The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

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The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
Original Broadway Production

Original Cast Recording
Music William Finn
Lyrics William Finn
Book Rachel Sheinkin
Theatre Circle in the Square Theatre
Opened May 2 2005
Producer(s) David Stone, James L. Nederlander, Barbara Whitman, Patrick Catullo, Barrington Stage Company, and Second Stage Theatre
Director James Lapine
Choreographer Dan Knechtges
Scenic designer Beowulf Boritt
Costume designer Jennifer Caprio
Lighting designer Natasha Katz

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a musical comedy with music by William Finn centering around a fictional spelling bee in a geographically ambiguous "Putnam County". It was workshopped and developed at the Barrington Stage Company in the Berkshires prior to its off-Broadway run at the Second Stage Theatre before transferring to Broadway's Circle in the Square Theatre. It was directed by James Lapine.

One unusual aspect of the show is that real audience members are invited to compete in the spelling bee alongside the performers. Each performance, four audience members compete against six actors. During the 2005 Tony Awards, former Presidential candidate Al Sharpton had a cameo as one of the competitors. Another unusual aspect of the show is its periodic "Parent-Teacher Conferences," also known as "adult night at the Bee," in which audience members must be over 17 to attend. These performances are peppered with sexual references and cursing, and grew from R-rated ad-libs made during rehearsals.

The musical was based upon C-R-E-P-U-S-C-U-L-E, an original play by The Farm, a New-York-based improvisational comedy troupe. Sarah Saltzberg, Wendy Wasserstein's nanny, was in the original production, and Wasserstein recommended that Finn see the show.

There are currently two separate sit-down productions of the Broadway musical in addition to the New York production. The San Francisco production opened on March 1, 2006 at the Post Street Theatre and closed on September 3, 2006. The Boston production openned at the Wilbur Theatre on September 26, 2006 and is running until December 31, 2006. The third production of the hit musical opened in Chicago on March 28, 2006 at the Drury Lane Theatre - Water Tower Place. The national tour began in Baltimore, Maryland at the Hippodrome Theatre on September 19, 2006.

The first production outside the United States was at the Melbourne Theatre Company in Melbourne, Australia in January 2006. It starred Marina Prior as Rona Lisa Peretti, David Campbell as Chip Tolentino, and Magda Szubanski as William Barfée.

Contents

[edit] Characters

[edit] The Spellers:

  • Olive Ostrovsky: A young newcomer to the competitive spelling word. Her mother is in an ashram in India and her father is working late, as usual, but he is trying to come at some time during the bee. She made friends with her dictionary at a very young age, helping her make it to the Putnam County Spelling Bee.
  • William Barfée: A Putnam County Spelling Bee finalist last year, but eliminated because of an allergic reaction to peanut brownies. His famous “Magic Foot” method of spelling had boosted him to spelling glory, even though he only has one working nostril, a touchy personality, a severe peanut allergy, and the mistaken belief that he looks good in shorts (not to mention an easily-mispronounced last name. It's Bar-fay, not Bar-fee).
  • Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre: Logainne is the youngest and most politically aware speller, with two stage dads who would make Mamma Rose blush. Perhaps the most rabid competitor of the bunch.
  • Marcy Park: A recent transfer from Virginia, Marcy placed 9th in last year’s nationals. She speaks six languages, is a member of all-American hockey, a championship rugby player, plays Chopin and Mozart on multiple instruments, sleeps only three hours a night, hides in the bathroom cabinet, and is getting very tired of always winning.
  • Leaf Coneybear: The second runner-up in his district (the winner and first runner-up had to go to a Bat Mitzvah), Leaf comes from a large family of former hippies and makes his own clothes. He’s not really that smart, but his heart is in the right place and he has a unique talent for pulling obscure words out of the air. All of the children in his family are named after plants, and all of his words are South-American rodents.
  • Chip Tolentino (Chip Berkowitz in the Chicago production): Champion of the 24th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. He returns to defend his title, but he finds puberty hitting at the most inopportune moments.
  • Four spellers from the audience

