Rows of chairs became airplane seats as actors hurry across the stage — switching between Canadian and American accents — during rehearsal for the Tony Award-winning musical coming to Arts! Oglethorpe this month.
Written by David Hein and Irene Sankoff, “Come From Away” transports the audience to the small town of Gander, Newfoundland. The musical, based on true events, tells the story of travellers aboard planes diverted to Gander’s airstrip on Sept. 11, 2001.
Director Bly Hartley said the production aims to bring the story’s message of compassion and resilience to local audiences.
“People ask what the show’s about,” Hartley said. “I said it's not about Sept. 11, it’s about Sept. 12, and the good stuff that happened amongst all the really bad stuff.”
Hartley fell in love with the story after going to see the show at The Classic Center in Athens. After purchasing the rights to the production, Hartley adapted it to fit a community stage.
“Our choreography is our own. Our stage decorations are our own,” Hartley said. “We have an airplane with a cargo bay.”
Each of the 12 actors in the cast, six male and six female, plays at least two characters. The show’s runtime is 110 minutes with no intermission.
“It’s a lot of moving parts,” assistant director Penny Miller said. “But you can tell people are doing their work at home.”
Actress Leslie Whitehead-O’Neal plays characters Annette and Beverly. Whitehead-O’Neal said balancing the two characters has been challenging, but rewarding.
“This story is so uplifting, and it brings a human spirit and kindness to an event that was one of the saddest in history,” Whitehead-O’Neal said.
David Bloyer, who plays Gander’s mayor, said rehearsing has been difficult, not only due to lines and choreography — but emotionally.
“The story of the show is so touching,” Bloyer said. “There are songs that are really hard to sing because I can’t get through them because I’m crying.”
Bloyer said he plans to visit Gander, Newfoundland next summer because of the impact the show has had on him.
During the tight six-week schedule, the rehearsal process also became a lesson in empathy and collective memory, according to the actors.
While veteran cast members remembered the events of Sept. 11 unfolding in real time, younger actors had to imagine a national tragedy they never personally witnessed.
“I said you need to make yourself remember what it was like that day, watching it happen,” Hartley said. “And I think there’s five people in the cast who were like ‘I wasn’t born yet.’”
Cast and crew members hope the story of Gander’s kindness and the unity that followed will resonate with Oglethorpe County audiences.
“It’s easy to forget that we have a lot more in common,” Miller said. “We are stronger when we stand together.”