Displaying items by tag: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Who will the best speller be? Who will be able to withstand the pressures of competition? Who wants it the most? I’m sure these are among the questions you must be asking yourselves once the play begins. Well, without giving the ending of the story away, I’ll just say that it’s the audience that has the most F-U-N, FUN. 

I thoroughly enjoyed watching this bright, funny and talented cast in Music Theater Works’ brand new production of the Tony Award-Winning musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, now being performed in the North Theatre at North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie. The hit musical, conceived by the mind of Rebecca Feldman is superbly executed thanks to its fine direction and choreography by Christopher Pazdernik, Keeley Vasquez who assists in both said areas, and with music direction by Michal McBride. 

The Putnam County Spelling Bee is exactly what you would imagine happens every year when a collection of the nerdiest, most sensitive and intelligent students from the local county schools come together to face their fears on the big stage to take home the first place trophy for best speller. And, to add a little more fun to this particular spelling bee, it also requires a good amount of improvisational participation from audience members who might just be called down to compete with the students. Even if you’ve seen this play before, there will always be new “cast members“ chosen from the crowd that create unpredictable comedy performed on the spot each night making every experience unique.

The musical, while on one hand provides so many humorous moments, also brings to light the very real pressures of student competition. We see the occasional tears and panic attacks while students compete against each other for a small prize (literally a 12” high trophy and $200 that goes toward future education). We see that winning or not can have big consequences at home and/or in their own psyche. But we also see how competition can bring people together and how it can help us learn about ourselves.

Neala Barron who plays the zealous, rule-following spelling bee supervisor (and one-time winner), Rona Lisa Perretti, pairs up with Zach Kunde who takes on the role of Vice Principal Douglas Panch to conduct the competition. Kunde and Barron have great chemistry together and draw lots of laughs from the audience as they provide the words for the students to spell, along with their definitions, use in a sentence and countries of origin. Michael Davis Arnold plays Mitch Mahoney, the assigned “comfort counselor” who is ready with both a hug and a juice box for the next eliminated student. Arnold and Barron both have tremendous singing voices that stun the audience with their solos in this mostly ensemble piece.  

Will Koski, who plays William Barfee’ has stand-out comic and physical timing comedy as his character finds it necessary to spell out each word with his “magic foot” on the floor. Jamie Dillon Grossman is terrific in her role as the adorable, super intelligent, activist, future Congress-bound Logainne Schwartzandgrubeniere, who is under a tremendous amount of pressure to win because her dads “hate losers”. 

Mai Hartwich is a perfect fit as Marcy Park, the student who is capable of speaking “six languages” but is under a great deal of inner pressure to be perfect in everything she does, which includes winning every spelling bee she enters. Hartwich has a great aha moment during the song “Marcy’s Epiphany,” where Marcy realizes that by deliberately spelling a word wrong and losing the spelling bee on purpose, she’s, in many ways, actually taking back her own power so she relax, have fun and return to pursuing what she really wants to wants to do with her life. 

This is a production where truly the entire cast delivers. Joe Lewis is well cast as cape-wearing Leaf Coneybear while Brandon Acosta tackles his role as Chip Tolentino and shines in his performance of “Chip’s Lament,” a whimsical number about how he was distracted by his “unfortunate erection”. Rachel Guth is a pleasure to watch as she plays the sweet and anxious Olive Ostrosky, an only child whose father does not show up for the spelling bee. With her parents on the go so often, Olive has spent most of her lonely childhood at home alone reading the ancient family dictionary because there was no one around to talk to. During the competition she repeatedly looks to row eight to see if her father has arrived to take the seat she reserves for him. Guth has a strong singing voice and especially displays her vocal talent, along with Barron and Arnold, when they team up for the number “The I Love You Song.”      

Director, Christopher Pazdernik does a great job with the pacing and movement of this bright and breezy production. Pazdernik mentions in the program the life lessons that this play should remind us of - to work hard and be proud of ourselves, but that winning isn’t everything! Also, be kind to others and don’t take life so seriously! The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee points out that as children and adults we put way too much pressure on ourselves to be perfect - to WIN first place and to impress ourselves and others in our family, and by doing so miss out on the joy of the moments completely.

I wasn’t a spelling bee kid, but I was a thespian competitor in high school and, as one spelling bee student after another had to be eliminated, I couldn’t help but relive my own memories of intense anxiety arising before, after, and during our national thespian competitions - which had no cash prize at all. That being the case, I really related to Michael Davis Arnold’s “Prayer of the Comfort Counselor,” which he knocks out of the park vocally.

I highly recommend this Music Theater Works production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee staged in the lovely and intimate North Stage in the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts for audiences of all ages. 

