When the days get shorter and the weather drives us indoors, many of us feel a corresponding pull to the personal interior as well. Productivity increases and it’s somehow easier to sit down and attack that stack of bills or start the book that’s been sitting on the bedside table all summer. It’s also the beginning of theater season as local companies try to lure the audience back inside. When the skies are dark and the windows are streaked with rain it’s easier to get lost in a novel or let the characters on stage transport us to a different place. read more

Come From Away is a clunky title for a fast moving energetic musical and 9/11 is unlikely subject matter, but the two are currently joined in an upbeat but touching stage production at Seattle Repertory Theater.

The musical’s title comes from a Newfoundlander expression for visitors who arrive on The Rock, as locals refer to their island home. Written by two Canadian playwrights, Irene Sankoff and David Hein, Come From Away tells the story of one of the 38 commercial flights that diverted to Gander Newfoundland as the World Trade Center catastrophe unfolded. This unusual effort is co-produced by the La Jolla Playhouse and Seattle Rep with road previews in both locations. Like Memphis, another La Jolla/Seattle Rep collaboration and the 2010 Tony Award winner for Best New Musical, Come From Away may very well be Broadway bound. Yesterday the sold out Seattle production was extended another week, closing on December 20 instead of the 13^th as originally planned. read more