Music to their ears: Come From Away nabs 7 Tony nominations
Uplifting Canadian musical has been racking up raves since opening on Broadway this year
The Canadian creative duo behind Come From Away, the heartwarming musical about Newfoundland hospitality in the aftermath of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, are thrilled to be in contention for the Tony Awards.
“We’re over the moon,” said David Hein on Tuesday after the show, written by Hein and wife Irene Sankoff, earned seven Tony nominations including Best Musical, Best Original Score and Best Book of a Musical.
“We’ve got people all over the world sending us congratulations. We’ve been working on this and going from city to city and making changes and just really sticking to the truth of the story . . . and to see it recognized in this way is absolutely unbelievable,” Sankoff said.
Christopher Ashley has also been nominated for Best Direction of a Musical and Jenn Colella, who has earned raves as a trail-blazing American Airlines pilot, has been nominated for Best Actress in a Featured Role. The musical has also been nominated for Best Choreography and Lighting.
Producer Michael Rubinoff was celebrating in Gander, N.L., where residents opened their homes and hearts to thousands of U.S. passengers who were stranded after U.S. airspace was temporarily closed after the attacks in 2001.
“It’s just wonderful to share this with them. This is a very special show about real events and it’s great to share this milestone with people here,” Rubinoff said.
He noted the seven nominations are particularly noteworthy because the Broadway season has been particularly competitive.
“I just think it’s incredible, just to be considered for Tony nominations in a season with 13 new musicals — the most competitive in 35 years,” he said.
Come From Away is competing for Best Musical against Dear Evan Hansen, Groundhog Day and Natasha, Pierre & the Great Comet of 1812, which leads the Tony contenders with 12 nominations.
Bob Martin, co-author and star of the last hit Broadway musical from Canada, 2006’s The Drowsy Chaperone, believes Come From Awayhas an excellent chance of winning Best Musical when the awards are handed out on June 11.
Martin, a producer with a number of Broadway shows in development, said the race for Best Musical is “a dead heat” between Come From Away and Dear Evan Hansen, a musical about a teenager with social anxiety disorder.
“Dear Evan Hansen is the favourite of the season so it’s really hard to call,” Martin said. “Just the fact that it is so debatable is an amazing accomplishment (for Come From Away). They’re unknown in the community really and there are no stars in the show, and they just came and everybody loved them, and now people are betting on the fact that they’re going to win.”
Former Stratford Festival artistic director Des McAnuff, who’s also a veteran Broadway director with two Tony wins, also said the Newfoundland musical has a strong chance of winning the top prize.
“It should be one of the most interesting Tony Award races we’ve had in some time,” McAnuff said.
Before Tuesday’s Tony nominations, the homegrown production was already receiving plenty of recognition from critics within and beyond the Big Apple. Come From Away earned mostly rave reviews when the production made its Broadway debut in March. Before its arrival in New York, the musical was staged in La Jolla, Calif., Washington, D.C., Seattle and Toronto. The cast was also in Gander for two concerts last October as a fundraiser for local charities.
The show has received a slew of theatre nominations from the Dra- ma League Awards, Drama Desk Awards, the Outer Critics Circle Awards and the Chita Rivera Awards.
The show also received 14 nominations from the Helen Hayes Awards, which celebrate excellence in professional theatre throughout the Washington metropolitan area.
Both Martin and McAnuff agree that some Tony voters base their decisions on a show’s future success as a touring production, something that boosts Come From Away’s chances.
“A lot of the people that vote at the Tonys deal with the road and the shows that tour the country, and Come From Away without question is going to be a great success when it tours. So I think it could pick up some votes that way,” McAnuff said.
Sankoff and Hein said they’re not preoccupied with the idea of winning.
“We’re always going to be Tony nominees, Sankoff and Hein, no matter what happens. We’re always going to have those nominations no matter what comes up next,” Sankoff said.
“Canada has given us so much. Growing up in Canada has been such a gift and I’m just glad to give something back.”