Come From Away - Phoenix / U.K & Ireland Tour 2024

A lot of the todaytix recently seem to have been the back on the stalls, which is a great view (depending on who is in front of you!) but there have been a variety of seats offered all over the theatre.

As for the dayseats, I’m 5ft 2 and I wouldn’t recommend them for someone seeing the show for the first time. The stage is very high, overall there probably isn’t a LOT that you actually miss, but when they’re sitting on the chairs you can only really see the their heads and a lot of the overall effect of the staging etc is lost.

Booster seats are available for £1. 

I had a similar conversation over in the Bat thread a few months ago after I had to pay £1 for my child to have a booster. Seems that booster seat theft is indeed a real thing!

How do people get out of the theatre with a booster seat? It’s not like you can slip it in a handbag. You’d have to come prepared.

They're inflatable so can be easily deflated and stuffed into a bag, it's more common than you'd think.

This is on offer in TodayTix's London Theatre Week deals - rear stalls for £35, upper circle for £25 or £15 up to the end of March. Given how well it seems to be selling I think it will be a while before a better deal comes up!

Thanks for the heads-up. I've just booked for 23rd March. It'll probably be a fairly poor view, very end of row F upper circle (at least it's not red on @theatremonkey), but given it's £15 rather than the face value £45 I though it was worth a punt. If I like the show I can always try to see it from a closer seat later.

Why not? Is that just what theatre is? A handmade set? We all know it’s not real!

Having watched tonight’s performance, CFA has to be one of the most heart warming and life affirming pieces of theatre I have had the pleasure to watch. Everything about it was just so spot on and a powerful celebration of the best of humanity that arose from a situation that showed humanity at its worst in recent times. Just being sat in that audience tonight, you could tell that you where watching something special with the audience’s reaction throughout the show. An instant standing ovation that was thoroughly deserved.

This as other posters have stated and which I am in totally agreement with is that for 100mins, this truly is a masterclass of ensemble theatre. Being able to switch between different characters in an instant is done so easily and often with great comic timing.

The fact that it was done using the most basic of staging (just a few tables and chairs) to create the different locations was brilliant. It allowed the different characters and stories to be front and centre but allowed the different locations to be clearly defined between the different scenes.

The musical score simply was stunning. Having listened to the OCR previously, having them performed live, for me gave them more of an emotional impact. I Am Here and Me and the Sky being the standout songs of the evening. The band was absolutely brilliant. I actually forgot they where on stage for the entire performance hidden behind the staging. The fact they came out at the end to receive the audience’s applause was fantastic.

A very special piece of theatre. 5*

I gathered this was a short show but didn't know it was quite that short. I'm now regretting booking a matinee as I'm going to have 3h20 to kill between shows.

23rd March so, having just looked it up, too late for the Vaults Festival. I don't drink coffee or eat between shows & most of the galleries & museums close at 5pm on Saturdays. I usually kill time between shows either walking round London or browsing in book shops but standing for over 3 hours is going to get pretty tiring. I might see the Royal Ballet that evening, in which case I can get there early & hope to get a seat somewhere in the newly-enlarged foyers, but if not then turning up early for most WE theatres isn't a good idea.

Firstly: Thank you to the always essential Theatremonkey for pointing me towards the Grand Circle of the Phoenix, £15 for row E was a true bargain. A fantastic view of the entire stage and missed nothing.

I was also in the audience on Monday night. I don’t know how to make my superlatives distinguishable from everyone else’s, there isn’t a lot for me to say that hasn’t already been said but here it goes!

I was absolutely blown away, astonished and stunned at every aspect of this production. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen and has catapulted its way into my favourite shows I’ve ever seen.

The writing: An incredibly engaging, rousing and distinctive score, beautiful lyrics and frankly exceptional book that somehow managed to juggle several fully-realised, distinctive characters with noted and believable arcs alongside genuine hilarity and well-earned moments of pathos. They managed to take a fantastic premise of ordinary people unaccustomed to a crisis coming together when the world needed them to and completely smashed it, writing not only a very engaging story in its own right but also an outstanding musical. It’s an irresistible celebration of humanity’s capacity for kindness, love, charity and togetherness even when facing the absolute worst that life can throw at you. Among the relentless negativity we’re constantly being bombarded with, this show could not have picked a better time to come to our shores.

The directing: Just exceptional, unlike anything I’ve ever seen. The staging brilliant in its simplicity and ingenious in its depth. The ridiculously energetic and well-drilled cast keeping the action moving at a breathtaking pace, not even allowing you the indulgence of applauding the musical numbers. Character changes so rapid and subtle that you barely notice they’ve happened, but both the writing and performances so good that you immediately recognise the change. The band are utterly fantastic and I adore how they’re integrated into the action as appropriate and fully celebrated for the essential part they play in the show, complete with a well-deserved dedicated bow. I don’t believe I’ve ever seen a West End band clearly having so much fun and enjoying the work. Incidentally, my wife and I went for a drink at the Artist’s Club afterwards and were told that the band play a set at 9:30pm every Tuesday night, if anyone would be interested.

Oh my sweet God above, that cast. I can’t think of a word to describe them other than perfect. I had no idea this was an ensemble piece wherein a small cast played multiple roles but they all did a magnificent job. So much energy, passion and commitment along with superb characterisation across the board and a range of terrific voices. I feel like a charlatan picking just one for praise as it’s very clear that this is produced as a team effort, but damn it Clive Carter is *so good* and for me was the standout. He really set the pace and standard, and his performance particularly as the Mayor was the highlight for me.

The audience was clearly lapping it all up, throwing their heads back with laughter during the humour and you could hear a pin drop during the quieter moments. The most raucous and immediate standing ovation I’ve seen in a long time and no less than fully deserved.

For the first time since I can remember, I want to go back and see a show again. Finally I understand why people go to the time, effort and expense to see shows over and over, Come From Away has captured my imagination, destroyed my perception of what a musical can and should be and has taken my heart. If you have any hesitation at all, just go. Just do it. You won’t regret it for a second.

How about the BFI Mediatheque


www.bfi.org.uk/archive-collections/introduction-bfi-collections/bfi-mediatheques/bfi-mediatheques-around-uk/mediatheque-bfi-southbank