“Come From Away” Is Coming to Portland

The Tony-winning, post-9/11 musical is headed for the Keller Auditorium.

Come From Away (Matthew Murphy)
By Bennett Campbell Ferguson

Come From Away, the provocative, Tony-winning musical that emerged as one of the most acclaimed plays of the past decade, is coming to Portland. From May 2 to 5, the play (which is set the week following Sept. 11, 2001) will be performed at the Keller Auditorium.

The stacked cast includes James Earl Jones II (a distant cousin of James Earl Jones, the voice of Darth Vader and Mufasa), who briefly lived in Gander, Newfoundland, where the play is set. Come From Away was inspired by the true story of 38 planes (carrying approximately 7,000 passengers) that were ordered to land at Gander International Airport after the 9/11 attacks.

The characters, including Mayor Claude (Kevin Carolan), are inspired by actual citizens of Gander and people who were stranded there. In The New York Times, Ben Brantley wrote that even “stalwart cynics may have trouble staying dry-eyed during this portrait of heroic hospitality under extraordinary pressure.”

Come From Away will conclude Broadway in Portland’s 2022-23 season. The 2023-24 season begins this July with Six (an original musical about of Henry VIII), which will be followed by Tina: The Tina Turner Musical in September and Les Misérables in November.

Tickets for Come From Away are available via Broadway in Portland.


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