Music Theater Works is proud to announce the cast and creative team for the first production of its 2024 season, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, in the Center Theatre at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts In Skokie, 9501 Skokie Blvd, Skokie, March 7 - 31. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, conceived by Rebecca Feldman, additional material by Jay Reiss, music and lyrics by William Finn and book by Rachel Sheinkin, is directed and choreographed by Christopher Pazdernik, assistant directed and choreographed by Keely Vasquez and music directed by Michael McBride. The schedule includes a preview performance Thursday, March 7 at 7:30 p.m. with a press opening Friday, March 8 at 7 p.m. The performance schedule is Fridays and Saturdays at 7:30 p.m., Wednesdays at 2 p.m., Saturday, March 16 at 2 p.m., and Sundays at 2 p.m. The two performances: Saturday, March 23 and March 27 at 7:30 p.m., are for guests 18 years old and above as words spelled will be of an adult nature and may not be suitable for children.Tickets are now on sale from $39 to $106 with tickets for guests 25 years old and younger available at half-price at MusicTheaterWorks.com or by calling the Music Theater Works box office at the North Shore Center, 847.673.6300. Group discounts are also available for groups of 10 or more by contacting 847.920.5360.

Winner of the Tony and the Drama Desk Awards for Best Book, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee has won the hearts of theatergoers across the country with its mix of wit, wills, and audience participation. Join this group of unique and dedicated students as they compete for the spelling bee championship that celebrates the pursuit of the ultimate prize while finding the joy of being oneself.

The cast of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee includes Neala Barron (she/her, Rona Lisa Peretti); Zach Kunde (he/him, Douglas Panch); Michael Davis Arnold (he/him, Mitch Mahoney); Will Koski (he/him, William Barfée); Rachel Guth (she/her, Olive Ostrovsky); Jamie Dillon Grossman (she/her, Logainne  Schwartzandgrubenierre); Mai Hartwich (she/her, Marcy Park); Joe Lewis (he/him, Leaf Coneybear) and Brandon Acosta (he/him, Chip Tolentino). The understudies include Joselle Reyes (she/her, Marcy/Olive U/S); Kevin Parra (he/him, Leaf/Chip U/S); Dane Strange (he/him, Barfee/Mitch U/S); Lilli Galuzzo (she/they, Logainne/Rona U/S) and Bryson Howard (he/him, Panch U/S). 

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee’s creative team is Christopher Pazdernik (any with respect, director/choreographer); Keely Vasquez (she/her, assistant director and assistant choreographer); Michael McBride (he/him, music director); Amber Wuttke (she/her, fight & intimacy choreographer); Allison Gonzales (she/her, stage manager); Ethan Colish (he/him, assistant stage manager); Ben Lipinski (he/him, scenic designer/paint charge); Ab Rieve (they/them, props designer); Kristen Brinatti (she/her, costume designer); Melanie Saso (she/her, asst. hair, wig and makeup designer); Levi K. Wilkins (he/him, lighting designer); Forrest Gregor (he/him, sound designer) and Andersonville Scenic Studios (scene shop).

ABOUT CHRISTOPHER PAZDERNIK, DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER

Christopher Pazdernik returns to Music Theater Works after making his debut with 2023’s Avenue Q. Pazdernik is best-known for his work as artistic director of Refuge Theatre Project (Jeff Awards, Best Director and Best Production of a Musical, High Fidelity); a long association with Porchlight Music Theatre--including directing eight Porchlight Revisits productions; three years of directing Who's Holiday at Theater Wit and his current role as producing director at Theo. Also an openly HIV+ artist, Pazdernik is the creator and producer of the benefit concert “Belting for Life” and co-captain of Team Option Up! for AIDS Run/Walk Chicago.

ABOUT KEELEY VASQUEZ, ASSISTANT DIRECTOR/CHOREOGRAPHER

Keely Vasquez is an actor, singer, teacher and voiceover artist. Recent acting credits include: Dear Evan Hansen (First National tour), Spamalot (Mercury Theater Chicago) and Next to Normal (Writers Theatre). Other Chicago theatrical credits include shows at Porchlight Music Theatre, Drury Lane Oakbrook Theatre, Goodman Theatre, Paramount Theatre, Marriott Lincolnshire Theatre and The Broadway Playhouse. She has served as casting associate for Mercury Theater Chicago since 2021. For nearly a decade, she toured the world singing with Barry Manilow.

