The Cape Playhouse presents Come From Away. Book, music and lyrics by Irene Sankoff and David Hein. Directed and Choreographed by Kelly Devine. Music Direction by Lena Gabrielle. Set Design by Alexander Woodward. Lighting Design by Kirk Bookman. Costume Design by Gail Baldoni. Sound Design by Walter Trarbach. Wig Design by Bobbie Zlotnik. At the Cape Playhouse, 820 Main Street, Route 6A, Dennis MA, through August 30, 2025.

By Linda Chin

When skies over the United States shut down after the September 11th attacks, 38 international flights were diverted to a once-bustling airport on the island of Newfoundland, on the northeast tip of North America, next to which was the tiny town of Gander. The influx of 7000 stranded passengers and crew who needed meals, clothing, accommodations, showers, and access to phones swelled Gander’s population to twice its usual size, practically overnight.

Come From Away tells the true story of how an ordinary but remarkable group of Newfoundlanders rallied to support a group of newfound friends, bridging cultural barriers with compassion and empathy, and language barriers with the common language of kindness. With direction and choreography by Kelly Devine, music direction by Lena Gabrielle, and an extraordinary ensemble of 12 actors playing 25+ characters, Cape Playhouse’s poignant production will make your heart swell to twice its usual size in the course of the evening (100 minutes without intermission).

                                                                                                                                                 Set designer Alexander Woodward has kept the design concept spare and simple – an oversized map as the backdrop (perhaps a metaphor for humans or communities each being contributors to a rich and colorful tapestry?), and similar to the Broadway show/tour, a minimal props – most notably a dozen wooden chairs that are readily reconfigured as different playing areas in various scenes (schoolrooms, local watering hole) or magically manipulated by the actors within a scene, or song (the interior of the plane). Other simple props sans pageantry include BBQ grills, yellow rain hats, a giant codfish, a bucket of manure, and a well-worn Bible.                                                                                                                                    

With much of the action taking place at stage level (and at half-height when the actors were sitting in their chairs) – seats in the rear orchestra offered but partial views of the inventive action and synchronized movement (and difficulty seeing actors’ faces) much of the time.

The talented cast of 12 includes veterans of the Broadway/tour production of Come From Away. Joel Hatch originated the role of Claude (and others) in the Broadway production, and starting the show from a spot in the audience and welcoming all of us to his city is a warm touch. De’Lon Grant is an acclaimed actor on Boston and Broadway stages and seeing him revive the role of Bob & others that he played for years on Broadway was a treat as well as a master class in versatility. As the smooth-talking aircraft captain, a passenger of African descent who is nervous about being stranded in unfamiliar territory, and as passenger Bob (a young Black man from Brooklyn who is nervous about where at a host family’s home he should keep his wallet and when asked by the mayor of a nearby town to steal/borrow grills from his neighbors’ backyards for a community cookout the confusion and fears he expresses in asides to the audience are complex and nuanced. What Grant does steal is every scene he is in.

Pearl Sun (Diane & others) and Jim Walton (Nick/Doug & others) also appeared in Come From Away on Broadway, and their portrayal of two solo travelers from different parts of the world – Diane from Texas, Nick from the UK – who when stranded in Gander end up becoming a couple (and eventually get married – which in real life the individuals their characters were based on are still together). Triple-threat performers (Sun is the Dance Captain). Sun and Walton have lovely singing voices and acting prowess.

It was exciting to see veteran Boston-based/regional actor Mary Callahan get to make her CP debut and getting to belt out the iconic song from Titanic (which is ironic since she performed in this show at NSMT late last year. Similarly, seeing Christiani Pitts deliver a pitch-perfect performance as Hannah in this show, fresh off her highly successful run in Two Strangers, Carry a Cake Across New York at ART, was the icing on the cake of Come From Away.

All in all, thisis a show worth flocking to Cape Cod’s nearly century-old Cape Playhouse for. Whether you’re an islander or off-islander, you’ll receive a warm welcome, and you will experience a warm island welcome – and might even have the chance to kiss a cod!

For tickets and information, go to: https://capeplayhouse.com/