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A show that holds four Olivier Awards, including Best New Musical in London, and a Tony Award; smash hit show Come From Away is the latest musical to bless our stages in Cardiff. As a musical theatre buff, I had heard a lot among the community about how great this show is, which is why I was saddened with the news that it was closing in London. So, when it announced a UK tour, I knew that I had to get my bum in a seat to see the show that everyone is talking about. All I can say is… WOW. Come From Away truly does live up to the hype.
Come From Away shares the incredible real-life story of those who were impacted by the American air space closure in the wake of 9/11. With a hoard of planes being forced to ground before reaching their destination, around 7,000 people from all walks of life find themselves stranded on a small Island in Canada, Newfoundland, where they are welcomed with open arms. Come From Away tells the story of these people and how the community of Newfoundland came together to suddenly accommodate almost double their population. How, in the wake of a dark situation happening in New York, they ended up having the experience of a lifetime.
I have never seen a show that is done quite like this one. It’s a non-stop stream of constant thoughts and happenings among the many people that we meet. The show is made up of lots and lots of little nuggets that come together to tell the whole story. Blink and you’ll miss it – you don’t have much time to process one element of the story before they move onto the next. However, it’s done in such a way that you will never miss a beat. In the interest of not interrupting their flow, there isn’t an interval in this one, so I recommend grabbing your refreshments and using the toilet before you go in!
The cast have got their work cut out in this one as they need to jump from character to character to keep up the pace of the story. They use simple costume techniques to achieve this – putting on a hat, changing jackets etc. It’s credit to their acting skills that I think I would have recognised the different characters even without the slight costume changes, they were fantastic at creating different personalities and connecting with us as an audience. Another thing that I absolutely LOVED is that the band were brought into the limelight. They were on the stage throughout and made many cameo appearances. Then, right at the end, they were brought out during the curtain call to show off their skills and bask in the cheering and applause that they deserved. You don’t often get to see the band in a musical, let alone have the opportunity to celebrate their talent.
Come From Away is in the Wales Millennium Centre until this Saturday the 6th April, so you don’t have long to catch it before it flies off. It truly lives up to the hype, so trust me, you do not want to miss this one! Find out more and get your tickets here: https://www.wmc.org.uk/en/whats-on/2024/come-from-away
