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My First Theatre Experience
Mum and Dad took Rod & I to the Melbourne Theatre Company’s production of the Putnam County 25th Annual Spelling Bee yesterday. It was a great musical production and had a great cast. I know this shows on Broadway but if this show comes to your town, you’ve gotta go check it out! Hilarious! Thanks Chris & Barb for showing us such a great time.
Cast includes David Campbell, Tyler Coppin, Bert Labonte, Natalie Mendoza, Natalie O’Donnell, Christen O’Leary, Marina Prior, Magda Szubanski, and Tim Wright
Director Simon Phillips
Music Director Ian McDonald
Set & Costume Designer Dale Ferguson
Lighting Designer Matt Scott
Choreographer Ross Coleman
Music & lyrics William Finn,
Book by Rachel Sheinkin,
Conceived by Rebecca Feldman
Currently playing to standing-room-only houses on Broadway, THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE is the offbeat musical creation of Tony Award-winning composer and lyricist William Finn (Falsettos), Rachel Sheinkin, and Rebecca Feldman. This hilarious tale of overachievers’ angst – tender and sardonic – pits 10 contestants (six actors and four audience members) against each other in a battle for the spelling championship of a lifetime.
Among the adolescent brainiacs are multilingual national finalist Marcy Park (Natalie Mendoza, Coup d’Etat), Putnam Basin district second runner-up Leaf Coneybear, Magna Magnet for the gifted and unusual representative Logainne Schwarzandgrubeniere (Christen O’Leary, Urinetown), last year’s finalist - eliminated for health reasons - William Barfee (Magda Szubanski in her MTC debut), newcomer Olive Ostrovsky and last year’s county champion Chip Tolentino.
Also on hand at the showdown are comfort counselor Mitch Mahoney, longtime local Bee hostess – and former champ – Rona Lisa Peretti (Marina Prior, also making her MTC debut) and Lake Hemingway-Dos Passos Junior High Vice-Principal Douglas Panch.
At THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE, these young people in the throes of puberty, and their grownup supervisors who barely managed to escape childhood themselves, learn that winning isn’t everything and that losing doesn’t necessarily make you a loser.
“Can you spell I-R-R-E-S-I-S-T-I-B-L-E? A riotously funny and entirely adorable new musical.”– The New York Times
“The best in town - that rarity of rarities, a super-smart show that is also a bona fide crowd-pleaser.”– The Wall Street Journal
“This winning new musical is so generously warm-hearted, only the most bitter misanthrope could resist its charms.”– Variety
Winner:
2005 Tony Award for Best Book of a Musical
2005 Drama Desk Award for Best Book of a Musical
2005 Lucille Lortel Award for Outstanding Musical
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Mental Status: Frazzled, working on Immigration paperwork.
Physical Status: Feeling like I’m getting a cold.
Favourite Thing Today: Extra sleep and split pea soup.
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