us cannot get to the theater as often as we want or don’t have the opportunity and finances to fund the habit, so being able to watch a show from the comfort of your living room is priceless. And for people like me, it is also soul filling in much the same way listening to music can be.
