Come From Away At The Little Theatre Leicester Review
DISCLOSURE – TICKETS TO SEE THE SHOW WERE GIFTED TO THE REVIEWER AND GUEST FOR THE PURPOSES OF WRITING THE REVIEW
Reviewed by Nigel Chester
The Little Theatre is nestled in a quiet side street in the heart of Leicester, only inches away from vibrant Granby St, where plenty of bars and restaurants may be found for pre or post theatre meals and drinks.
There is plenty of parking close to the theatre, but a word of caution, if you are parking in the car park opposite the theatre, ensure that you pay for sufficient time, as, from a previous visit, the parking wardens seem to time their visit to coincide with the end of the performance.
My wife and I were returning to the Little Theatre, a not so small, mainly volunteer run theatre and as usual were pleased with what we found. On entering, the theatre was packed and buzzing with anticipation. We made our way to the bar which we found to be very busy, as there was to be no interval, the play runs for 1hr 50mins and I wondered if this would be too long without a comfort break, it wasn’t, the fast pace would have felt interrupted.
The story is true, set in Newfoundland, ‘Come from away’ is a phrase used by Newfoundlanders to describe visitors. When the atrocities of 9/11 started to unfold and airspace closed down, planes in the air had to be diverted. One destination, Gander, was the setting for tonight’s entertainment. Its airport, once a major centre, used to refuel transatlantic flights, had seen its use decline as, by 2001modern aircraft no longer needed to refuel. Gander had the infrastructure to deal with the planes but not the facilities to house grounded passengers.
I was curious how literally thousands of people could be portrayed on stage, I decided maybe cardboard cut-outs or projection – how wrong I was, our cast of 12 became hundreds before our eyes.
We saw passengers on multiple planes, with the change of captain, clothes and chairs we were seeing planes full of people each dealing with the situation in their own way. Initially the planes were seen as bomb threats, resulting in passengers remaining on board for many hours.
Our townsfolk rallied round, the Mayor, Claude Elliot (Andy Marmoy) organised the community response and even got the striking bus drivers on side to ferry the stranded passengers across town to makeshift hotels, a bed roll in school gym was home to many. People opened their homes and shared everything, both physically and emotionally.
Come From Away is a hit Broadway musical and I fully understand why, hats and chairs were the props that move characters in time and space but the music told the story.
This play is bright and fast it’s fun and feelgood but there are some very dark moments and some very impactful scenes, the Rabbi and a local man, who for the first time ever disclosed that he was Jewish, a dark secret kept out of necessity for his own safety, juxtaposed alongside the fear of a Muslim passenger, a new prejudice taking place before our eyes.
The actors were fantastic, Dan Brewer with his distinctive long hair was gay Kevin (not to be confused with gay Kevin!) however he slipped into the role of Ali seamlessly and the two had nothing in common.
The stand-out song for me was performed by Carissma Griffiths as Hannah, a stranded mother whose son was a New York firefighter, genuinely moving, however Captain Beverley Bass (Sarah Barton-Wales) had the most incredible back story, told through her song.
We were constantly aware of the airlines seven thousand stranded “guests” but some stories shone out, a love story which even involved a dead fish. Some people falling in love, others out of love.
This is a tale of true humanity that has nothing to do with ethnicity, religion or sexual orientation, it’s just people, it’s perfect even though people aren’t perfect.
The very best thing about this musical, other than the fantastic performances and amazing production team was the conclusion. We saw outcomes of the impact that Gander had on its visitors and that the visitors had on Gander.
A truly fabulous night out – treat yourself.
Rating: 5/5
Come from away runs until 18th October at The Little Theatre, Leicester, with tickets priced between £19 – £20 no concessions.
For more information or to book tickets, visit thelittletheatre.co.uk