Spelling Bee Audience Participation

[James2]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 12:13pm

How do they pick the four audience members?

[TheGaIsSilent]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 12:21pm

There's a guy with a clipboard who walks around the downstairs lobby, asking if you'd like to spell... then he directs you to another staff person who is sitting at a desk near the entrance to the theatre. You fill out a sheet with your name, age, etc. and then have a little "interview" about why you're at the show, etc. Ten minutes before showtime, you go back to the table and find out if you've been picked.

[James2]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 12:36pm

How far in advance do you need to see the man with the clipboard?

[JHartnow]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 12:40pm

"...see the man with the clipboard?"

Wow...that sounds so underworld-Public Enemy #1-ish! Once you're in the theatre, you'll see him or her. I would say that if you're desperate to be in the show, they won't pick you. Be there 30 minutes in advance, and that should give you plenty of time.

Can I have that used in a sentence, please?

-John

[WickedRentHead]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 1:15pm

I think there are words that are particularly challenging to spell that are given specifically to audience members when they need to leave the show...most of the time the people misspell a word on their own but sometimes they need to be given a really hard word in order to get them out. Well when I went (Saturday 6/4) the last audience member was up there and was given the word vanjillion or something like that and the man spelled it right. Well the cast onstage jus burst out laughing and was in shock that the guy actually correctly spelled the word given to him to purposely get him out of the show it was quite funny...so then guy just barely gets his but on the chair when they call him again and give him a ridiculous word that he had no shot at. It was really funny that the audience member took them all by surprise like that. Its quite fun

[hawkeyemania]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 1:21pm

That is hilarious. I bet that totally caught them off-guard.

[TheGaIsSilent]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 1:25pm

wickedrenthead, that's part of the script :)

[WickedRentHead]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 1:54pm

The audience member actually spelling the word correctly is part of the script? it happens at every show? hmm thats interesting yet still pretty funny Updated On: 6/9/05 at 01:54 PM

[DoogieB]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:11pm

I heard they usually pick adults but a young kid was asked last week. Supposedly also if you say it's your birthday they'll let you on.

[bythesword84]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:15pm

One of the times I went they picked a kid. He had to be maybe 7 at the most.

[ILoveWicked330]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:16pm

When I got to the theatre, the guy sitting at the table said it was picked randomly. Then the guy directing people to the table said "Well we interview you and if you're what we're looking for, then we'll pick you" so that was funny. When I went, they picked an older man, a really cute little girl (maybe like 10?) & they asked her to spell cow! They also picked a girl in her 20's and a guy in his 20-30's. They purposely have to get the audience members out of the show because would it make sense if an audience member won?

[JakeB]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:16pm

How many resumes are going to feature about a thousand community theater productions and then..

Broadway Credits

The 25th Annual Putnam Spelling Bee

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:26pm

It's not part of the script, but it does happen very often that audience members spell the "hard" word correctly. I have friends that have done it (including BWW's very own SticktoPriest) and they've all said that they were not told in advance what words they were going to get on stage.

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:27pm

lol. they normally dont want actors or theatre students to go on, just because theyd try to take the spotlight from the cast or something like that. somebody posted something about this before i think.

[hannahshule]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:36pm

I think one time, one of the audience members was a Champion speller or something, so he was spelling every single word correctly. They got him off eventually though.

[TheGaIsSilent]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:39pm

Margo,

I think I've posted this before here, but

*SPOILER*

They don't necessarily get the word right. They get a "freebie" word; no matter how they spell it, it's considered right, to get the laugh.

[Dirty Rotten Scoundrel]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 4:53pm

yeah one guy was a champ speller. lmao.

[musicgal04]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 5:11pm

Well I've seen people get out on their first word.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 5:13pm

GalIsSilent --

Where did I say anything about this first word? I was referring to the difficult word they are given in the latter part of Act One when it's time to get the audience spellers off the stage so the show can continue. People sometimes get THAT one right, so the audience members are immediately recalled and given an even harder word.

And I've seen the show twice, and each time somebody got the so-called "freebie" first word wrong and had to leave the stage.

Updated On: 6/9/05 at 05:13 PM

[TheGaIsSilent]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 5:24pm

I didn't mean the first word given. I meant the first word of the "two in a row"

[dancingthrulife04]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 5:53pm

Yup they picked the winner of the National Spelling Bee. Quite funny.

[kidmanboy]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 5:57pm

I've seen the show in all three of its incarnations (Barrington, 2nd Stage, and Broadway) and in all three the last person lasted through a couple difficult words, one of which usually is something with 2 historical written spellings or was only written down once. That's the word they usually give then no matter how it's spelled, within reason. I feel like if the audience memeber is REALLY off they have to ring the bell, but at least once i know for a fact the audience member spelled it wrong and they said it was right (it was a long science word...something-triglyceride or something).

[i*heart*fame]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 5:59pm

doogieb--are you serious--my birthday present from my mom was sperlling bee tickets for me, her, and my sister, and i'm seeing it next thursday for my birthday! ooh--i hope i get picked!

[DoogieB]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 6:09pm

fame- I have a friend who saw it and said there was this couple who were there and they told the guy it was one of thier birthdays, and he/she got on. I guess they approached "the man with the clipboard" and told him. Good luck!

[Unknown User]

Posted: 6/9/05 at 6:20pm

question: who eventually ends up winning the spelling bee?