COME FROM AWAY, one of the more unique touring musicals, is returning to Northeast Ohio, this time, at EJ Thomas Performing Arts Hall in Akron.
Everyone born after 1990 remembers the tragic day of September 11, 2001. Come From Away is a heartwarming story about the events of the following day. The show’s tagline summarizes:
“When the world stopped, their stories moved us all.”
Checking in via phone a couple of weeks before the tour stops in Akron, a performer from Come From Away, Jordan Hayakawa, gave CleveRock the scoop on what theater fans should expect of the show!
For those unfamiliar with the premise of Come From Away, Hayakawa was asked to give a synopsis of the show:
“It is based on a true story, which is fascinating, but it is about the planes that were in the air during 9/11. When 9/11 happened, they had to ground all of the planes that were flying that day, and about 7,000 people ended up landing in this tiny town on the island of Newfoundland, Canada, a town called Gander,” they explained “And the airspace ended up being closed for almost a week, and the people of this tiny town had to figure out how to take care of 7,000 additional people. And it’s a story about kindness, and community, and just people opening their doors to strangers from all over the world, in a time that seemed really dark and uncertain. It’s really special. It’s really nice. It is a great feeling to leave the theater or finish the show and know that everyone in the audience left with the same uplifting, positive message. And sometimes, we’ll have people come up to us after the show and tell us their story about where they were on 9/11, or their family, or maybe they have someone in their family from Canada or from Newfoundland. And it’s really special to see how this story connects people personally to each other. A lot of people find very personal connections to the material because it is based on a true story, and it’s something that did really happen, so it’s really special. “
Come From Away differs from most current popular Broadway shows and, even more so, the timeless classics. The play is based on a true story. It’s shorter than a typical performance, and there is no intermission. (A plus for this attention span-deprived interviewer.) They were asked to talk about another important element of this production: the versatility of the performers.
“The differences are actually what personally, I love about the show. I think it makes it so special,” Hayakawa described. “There are 12 actors on stage in the show, and we are all playing multiple parts the whole time. So, we are all equally supporting each other throughout the whole thing as an ensemble, which is really amazing. And some of the characters that people play are featured more than others. We all get chances to play these smaller parts that end up supporting someone else’s bigger part of the scene. It just feels really collaborative with everybody. There also aren’t blackouts or scene changes in our show. It all kind of flows really seamlessly.”
“There’s not an intermission. It runs about an hour and 40 minutes, just straight through,” they continued. “And because of the fast pace of the show, there’s also not a ton of time for the audience to applaud. We have chances for people to laugh and all this stuff, and react, but we don’t have that classic Broadway thing where we hit a pose at the end, and everyone claps for a couple of minutes, and then we move on. We are just in the story for the whole hour and 40 minutes, and hoping that the audience will just come along with us, which is really fun.“
A talented performer like Hayakawa has a slew of opportunities that they can choose to audition for. They were asked point blank: What attracted you to audition for Come From Away, and specifically, the characters that you play?
“Obviously, I’m a huge theater fan. I got the chance to see the original cast of the show on Broadway years ago, but it has been a household name in my house as I was entering college and everything. I listened to the cast recording all the time. I’m a huge fan of this show, but when I got the opportunity to audition, I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, dream show. This is crazy!'” They said. “And I was really drawn to it. It seemed like a big challenge. We all have to learn a lot of different accents and a ton of lines, and a lot of the characters in the show don’t leave the stage for long periods of time. We don’t have a ton of water breaks, so it’s a really challenging show to perform, and I was just really drawn to the idea of this challenge.”
Being part of a positive, uplifting, feel-good show is important to Hayakawa. The impact the show has on its audience members gives them a sense of gratification.
“It’s funny when people hear that there’s no intermission. I think people get a little concerned, they’re like, ‘When am I going to have time to use the bathroom?’ But I think our show, the way it’s written and the way it’s paced, it keeps people engaged the entire time. I find that there’s not a dull moment in it, and I feel like things are spaced out enough that there is something to keep you kind of on the edge of your seat or keep you invested the whole time, which helps with those short attention spans” they explained. “I know this last week we did a student matinee for almost 2000 6th through 12th graders, and we were really worried about keeping them engaged the whole time. But there were moments when they got really quiet, and we were worried, and someone was like, no. But if these high schoolers, if these middle schoolers were not engaged, they would be talking, they would be making noise, but they were so focused, so locked into the show that they were with us the entire time, which was amazing to see.“
Lastly, Hayakawa was asked why Northeast Ohio theater fans should attend Come From Away when it is in Akron on March 24 & 25.
“I think people should come see Come From Away because it is funny, it’s heartwarming; it’s entertaining,” they said. “I think it is a history lesson for some people, and it’s a good reminder that we are all human and no matter who we are, where we come from, we can all connect on a certain level in dark times.”
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