Come From Away enjoys extended Toronto run amid streak of sold-out shows

Arts impresario David Mirvish says the Toronto run of Come From Away will be extended until next spring after the $5-million production broke even in record time.

That's theatre at its best, when people come together.- David Mirvish

Mirvish says the homegrown hit musical recouped its costs following an "unprecedented" 14 weeks of sold-out shows at the Royal Alexandra Theatre.

The show was expected to wrap up next January, but will now be moved to the Ontario Heritage Trust's Elgin Theatre for an extended run from February to late April.

To accommodate the production shuffle, Opera Atelier's April performance of Mozart's Idomeneo was moved from the Elgin to the Ed Mirvish Theatre.

Come From Away tells the true story of how the town of Gander, N.L., welcomed more than 7,000 stranded airline passengers after 9/11.

Mirvish says the musical's success has "befuddled all expectations" both in Toronto and on Broadway, where its feel-good charm managed to win the hearts of jaded New York theatre-goers as well as a Tony Award for best direction.

"This is actually doing something not only for the people of Newfoundland, it's actually doing something for Toronto. It's making Toronto a destination," said Mirvish.

"They're sharing something with our community, which is really wonderful. That's theatre at its best, when people come together."

Mirvish first staged Come From Away in Toronto from December 2016 to January 2017.

The show's momentum hasn't slowed since: its soundtrack has been nominated for a Grammy and Canadian creators Irene Sankoff and David Hein are hard at work on a script for a film adaptation.

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