Corvette Crossing
By Michael Melski
Corvette Crossing is the startling true-to-life story of five young men who become volunteers in the ‘Corvette Navy’– the third-rate flotilla of escort ships that accompanied the great WWII convoys during the crucial Battle of the Atlantic. The ships and the men, many of whom had never even seen the ocean, were given not a fighting chance against the lethal and ubiquitious German U-Boat fleet which dominated the path to Europe and had devastated Allied shipping, killing thousands.
Miraculously, through the pride of their comradeship and the chemistry of their diversity, the boys of Canada’s forgotten ‘Other’ Navy discovered a courage within themselves and challenged the submarine fleet at every turn, taking heavy losses. Corvette Crossing brings to life on the stage a vital, unsung chapter of world history. It’s a story about heroism and sacrifice that explores internal costs of war– how it draws the best and worst in our humanity– not just in theatres of battle, but in the brutal dynamics of men trapped aboard ship. Shattered but unbroken by the terrors of ocean war, they became the acknowledged heroes of the conflict who turned the tide of war, leading to the rescue of Britain, victory in Europe, and the preservation of freedom.
Corvette Crossing is no mere period play or history lesson. It’s a play that speaks to the human condition and our capacity for good and ill in the darkest times; where the moral compass spins wildly in the North Atlantic night.
