REVIEW: Rock Island’s Circa ’21 Dazzles With Spectacular, Heartwarming 9/11 Musical
A powerhouse cast of Circa ’21 veterans and tremendous actors making their Circa debuts delivers a spectacularly moving, inspiring new production, with “Come From Away.”
The 2017 Tony-winning musical is based on the true events of Sept. 11, 2001, reflecting the fear, chaos and boundless generosity of that day, when the good people of Gander, Newfoundland (an island off the east coast of Canada) welcomed nearly 7,000 airline passengers who were forced to land there (from 38 flights) when U.S. air space was closed after the terrorist attacks on 9/11.
This uplifting, heartwarming show – which reveals how ordinary people can do extraordinary things – is unlike anything I’ve ever seen, and the minimalist set at the Rock Island dinner theater (designed by Becky Meissen) lets you know you’re in for something different and special.
A scene from “Come From Away,” which is running at Circa ’21 through Nov. 1.
The backdrop looks wood-paneled, in horizontal strips, with a huge map of the U.S. and Canada, onto which some words and images are projected, such as the dates of the story. The stage mainly consists of a variety of wooden chairs, that are quickly and seamlessly moved around by the 12 actors – telling the story of both the Islanders and what become known as the Plane People (totaling about 40 characters) – reflecting passengers on planes, buses, and other local establishments.
Director Seth Reines, another Circa veteran, does a brilliant job controlling all this shifting traffic, like an expert juggler keeping multiple balls in the air, and making sure the audience knows exactly what is going on at all times.
While some characters and stories are an amalgamation of several people and experiences, others are grounded in real-life individuals, such as Captain Beverley Bass (Sarah Hayes), the first female captain for American Airlines; Kevin Tuerff (Tristan Tapscott) and Kevin Jung (Gregory Naman), a couple from Los Angeles, and Nick and Diane (Stephen Charles Turner and Kimberly Vanderginst), an Englishman and Texan divorcee who first met in Gander and went on to fall in love.
The cast of “Come From Away” consists of 12 actors each playing multiple roles.
With its book, music, and lyrics by the Canadian spouses Irene Sankoff and David Hein, the folk-infused “Come From Away” score blends both traditional musical-theatre styles, as well as traditional Newfoundland orchestrations, with a lot of brief narratives, with characters talking directly to the audience about the earth-shaking events of the story’s four days. The beloved Circa favorite Tom Walljasper shines as Claude, mayor of Gander, which at one time had the largest airport in North America (a popular refueling spot for trans-Atlantic flights, and where The Beatles first landed in North America in February 1964).
A scene from “Come From Away,” which is the true story of 38 flights forced to land in Newfoundland, with nearly 7,000 passengers on Sept. 11, 2001.
In the Circa program, Tapscott shares a telling story of where he was Sept. 11, 2001, at 17 working with Tom and Shelley Walljasper (here she plays the welcoming, compassionate Beulah, head of the Gander Legion) at their theater studio. Tristan recalled Tom told them that day of theater, “This is what we do, man. We go out there and make sure they know everything is OK for a few hours. That’s our job. Make them laugh, make them cry…male them feel something in this room and forget what is happening outside.”
“There was something almost sacred in that,” Tapscott wrote for the program. “As if, in the face of chaos, our little stage became a candle in the dark. A spell. A sanctuary. The world needed an exhale, and we offered one. We ALL needed that. It became one of those shimmering ‘wow’ moments – the kind that sits in your bones long after the curtain falls. September 11 changed us all.”
The magic of theater exists not only to distract us and take us away from the real world, to somewhere better where there are always happy endings, where good triumphs over evil. The magic also happens when it brings us directly into the real world, makes us confront the pain or the healing that we do see every day, or that we never knew existed – and that’s what “Come From Away” does.
Sarah Hayes (front) plays real American Airlines pilot Beverly Bass in “Come From Away.”
The passengers on these 38 aircraft landing in Gander Sept. 11 doubled the population of the small Newfoundland town, which was unequipped for the influx of stranded travelers, but the big-hearted townspeople rose to the occasion and sprang into action, to house, feed, clothe, and comfort the nearly 7,000 passengers, along with 19 animals in cargo. Another Circa regular, Sydney Richardson, plays the adorable Bonnie, head of the Gander SPCA who cares for the motley crew of dogs, cats and chimpanzees.
