Chicago Critic BASHES Spelling Bee like I've never seen!

[respeck]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 2:37am

From Chicago's free weekly paper, The Reader.



THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE

Dissonant is the word for this Broadway hit, now receiving its Chicago premiere from a local cast. The spelling-bee contestants inhabit a no-man's-land of age: the adults playing the kids, who unaccountably seem to range from 8 to 14, never come across as either flesh-and-blood nerdy grade-schoolers or witty adult takes on them. The setting is a homogenous small town, though audience-pandering jokes refer to Chicago. Worse, cartoonish characterizations by writers Rachel Sheinkin, William Finn, and Jay Reiss clash with attempts to tug at our heartstrings. Making up for all the weird disconnects, I guess, are the predictable parts: a monotonous contest format, racial and gender stereotypes, Finn's forgettable songs, and simplistic backstories and emotions. At this spelling bee, nobody wins. --Laura Molzahn




Thoughts?

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 2:55am

Really? Ouch. I think Finn's score is great.

[C is for Company]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 3:06am

It wasn't even like they spoke directly about the production on an acting level very much, they just bashed a lot of the creative portion. Just very brief with overall negativity for everything. Well speaking from someone who saw the obc twice, I loved every bit of it, creative and performance wise.
What they were saying about the characters, it makes me either a) think the reviewer was on crack or b) that NY spelling bee audiences got lucky with an extraordinary batch of actors to play these "cartoonish characterizations" here.
From the pictures I have seen, I am intrigued about this Bee.

[tophertilson]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 3:25am

Wasn't this the woman who was barred from the press presentation? I remember there being a huge stink over this. I think this may be the same journalist.

TT

[thevolleyballer]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 3:25am

I have a feeling Laura Molzahn will soon be attacked my a little girl named Jenna who will appear by her bed at midnight with a knife if she doesn't send this to 30 people. Oh, wait, never mind.

[Faith2]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 5:00am

Who is Laura Molzahn, and why should anyone care what she thinks. After all it's only her 'personal' opinion, which is very subjective.

I NEVER pay attention to so called critics - and that's my personal opinion.

I saw the "BEE" last Sunday in Chicago, and I do not agree with Laura Molzahn. So there - how about that?!

[washu2002]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 6:50am

I agree with EVERY point of her review. I never really understood the success or popularity of this musical. It seems so peurile and unworthy of production in a Broadway house. I saw it and thought that it was a cheap tourist trap trick pandering to middle American white suburban moms on thier "mom's night out".

Posted: 4/14/06 at 8:32am

No, it was Hedy Weiss who was banned from the press conference and then mocked. I fully expected a bitter, nasty review, but the always unpredictable Hedy actually raved about the show. Uncharacteristically, she was unable to see any Nazi undertones in the show, either.

The Tribune also loved the show. The Reader is a free weekly and tends to like mostly off-beat, small shows. I don't know why they took such an intense dislike to "Bee" but the critical consensus in Chicago is "Bee" gets an "A".


Hedy Weiss loves the "Bee"

[MagicToDo82]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 9:30am

Joe! How true! A friend and I were discussing how we fully expected Hedy's review to state that having the character of Chip become Jewish for this production indicates the CLEAR anti-semitism of the midwest, the OBVIOUS sexual abuse in the Ostrovsky family, the fact that picked on kids will UNDOUBTEDLY grow up to commit acts like columbine, and don't even get her started on Mitch Mahoney -

but amazingly enough, her review was glorious.

Maybe I judged Hedy all wrong?

[bwayondabrain]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 9:34am

wait, who said the spelling bee kids will commit columbine? that is stretching things a bit far...?

wow

[WithoutATrace]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 9:38am

I agree with you, washu2002. I couldn't wait for it to be over when I saw it in NY.

[WiCkEDrOcKS]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 10:45am

I love BEE. It's one of the best shows on Broadway and it really deserved the Tony for Best Musical last season. It's such a great show and not only is it fun and entertaining but its seamlessly put together in such a rich and brilliant way that its a rarity; a very well pieced-together musical comedy.

[tophertilson]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 10:47am

Thanks JoeKv. I got my Chicago critics mixed up. :-/

TT

[The Distinctive Baritone]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 10:48am

Yes, Weiss of the Chicago Sun-Times loved the show, as did the critic from The Chicago Tribune. And really, in Chicago, those are the only two reviews that matter.

[MagicToDo82]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 11:22am

bwayondabrain...there's no mention of columbine in the show at all. Ms. Weiss has a tendency to find meanings in things that aren't there and to carry her sometimes-delusional meanings to their extreme conclusions. Thats all I was trying to say.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 11:23am

Spelling Bee got mostly raves on and off Broadway, but I do remember that Kissell of the Daily News and Barnes of the Post HATED it. They found it trite and cloying and annoying. They were pretty much alone in those sentiments, though.

[shermanslave]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 11:41am

I saw Bee when it was still off-broadway and loved it. I thought it was so sweet and funny and I think the songs are completely memorable. I can see why some folks may not like it, butI can't understand not being able to wait until it is over.

[liotte]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 11:44am

Eh, so this one person didn't like it. I find her review lacking overall, it doesn't have much detail except to say she didn't like it. From what I've read and people here have said, the other Chicago papers liked it, and I can't wait to see it next month.

[munkustrap178]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 11:48am

I think the show is okay, but I can't stand the score and only segments of the book are entertaining. The show basically annoyed me, I didn't see what all the hype was about.

[brdlwyr]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 11:50am

I spoke with someone involved with the production and ticket sales are excellent!

[uncageg]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 11:56am

I just read hedy Weiss' review. Wow, nowhere near that nasty review of Wicked. (She and I traded e-mails on that one). Maybe since then, they have adjusted her medication.

I saw the OBC of Bee last May and plan to see the show again this June. Taking my best friend as I told him it is a must see.

Updated On: 4/14/06 at 11:56 AM

[BroadwayBaby6]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 12:07pm

These free alternative papers take pride in contrarian reviews. In LA, the LA Weekly praised Pilgrim, a show which the major dailies had all called a travesty. Another time, the Weekly gave Ian McKellen a terrible review in "Enemy of the People" when the major dailies (and Variety) praised his performance.

It is also my understanding that the Chicago and SF casts are not as strong (and have much less stage experience) as the Broadway cast so I would not be surprised if the regional sit-down productions get less than stellar reviews.

[MagicToDo82]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 12:19pm

I respectfully beg to differ with the issue of the casts being not as strong...

While the NYC/OBC cast will always be hailed as the originators and therefore "best," the Chicago cast (and Im guessing the SF cast as well) was completely delightful and more than held up their end of the bargain.

As for having less stage experience, Cristen Paige and Lucia Spina (among others) are old pros of the Chicago theatre scene... and sometimes, new performers - though young - can surprise you. See Derrick Trumbly, the Chicago Leaf, for an example. He's awesome.

Updated On: 4/14/06 at 12:19 PM

[chinkie azn jai]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 12:53pm

Sorry OT, but I'll ask here since I don't want to start a new thread. Has anyone done the lotto for the chicago spelling bee? How many people are showing up for it?

[sweetestsiren]

Posted: 4/14/06 at 1:03pm

I thought that it was such an adorable and fun show when I saw it in New York, which is all it sets out to be, so that's fine. The score isn't very strong, but the book is great.