​Blyth’s “The Wind Coming Over the Sea” is stirring tale of plight of Irish immigrants to Canada

“The Wind Coming Over the Sea,” now playing at the Blyth Festival Theatre, is a stirring commentary on the plight of Irish immigrants coming to Canada.

However, it could be the same cautionary tale told about immigrants coming to this country today.

The world premiere of Emma Donoghue’s play opened June 28, and continued to be a hit with the audience, Friday night, on the Margaret Stephens stage.

In fact, it was even more of a hit for the handful of audience members who were seated right on the stage, adjacent to the action.

The play tells the story of Henry and Jane Johnson who are struggling to keep their small business afloat in famine-ravaged Ireland in 1848. They decide to leave everything behind and start a new life in Canada, with Henry going ahead to secure work, while Jane stays home with their two small children.

For a year, the couple sends long, yearning letters across the sea, and eventually, Jane also sets out for the new world, with Henry’s letters tied in a ribbon at her heart.

The show is equal parts heart-warming and tragic, as Donoghue takes an unflinching look at an ongoing piece of Canada’s story: the promise and peril of emigration.

While Shelayna Christante and Landon Doak shine in the lead roles, the entire ensemble works together well, sharing the various roles and playing a variety of instruments. Joining them on stage, are Geoffrey Armour, Masae Day, Michelle Fisk and George Meanwell, with a cameo by Gloria Garratt.

The music, singing and dancing are incredible, as are the seamless set changes, and the amazing storm scene aboard the ship.

It certainly isn’t a happy-ever-after ending but there is hope at the end as the family carries on, with each new birth, bringing the call: “May the wind scatter your seeds!”

“The Wind Coming Over the Sea” continues to Aug. 12.

For specific dates and times, and to purchase tickets, visit blythfestival.com.