Come From Away:  how a Canadian town embraced 7000 passengers stranded after 9/11

Come From Away is a true story with characters based on the people at the heart of an astonishing response when 6,600 people were diverted to Newfoundland as US air space shut down. The show opens at the Playhouse Theatre in Edinburgh on Tuesday, September 17 until the 21st as part of its first ever UK tour. Ticket details here

A winner of four Olivier awards and a smash hit in the West End and on Broadway, it finds hope and humanity in the darkest of times.

It tells the story of the passengers - the ‘come from aways’ - who found their travel plans changed as they were diverted to Gander, population 10,000 and a place with just 500 hotel rooms. It was to become their home for five days in 2001 as the world paused in the wake of a horrifying atrocity which claimed the lives of nearly 3000 people.

There, they were embraced by a remarkable community which opened its homes and hearts, and went the extra mile to making them welcome. Every community building became temporary accommodation, food hubs were set up,and events such as bowling and music nights put on to make their stay as comfortable as possible.

Claude Elliott, who was mayor at the time, said the people who volunteered simply took over “and did amazing things.”

“We had early signs that the US was going to close its airspace and Canada had agreed to take all the plans affected. Our location means we are the crossroads of the world. We were told to expect 200 aircraft, and ended up with 38,” he said. “We have a disaster plan like all cities - we are airport town - but you couldn’t plan for an event like 9/11. No-one could have imagined 7000 people dropping in for five days. We had people from 95 countries here. We moved quickly and made decisions as we went along. I guess it all fell into place.

“What stood out for me were the friendships that were created and 20 years later people still come back to see the families who looked after them. We get people coming from all over the world.”

Claude is acutely aware of the scale of the tragedy behind the remarkable story - “we can never forget what happened, several thousands people lost their lives and we remember them and their families - which saw Gander put on the theatre map from Broadway to the West End.

He is also one of the characters in the show which he has seen some 112 times.

“ At the beginning, it was strange seeing an audience watching our story and being portrayed on stage,” he said. “The strangest part was when we went to New York and saw it on Broadway . I never thought for a moment we would be characters in a play on Broadway. That’s the king of theatre!”

For him, the show is all about the goodness at the heart of people coming to the aid of complete strangers.

“When you look at the reaction of audiences and then afterwards when all they talk about is the kindness, that is what makes it worthwhile. People did something remarkable here,” he said. “To show that level of compassion was incredible, and it all came from 9/11.”

> Come From Away, Scottish theatre dates: His Majesty’s Theatre, Aberdeen, September 10-14; Playhouse Theatre, Edinburgh, Sept 17-21; Kings Theatre, Glasgow, Sept 24-28.