Creating a musical relating to the events of 9/11 is no simple task. Particularly when performed on Broadway, the show is not granted a cushion of either sufficient time or space from the events with which to shield itself from accusations of making light of a tragedy, should it make any misstep. While this must have placed (understandable) constraints on the artistic license of Come from Away, it did not prevent the success of the telling of this particular story.
The purpose of Come from Away is simple: to tell the story of the hospitality of the people of Gander towards the travellers stranded after the US airspace was closed on September 11. In this way, it seeks to highlight the presence of humanity during that dark period. Not in the form of the courageous heroism of the first responders in Manhattan, or of the passengers of United Airlines Flight 93, or of the troops that would ultimately answer their country’s call. Instead, Come from Away presents a more basic form of humanity, in the simple goodness of generosity.
The diversion of 38 flights to Gander on that day was part of the broader Operation Yellow Ribbon. To aid the United States in neutralizing the threat, the Government of Canada extended an offer to take in any flights that were unable to return to their point of departure. For obvious reasons, an effort was made to divert the flights away from larger population centres in the interior of the country towards smaller airports on the coasts. For this scenario, Gander International Airport was perfectly suited.
Gander Airport is nestled into a sparsely populated area in the interior of Newfoundland. It sits near Gander Lake, on the Gander River, which runs into Gander Bay. The name is presumed to derive from the geese that are common in the area, but no one knows for certain. The River is prized for its salmon, and was fished by the indigenous Beothuk people in the days before the arrival of Europeans ultimately rendered them extinct. Later, after moose were introduced to the island in the early 1900s, the area became a popular hunting destination as well—Johnny Cash famously took a hunting trip there in the 1960s.
The municipality of Gander is an airport town whose history is inextricably tied to the United States. The great circle from New York City to London runs through central Newfoundland. The significance of this fact was recognized during the 1930s, and an airport was completed in the area in 1938. The airport would prove hugely beneficial to the Special Relationship in the years to follow, as the airport served as a stopping point for American-made military aircraft en route to Europe during World War II. Its importance continued to grow after the war, as it became a crucial refueling station for transatlantic flights in the days before jet aircrafts became widespread. For a time, it was among the busiest airports in the world. The town itself was incorporated in 1958, as supporting the airport necessitated a permanent settlement.
On December 12, 1985, the link between between Gander and the United States took a darker turn, as Arrow Air Flight 1285, a chartered flight carrying American troops home from a peacekeeping mission in Egypt, crashed shortly after takeoff at Gander International, killing all 256 onboard. The accident remains the deadliest plane crash to occur on Canadian soil. The precise cause of the crash remains murky—in the official report by the Canadian Aviation Safety Board (CASB), the 9 member board was split, with 5 believing ice on the wings was the culprit, and 4 proposing that it was an accidental detonation of munitions onboard. Dissatisfaction over the inconclusive results of this investigation ultimately contributed to the disbandment of the CASB by the Government of Canada in 1990, and its replacement with the Canadian Transportation Safety Board.
By the time 2001 rolled around, and the events of this musical took place, jet airliners had long since taken over passenger travel, and the importance of the airport had diminished greatly. Even for travel in and out of the island itself, its position was waning, as the trends had shifted decisively towards St. John’s International. Gander, therefore, was a town at risk of losing its identity—a situation that was hardly unique amongst towns in rural Newfoundland, though atypical in that the fishery was not involved.
Against this backdrop, Operation Yellow Ribbon, and the events depicted in this musical, took place. The moment provided Gander with a unique challenge through which it could prove itself on a global stage. It would pass that test with flying colours.
The musical for me is a quintessential feel-good story, and is wonderful if that’s your cup of tea. For my taste, it was a bit too saccharine at times. It felt as though the writers held a deep admiration for the people of Gander, and wanted to tell the story in a way that reflected them as positively as possible. That is completely understandable, but it has the peculiar side effect that all of the negativity, be it frustration, racism, or conflict in general, comes from the side of the stranded passengers. To me, that felt a little unfair to the people who were stranded and in a stressful situation outside of their control. It also gave the town a somewhat unnatural feel in the play, as if it were out of a fairy tale. In reality, some of the townspeople would have shared the same fears and prejudices towards muslims as did some passengers on the planes, and I think there should have been more balance there.
I also found there were a few too many stories crammed into such a short timeframe. Even with the relatively large cast of characters already present, there were still several instances where it felt as though multiple people’s experiences had been cobbled together into one character, which was indeed the case in the script. Admittedly, it would have been difficult to determine where to draw the line, but that is the challenge when adapting true events to a script.
That all said, I still thought Come from Away was a charming musical, and was well worth the watch.