Gorgeous wizardry is not just defying gravity on the way to Oz or in a galaxy far, far away, it is the miracles that are performed by the human heart. Empathy may be derided by Charlie Kirk and our president as weakness, but here (and in the real world) it is a necessary superpower.
“Come From Away” does an admirable job reflecting the chaos and confusion of the frightened and lonely passengers, who discover the horrific reason why their planes were grounded, and they are desperate to contact their loved ones, while townspeople work without sleep to try and help them in any way they can. One of the neat tricks in the show is that there are few if any props, so there’s lots of miming in pretending to deliver, food, drinks, clothing and other supplies.
The “islanders” in Gander and surrounding towns open up their homes to the “plane people,” regardless of their guests’ race, nationality, or sexual orientation. Two women, Beulah (from Gander) and Hannah (from New York, played by the outstanding Renee Elizabeth Turner, in her Circa debut), bond over the fact that both of their sons are firefighters, but Hannah’s son remains missing after the attacks (“I Am Here”). In this brief, heart-rending song, Turner showcases her huge, soulful, powerful voice and passion.
Bobby Becher, far right, in a scene from the musical “Come From Away.”:
Hannah asks Beulah to take her to a Catholic church, and a number of characters make their way to other houses of worship around town (“Prayer”). Led by Tapscott singing “Make Me a Channel of Your Peace,” and Bobby Becher as a rabbi singing a Jewish prayer, this is another clear emotional highlight, showing people of various religions all devoutly calling for calm, unity and safety.
As most of the cast plays more than one part, the most impressive one for me was another actor making his local debut, Gregory Naman as both Tapscott’s boyfriend and Ali, an Egyptian master chef who is eyed warily by many others and suffers the indignity of being strip searched before being allowed to leave Gander. A very talented Lebanese-American and Alabama native, Naman recently earned his BFA in acting performance from the University of Mobile, and has previously played the same “Come From Away” roles at New Stage Theatre in Mississippi this past June.
Sarah Hayes (who also plays a local teacher) is rock solid and commanding as the professional, no-nonsense American pilot, and she tells Beverley’s life story at the start of Act II in “Me and the Sky,” where appropriately clouds are superimposed on the rear map and Hayes’ beautiful voice soars. She is warmly joined in the number by the female ensemble, who literally look up to her for guidance and inspiration.
The show is hardly suffused only with weighty topics and solemnity. Towards the end of the first act, to alleviate rising fear and mounting tensions (“On The Edge”), the townspeople invite passengers to be initiated as honorary Newfoundlanders at the local bar (the fun, boisterous “Heave Away / Screech In”).
As the passengers and crew fly away, they joyously exchange stories of the immense kindness and generosity that the Newfoundlanders showed the strangers in their time of need, in the exuberant, full-throated “Somewhere in the Middle of Nowhere.” We learn not everything turned out perfectly in the aftermath of the Gander pit stop, but the passengers collectively went on to donate $60,000 back to the wonderful, proud townsfolk.
The outstanding Circa cast also includes Hanna Marie Felver as a local TV reporter in her crazy first day on the job; Bobby Becher as a constable on the two-person police force; Tariq Woods as New Yorker Bob, and Emmett Boedecker as Commander Gander.
There are many more lighting changes here than a typical show, and kudos go to lighting designer Nicole Blodig and spotlight operator Blake Lewis.
This unforgettable, life-affirming show will go on at Circa ’21 (1828 3rd Ave., Rock Island) through Nov. 1, with performances on Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday evenings at 7:30 p.m., Sundays at 5:30 p.m., and Wednesday matinées at 1:15 p.m. Pre-show entertainment featuring the theater’s waitstaff the Bootleggers will also precede all performances. Ticket prices are $68 for the Friday-through-Sunday dinner-and-show productions and $61 for all Wednesday performances.
Reservations are available through the Circa ’21 ticket office, by calling 309-786-7733 ext. 2, or online at www.circa21.com.
“Come From Away” is making its QC theater premiere at Circa ’21 Dinner Playhouse, Rock Island.
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