COME FROM AWAY Producers Talk Lasting Impact On Audiences and Connection With Canada

With Come From Away establishing itself as one of the frontrunners at this year's Tony Awards, people are buzzing more than ever. In a recent article by the Washington Post, the producers of the hit new musical discussed the lasting impact that it has been having on its audience.

"Who could have guessed where this country would be right now?" said Sue Frost, one of Come From Away's lead producers. "People are exhausted by all the bad news, and this is a show about how being good to each other is so important. People want to be reminded that human beings are basically good. This is a show that we need right now."

The show is based on stories that the Canadian-American husband and wife team David Hein and Irene Sankoff collected from Gander residents and the passengers who lived among them for the week after 9/11, so there is undoubtedly going to be a lasting connection that this show brings between the U.S. and Canada.

"The Come From Away production tells a fantastic story about the strong and long-lasting Canadian-U.S. friendship," Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's press office said in a statement, "and celebrates the warmth and generosity demonstrated by the people of Gander in our neighbors' time of need. And we embrace the opportunity to highlight how we are there for each other in these times of need."

Michael Rubinoff, producer of the Canadian musical theater project at Sheridan College says that the show has had an impact on him and other of his countrymen. "It affected me in a way that made me proud to be a Canadian," he said. "The wild card was how Americans would react to this piece."

"We had people come up to us who had been directly affected, who said, 'Thank you for giving us something positive about that day,' " Frost recalls. " 'Thank you for giving us a better memory of that day.' "

Read the full story at washingtonpost.com.

COME FROM AWAY takes you into the heart of the remarkable true story of 7,000 stranded passengers and the small town in Newfoundland that welcomed them. Cultures clashed and nerves ran high, but uneasiness turned into trust, music soared into the night and gratitude grew into enduring friendships.

Don't miss this breathtaking show, written by Tony® nominees Irene Sankoff and David Hein and directed by two-time Tony®nominee Christopher Ashley (Memphis), that Newsweek cheers, "It does what the best musicals do: takes you to a place you never want to leave."

On 9/11, the world stopped. On 9/12, their stories moved us all.