The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Music and Lyrics by William Finn
Book by Rachel Sheinkin

Opened May 2, 2005
Closed January 20, 2008 (1136 performances)

Original Broadway Cast: Derrick Baskin (Mitch Mahoney), Deborah S. Craig (Marcy Park), Jesse Tyler Ferguson (Leaf Coneybear), Dan Fogler (William Barfee), Lisa Howard (Rona Lisa Peretti), Celia Keenan-Bolger (Olive Ostrovsky), Jose Llana (Chip Tolentino), Jay Reiss (Douglas Panch), and Sarah Saltzberg (Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre); Directed by James Lapine; Choreographed by Dan Knechtges; Musical Direction by Vadim Feichtner; Scenic Design by Beowulf Borritt; Costume Design by Jennifer Caprio; Lighting Design by Natasha Katz; Played at the Circle in the Square Theatre

Songs include: "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," "The Spelling Rules," "My Favorite Moment of the Bee," "My Friend, the Dictionary," "The First Goodbye," "Pandemonium," "I'm Not That Smart," "The Second Goodbye," "Magic Foot," "Pandemonium (reprise)," "My Favorite Moment of the Bee 2," "Why We Like Spelling," "Prayer of the Comfort Counselor," "My Unfortunate Erection (Chip's Lament)," "Woe Is Me," "I'm Not That Smart (reprise)," "I Speak Six Languages," "The I Love You Song," "Woe Is Me (reprise)," "My Favorite Moment of the Bee 3," "Second," "Finale," and "The Last Goodbye."

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is one of the more innovative musicals to come out of the first decade of the 21st Century. Employing six adult actors to play the precocious youngsters competing in the bee, as well as three others playing the adults in charge of the event, the show employs improvisation and audience participation much more than your standard musical. To call the characters quirky would be an understatement. They portray the extremes of adolescent angst as they strive to win this competition. The small cast and unit set have made the show a favorite of community theatres since it ended its run on Broadway, so it's a musical that will continue to please audiences for years to come.

The best word to describe Spelling Bee is fun. The humor is broad, and the actors have just as much fun playing them as the audience has watching them. Everyone can leave the theatre with a big smile on their face, and that's not something you can say about a lot of musicals. The music is lively, with surprising moments of poignancy, like "The I Love You Song." Chances are, a theatre near you will be performing this show sometime soon, so you should do yourself a favor and check it out. You won't regret it. Next on this little trip will be a show I know almost nothing about, 3hree.