The Start of a Moment

It’s Easter Sunday, and it’s the end of our first holiday week, a well-earned rest after rehearsing & opening the Come From Away tour in Leicester, before a two-week run in Liverpool.

Our next leg of the tour is six weeks long, taking in the cities of Cardiff, Plymouth, Southampton, Oxford, and a fortnight in Leeds, and these few days will allow us to hit the ground running at the Wales Millennium Centre.

The tour had a wonderful press night, with writers Irene Sankoff & David Hein in attendance at Leicester Curve. Footage of our band playout from the night, plus press photos and other marketing, has meant my accordion playing has been seen (and heard) much farther and wider than I expected! Thankfully I can just about get around the melodies from the show, whilst politely declining any invitations to bring the accordion to folk gigs.

The Come From Away band (aka The Legion) L-R Derrick Taylor (bass), Phillipe Barnes (whistles), Jack Pennifold (mandolin), Ruth Elder (Fiddle), Andrew Corcoran (accordion), Rory Clarke (drums), Yue Miyagi (guitar) & Beth Higham-Edwards (bodhrán).

The band I get to play with are truly wonderful. We have such a great time each night, and the show’s dedicated band playout has the audiences dancing in the aisles - so much fun! We’re guaranteed a whale of a time this year. A particular shout out to Phil Cornwell, the Associate MD, who maintains the standard for me whenever I pop out to watch, and to Mike Steel, a friend and former colleague, who also steps in to play the show on occasion and absolutely smashes it.

The Come From Away cast (photo credit: Craig Sugden)

The cast are equally a dream. Cast to perfection, not only do they sound beautiful and tell the story wonderfully, they are all well-prepared for the rigours of touring that await them. They’re as empathetic as they are talented, and make me look forward to coming to work every day. An extra-special shout-out to the incredible troupe of standbys who are ready to (or have already) step(ped) in to cover any of the twelves roles.

Finally recognition to Kirsty Malpass, our Associate Director who continues to step above and beyond her duties, and to Sophie Macfadyen (Deputy Stage Manager) & Harry Regan (Sound No 1) who perform some of the toughest roles when running the show whilst also being blooming lovely to work with.

So after a week away from the tour catching up with London friends, a fair amount of life admin and chilling with the folks in Cheshire for Easter, I am very much looking forward to our next leg of this fabulous show. If you haven’t already, I really hope you come and see us in action at some point!