ABOUT MICHAEL MCBRIDE, MUSIC DIRECTOR

Dr. Michael McBride is a Jeff Award-winning music director, internationally-performed composer, performer and educator. He is excited to return to Music Theatre Works after music directing Lerner & Loewe’s Brigadoon and Billy Elliot. Credits include Big Fish (Boho Theatre, Jeff Award); Revolution(s) (Goodman Theatre); Grease (Drury Lane Theatre); The Scarlet Pimpernel (Engeman Theatre, NY); Rent, New Faces Sing 1951, PorchlightPalooza, Broadway by the Decade (Porchlight Music Theatre); Passing Strange (Theo Ubique); 49th Annual Jeff Awards Ceremony; Ain’t Misbehavin’, The Robber Bridegroom, Jesus Christ Superstar, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, Pippin,What a Wonderful World (workshop), Man of La Mancha, Mamma Mia, Into The Woods, The Little Mermaid (Timber Lake Playhouse); The Boys and the Nuns (composer & MD), Fun Home, Violet, Cabaret, Tintypes, She Loves Me, Spring Awakening, Hot Mikado, Urinetown, Into the Woods (Loyola University Chicago); The Christmas Foundling (composer and music director; Pride Arts Center); Footloose (Wallace Bowl); The Drake Hotel holiday programming and The Cabaret Project in Chicago, St. Louis and Lake Geneva. He is proud to be music director at A Church 4 Me MCC in Chicago. Having earned a DM in composition from Northwestern University, He has served on faculty of Northwestern University, Loyola University Chicago and North Park University where he is a visiting assistant professor.

MUSIC THEATER WORKS 2024 SEASON

Subscriptions are now available at MusicTheaterWorks.com for its 44th season including 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, March 7 – 31, 2024, followed by Carousel, August 8 – August 18, 2024, Little Shop of Horrors, October 24 – November 17, 2024 and concludes with Legally Blonde: The Musical, December 19 – 29, 2024. All performances are at the North Shore Center for the Performing Arts in Skokie, 9501 Skokie Blvd. Single tickets go on sale for the 2024 Season Tuesday, Jan. 23 at 12 p.m.

ABOUT MUSIC THEATER WORKS

Music Theater Works is a resident professional not-for-profit music theater founded in

1980. During its 44-year history it has presented more than 150 productions and intimate

presentations. Music Theater Works is a professional theater company whose mission is

to present works for the musical stage including historic repertoire, revitalizing the Golden Age of Broadway and earlier works, celebrating the Great American Songbook and introducing modern classics.

Having never seen this show, five minutes in I felt that I was really going to enjoy myself. Twenty minutes later, I knew that fifteen minutes ago I was correct in feeling so. As the minutes into the show increased, The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee only got better and better.

The show, set in a high school gymnasium, starts with a janitor nonchalantly setting the clock on the scoreboard to a countdown while the house lights are still on and people are searching for their seats. Those already familiar with the show release scattered cheers knowing that show time is just around the corner. Sure enough the buzzer sounds as the theatre darkens and our attention is directed to a high school teacher who is clearly reminiscing about her days as a spelling bee champion. We are then introduced to the high school vice principal, a community service volunteer and a collection of nerdy, overachieving and socially awkward competitors and the cast breaks into the title song. Ms. Peretti then addresses the crowd from a center stage microphone and calls out for four other contestants who are randomly selected from the audience. The spelling bee begins.

The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee brilliantly parodies many of the distinguishing nuances of actual spelling bees, lightheartedly poking fun at the process and those involved while at the same time becoming a tribute that shows the dedication, intelligence and pressures involved. As each contestant approaches the microphone, Ms. Peretti reads aloud a fun factoid (often to the utterly ridiculous) about them. Vice Principal Panch reads the word to be spelled then, if asked, provides the language of origin, its definition and how it can be used in a sentence, which was always a hilarious highlight.

Playing Vice Principal Douglas Panch was Joe Dempsey who could be funny literally doing nothing at all. With a penchant for superior comic timing, northsiders, like myself, are very familiar with Dempsey’s talent to draw laughs as a Neo-Futurists alumn and his work in many other Chicago theaters. The exceedingly gifted Frances Limoncelli was also just terrific in every sense of the word as Rona Lisa Peretti while each and every cast member playing a contestant brought their own unique humor to the table providing a bus load of hoots and hollers to be had for a full night of entertainment.

Let’s not forget about the music. From the “I Love You Song” to “My Unfortunate Erection” to “Magic Foot” to the goodbye’s that were sang whenever a contestant was escorted off stage, we are never shorted of fun, catchy and witty songs.  

Nerd or not, The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is deliciously delightful from beginning to end and will be playing at Drury Lane Theatre in Oakbrook through August 17th. For tickets and/or more show information visit www.drurylane or call 630-530-0111. 

Here's hoping I did not spell any words in this review incorrectly.

* Top Photo - (L to R)(Back Row)-Stephenie Soohyun Park, Jordan DeLeon, Guest, Zach Colonna, (Front Row)-Guest, Eli Branson, Carolyn Braver

*Below Photo - Zach Colonna, (Back Table)-Frances Limoncelli, Joe Dempsey