[edit] The Adults:

  • Rona Lisa Peretti: The #1 Realtor in Putnam County, a former Putnam County Spelling Bee Champ (at the 3rd annual Bee) and returning moderator. Sweet but stern.
  • Vice Principal Douglas Panch: After five years' absence from the Bee, Veep Panch is back as word pronouncer and judge. The “incident” of the 20th annual Bee is almost totally forgotten, and he’s in a much better place now, thanks to a high-fiber diet and Jungian analysis. Because he calls William Barfée "William Barfy", he is often called "Doug". He is infatuated with Rona Lisa Peretti, but she does not return the favor.
  • Mitch Mahoney: The rather intimidating Official Comfort Counselor. Mitch is serving his community service with the Bee, and he might find he has a knack for hugs and handing out juice boxes.

[edit] The Parents and Others:

  • Carl Schwartz: One of Schwartzandgrubenierre’s dads, he’s set on his heart on his little girl winning the bee, no matter what he has to do. Tries to sabotage William’s foot. Played by the actor who plays Leaf.
  • Dan Grubenierre: One of Schwartzandgrubenierre’s dads, he’s slightly less insane than Carl (but still intent on getting his baby the gold). Played by the actor who plays Mitch.
  • Leaf’s Mom: Overprotective and doubtful of her son’s abilities to stand up to the competition. Played by the actress who plays Logainne.
  • Leaf’s siblings, Marigold, Brooke, Pinecone, Landscape, Raisin, and Paul: Not very confident of Leaf’s abilities. Played by the actors and who play Olive, Marcy, Chip and the volunteer spellers.
  • Olive’s Mom and Dad: She’s in India, he’s working late, but they appear in Olive’s imagination to encourage her and tell her they love her. Played by the actors who play Miss Peretti and Mitch.
  • Jesus: Appears to Marcy in a moment of crisis. Played by the actor who plays Chip.

[edit] Tony awards

It earned six Tony Award nominations, and won two.

[edit] Current Broadway Cast

The Comfort Counselor, Mitch Mahoney / Derrick Baskin

Marcy Park / Deborah S. Craig

Leaf Coneybear / Barrett Foa

William Barfee / Josh Gad

Rona Lisa Peretti / Lisa Howard

Olive Ostrovsky / Jessica-Snow Wilson

Chip Tolentino / Jose Llana

Douglas Panch / Greg Stuhr

Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre / Sarah Saltzberg

[edit] Original Broadway Cast

The Comfort Counselor, Mitch Mahoney / Derrick Baskin

Marcy Park / Deborah S. Craig

Leaf Coneybear / Jesse Tyler Ferguson

William Barfee / Dan Fogler

Rona Lisa Peretti / Lisa Howard

Olive Ostrovsky / Celia Keenan-Bolger

Chip Tolentino / Jose Llana

Douglas Panch / Jay Reiss

Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre / Sarah Saltzberg

[edit] Broadway Replacements

  • Greg Stuhr replaced Jay Reiss as Douglas Panch on October 25, 2005.
  • Josh Gad replaced Dan Fogler as William Barfee on January 31, 2006.
  • Barrett Foa replaced Jesse Tyler Ferguson as Leaf Coneybear on June 25, 2006.
  • Jessica-Snow Wilson replaced Celia Keenan-Bolger as Olive Ostrovsky on September 19, 2006.

[edit] San Francisco Cast

The Comfort Counselor, Mitch Mahoney / James Monroe Iglehart

Marcy Park / Greta Lee

Leaf Coneybear / Stanley Bahorek

William Barfee / Jared Gertner

Rona Lisa Peretti / Betsy Wolfe

Olive Ostrovsky / Jenni Barber

Chip Tolentino / Aaron J. Albano

Douglas Panch / Jim Cashman

Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre / Sara Inbar

The San Francisco and Boston casts were identical, with the exception of Daniel Pearce as Vice Principal Panch, and Veronica Reyes replacing Michelle Noh as standby for Marcy, Logainne, and Olive.

