Come From Away, Seattle Rep

For its 10^th anniversary, Come From Away is back at The Seattle Rep! I’ve seen this show about planes diverted to a small town in Newfoundland on 911 a few times over the years.   It’s an emotional show on a tough topic, but still so heartwarming.  I really enjoy the music that I would describe as both folksy and rock.  The story and characters are engaging and performers playing multiple roles works seamlessly.

I had heard there were major changes made for this production so I was a little worried coming in. Changes to older shows can be expected to keep a show fresh and interesting. But change can be hard! (I’ve come around, but if I had written my feelings after I saw the big Les Mis revamp, my keyboard would have been covered in tears.) From the opening notes of Welcome to the Rock, I knew I was in, again, for a really good time.

The most noticeable changes are the absence of the revolving stage and that the performers are all playing instruments. Having the performers play instruments was a great change and so fun. Narratively it worked in the sense of of the performers recounting their story but stylistically it makes the show even more cozy and intimate. There are a few lines and moments that are added and some songs have been removed. The missing songs weren’t really noticeable to me (And I‘ve listened to the soundtrack a lot). It just seemed shorter and it was only when I checked the program against the album that I confirmed a few songs were gone.

I have to give a special call out to how absolutely amazing the cast was. Singing, acting, and playing instruments? Come From Away is truly an ensemble show; the closest to a lead performer is the female pilot or maybe the mayor, but it’s still a bit of a stretch to call them leads. But every performer had chances to shine I was blown away by how good they were. After the show I had to check the cast resumes in the program. A few have national and broadway experience but there are a lot of local talent and performers here. I enjoyed this so much I may go see it again.

Come From Away is on stage through January 4.