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Come From Away, the hit Broadway musical, is coming to Victoria in 2023

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Come From Away, the Tony Award-winning musical, is among the biggest hits in Broadway history. MATTHEW MURPHY

The longest-running Canadian musical in Broadway history is coming to Victoria next year.

Come From Away, the Tony Award winner about the real life actions of townsfolk from Gander, Newfoundland, during the Sept. 11 attacks, is set for May 10-21, 2023 at the Royal Theatre. The 16-performance limited engagement at the Broughton Street venue will feature a touring cast taken directly from the New York production of Come From Away, which wraps its Broadway run Oct. 2 after 1,670 performances.

The hit from Canadian creators Irene Sankoff and David Hein has won dozens of awards since 2017, including Tony, Drama Desk, Laurence Olivier, and Critics’ Circle Theatre awards. In 2018, the cast recording was nominated for best musical theatre album at the Grammy Awards.

In its review of the recent Vancouver production, which played the Queen Elizabeth Theatre from Aug. 16-28, Broadway World described Come From Away as “powerful, emotional, and uplifting.”

The real-life story involves approximately 7,000 passengers from 38 planes, whose pilots were ordered to land unexpectedly at Gander International Airport during the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Their arrival doubles the population of the small Newfoundland town, whose residents take passengers into their homes. Esteemed critic Ben Brantley, of The New York Times, wrote “even the most stalwart cynics may have trouble staying dry-eyed during this portrait of heroic hospitality under extraordinary pressure” during his review of the New York show.

The same version of Come From Away headed to the Royal Theatre next year is presented by Broadway in Victoria, the company responsible for bringing Mamma Mia!, Stomp, Chicago, The King and I, and Jersey Boys to the city in recent years.

Tickets go on sale Sept. 29 at 10 a.m. through the Royal McPherson box office (250-386-6121) or rmts.bc.ca. They are expected to sell out immediately.

mdevlin@timescolonist.com