[edit] Chicago Cast

The Comfort Counselor, Mitch Mahoney / James Earl Jones II

Marcy Park / Jen Sese

Leaf Coneybear / Derrick Trumbly

William Barfee / Eric Roediger

Rona Lisa Peretti / Roberta Duchak (Original - Lucia Spina)

Olive Ostrovsky / Cristen Paige

Isaac "Chip" Berkowitz / Brad Weinstock

Douglas Panch / Greg Mills (Original - Bill Larkin)

Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre / Christine Werny

u/s Olive & Logainne / Robin Childress

u/s Rona & Marcy / Christine Bunuan

u/s Barfe, Coneybear & Panch / Jeffrey James Binney (Original - George Andrew Wolf)

u/s Issac & Mitch / Julius Thomas III

[edit] National Touring Cast

The Comfort Counselor, Mitch Mahoney / Alan H. Green

Marcy Park / Katie Boren

Leaf Coneybear / Michael Zahler

William Barfee / Eric Petersen

Rona Lisa Peretti / Jennifer Simard

Olive Ostrovsky / Lauren Worsham

Chip Tolentino / Miguel Cervantes

Douglas Panch / James Kall

Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre / Sarah Stiles


[edit] Cities

(A strike denotes a city where the tour's performances have ended.)

  • Boston, Massachusetts - Open Run
  • Baltimore, Maryland - September 19, 2006 - October 1, 2006 - Hippodrome Theatre
  • Hartford, Connecticut - October 3, 2006 – October 8, 2006, 2006 - The Bushnell
  • Charlotte, North Carolina - October 10, 2006 – October 15, 2006 - Belk Theater
  • Philadelphia, Pennsylvania - October 17, 2006 - October 22, 2006 - Merriam Theater
  • Indianapolis, Indiana - October 24, 2006 – October 29, 2006 - Murat Centre
  • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania - October 31, 2006 – November 5, 2006 - Heinz Hall
  • Minneapolis, Minnesota - November 7, 2006- November 12, 2006 - State Theatre
  • Cincinnati, Ohio - November 14, 2006 - November 26, 2006 - Aronoff Center For The Arts
  • Dallas, Texas - November 28,2006 - December 3, 2006 - Majestic Theatre
  • San Diego, California - December 5, 2006 - December 10, 2006 - Civic Theatre
  • Reno, Nevada - December 12, 2006 - December 17, 2006 - Pioneer Theatre
  • Costa Mesa, California - December 19, 2006 - December 31, 2006 - Orange county Performing Arts Center
  • Portland, Oregon - January 2, 2007 - January 7, 2007 - Keller Auditorium
  • Seattle, Washington - January 9, 2007 – January 14, 2007 - The Paramount Theatre
  • Denver, Colorado - January 16, 2007 - January 28, 2007 - Buell Theatre
  • Tempe, Arizona - January 30, 2007 – February 4, 2007 - ASU Gammage
  • San Antonio, Texas - February 6, 2006 – February 11, 2007 - Majestic Theatre
  • Birmingham, Alabama - February 13, 2007 - February 18, 2007 - Civic Theatre
  • Louisville, Kentucky - February 20, 2007 – February 25, 2007 - Kentucky Center for Arts
  • Newport News, Virginia - March 1, 2007 - March 4, 2007 - Ferguson Center for the Arts Concert Hall
  • Nashville, Tennessee - March 6, 2007 – March 11, 2007 - Tennessee Performing Arts Center
  • Ft. Lauderdale, Florida - March 13, 2007 - March 25, 2007 - Broward Center
  • Tampa Bay, Florida - March 27, 2007 – April 1, 2007 - Carol Morsani
  • Fort Myers, Florida - April 3, 2007 - April 8, 2007 - Barbara Mann
  • Orlando, Florida - April 10, 2007 - April 15, 2007 - Bob Carr Performing Arts Center
  • Schenectady, New York - April 17, 2007 - April 22, 2007 - Proctors Theatre
  • Columbus, Ohio - April 24, 2007 - April 29, 2007 - Palace Theatre
  • Kansas City, Missouri - May 1, 2007 - May 6, 2007 - The Music Hall
  • St. Louis, Missouri - May 6, 2007 - May 20, 2007 - Fox Theatre

