April 26
2014

When all air traffic was ordered to land on 9/11, the small town of Gander Newfoundland absorbed 38 planes and embraced over 6500 stranded passengers. They had the airport facilities to accomodate the influx but not the hotels/restaurants so the townsfolk took the displaced into their homes giving them a place to rest a weary head, have a good home cooked meal and a dose of old fashioned nfld. hospitality.
In Trevor McKinven’s one man show, ‘They Came From Away’ (in which Trevor plays all the roles) we join a reunion on stage (the ‘class of Gander 2001) as they gather to reminisce and recall those five days in 2001 where they had a impromtu international slumber party. The audience has a fly on the wall/front row seat to some of the tall tales that emerged from a week that found 6500 unexpected guests ‘drop in’ on small twn NFLD.
The thread that runs through all these characters is how profoundly grateful they are to have been sent somewhere so special and how it truely saved their collective sanity at such a difficult time. The generous newfoundlanders did not care who, how or what you were that week, all that mattered was that they received a home cooked meal, a place to rest a weary head and a dash of fun-tastic Nfld hospitality.

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