[edit] Cast Album

The Grammy nominated cast recording includes:

  • The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
  • Spelling Rules/My Favorite Moment of the Bee 1
  • My Friend, The Dictionary
  • First Goodbye
  • Pandemonium
  • I'm Not That Smart
  • 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
  • I Love You Song
  • Woe Is Me (Reprise)
  • My Favorite Moment of the Bee 3/Second
  • Finale
  • Last Goodbye

[edit] Words Used

  • Acouchi
  • Antediluvian
  • Antihistamine
  • Astrobleme
  • Bat Mitzvah
  • Boanthropy
  • Broccoli
  • Capybara
  • Camouflage
  • Chimerical
  • Chinchilla
  • Chromatophore
  • Coitus interruptus (adult show)
  • Corzya
  • Cow
  • Crayon
  • Crepuscule
  • Cystitis
  • Dinosaur
  • Elanguescence
  • Flagellate
  • Gardyloo
  • Ilspile
  • Indicant
  • Halitosis
  • Hasenpfeffer
  • Hospital
  • Kakapo
  • Kinnikinnick
  • Lugubrious
  • Miso (adult show)
  • Mohel
  • Onager (adult show)
  • Omphaloskepsis
  • Palaver
  • Phylactery
  • Raconteur
  • Rebus
  • Schadenfreude (adult show)
  • Schematic
  • Sluice
  • Staphylococcus
  • Strabismus
  • Syzygy
  • Taint (adult show)
  • Telephone
  • Tittup
  • Vas Deferens (adult show)
  • Vug
  • Vulpine
  • Weltanschauung
  • Zoonosis
  • Audience words:
  • Agnate (adult show)
    • Apoop
    • Balmacaan
      • This is not a real word and was made up for the show.
    • Cenacle
    • Cow
    • Casserole
    • Catarjunes
      • This is not a real word and was made up for the show.
      • An old Nantucket whaling term, with one written citation: "The neap tide is upon us. The leviathan nears. Catarjunes."
      • At a performance on Saturday, December 9, 2006, in San Diego, California, the last volunteer speller spelled this word correctly, causing the cast to break down momentarily laughing. They then gave her another word which she misspelled, eliminating her for good.
    • Elephant
    • Dengue
      • Al Sharptan missed this word at the Tonys.
  • Finger (adult show)
    • Jihad
    • Epicalyx
    • Kinnikinnick
      • A preparation made from dried leaves, bark, and sometimes tobacco and smoked especially by certain Native American peoples.
    • Krizzlemum
      • This is not a real word and was made up for the show.
    • Mexicans
    • Ragsplawger
    • Smoogligan
      • This is not a real word and was made up for the show.
      • Definition is unknown. It is said to be from the 1780's, possibly referring to mutton.
    • Pakapoo
    • Ahimsa
    • Schuss
    • Badchen
    • Xerophthalmiology
    • Valmancat
      • This is not a real word and was made up for the show.
      • Definition is unknown. It is said to be from the 1850's, referring to a type of animal.
    • Vigintillion
      • National Spelling Bee Champion Katharine "Kerry" Close missed this word when she was a speller in the show.
    • Homunculus
    • Zuuzuu

[edit] Trivia

  • Katharine "Kerry" Close, the 2006 winner of the Scripps National Spelling Bee was invited to be a contestant for one performance of the show. She was the last speller from the audience left. She survived 14 rounds.
  • Al Sharpton was invited to be a speller during their number in the Tonys.
  • All audience volunteers are given buttons that have the Spelling Bee logo and "Finalist" written on them.
  • At at least one performance, the apple juice given by the grievance counselor was actually Fruit Punch.

[edit] External links

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