Spelling Bee Tour Review

[RentBoy86]

Posted: 2/18/07 at 12:59am

Birmingham, AL

This is the first time I've seen the show. It was so small and simple, but yet so brillant. The show as a whole is so tight. The lighting, set, singing, everything was right there. It was a very solid production.

The theater that it was housed in seats 3,000 so the show was a little dwarfed, but it still kept everyone's attention. I like how they played around with the theater to make the show fit. The actors entered through the audience, banners hung throughout the house, etc.

I think this show is a great example of how "fluff" can be done well. It's simple and enjoyable, but at the same time so damn moving. I didn't realize the impact of "The I Love You Song" until I saw the performance. It's such a powerful song.

As for the acting...I thought everyone was very strong. I wasn't sure how I felt about Marcy Parks in the begining. Kate Boren - who played her - didn't use a character voice for the part, so she sounded much older than the others, but as the show progressed I think it made perfect sense. Lauren Worsham as Olive was so small and simple, but not small enough that she got lost. She really had some great acting moments, not to mention her beautiful voice. It was odd to have a dark haired Logainne just because I'm so use to the OBC, but Sarah Stiles did a wonderful job with the part which was rather small. I figured it would be a larger role, but it didn't seem to be. Eric Petersen as William B. was outstanding. He showed so many different sides to that character. He had such honesty, but such great comedic timing.

The only weak links I think were Chip (Miguel Cervantes) and Leaf (Michael Zahler), which isn't to say they're not hilarious, I just thought they could have done more. I don't think either of them was BIG enough for the size house they were in. It might have worked for a Broadway size house, but they needed to be bigger. They were both hilarious, and they got big laughs from the audience, but I didn't think their characters were as great as the others.

I think the standout cast member would have to be Jennifer Simard as Rona. That girl could SING to the rafters and had impeccable comedic timing. Her jokes were hilarious. One of the spellers from the audience was wearing a blake sweater, grey pants, and black high heels, and as she was walking up to get to the mic, Rona said "Ashley is excited for her favorite clothes to come out in color." That joke had the audience in tears. Also, when one of more handsome contestants was walking up she said "Scott is a descendent of Zeus who is the God of Hot men." She was just great all around.

I'm curious to know what other ppl think of the show, and how it holds up in other theaters. I really want to see Spamalot now because if it beat out this and Piazza, then it must be AMAZING.

[deadparrot]

Posted: 2/18/07 at 2:22am

I'm glad to hear you liked it. I'm going to see it in May, and I'm ridiculously excited. :)

[sidneybruhl]

Posted: 2/19/07 at 7:57pm

I saw the show in NYC last summer and will be seeing the tour tomorrow night in Louisville, KY. I absolutely love this show! I'm actually taking 41 of my high school students to see it and know that they are going to love it. I do worry about the fact that the theatre it's playing in seats 2000, but I'm keeping an open mind. I'll be sure to post a review.

[sidneybruhl]

Posted: 2/23/07 at 8:34pm

Caught the show in Louisville this week and loved it! I would have to agree with RentBoy that Jennifer Simard is a standout. She was especially good in "The I Love You Song." Having seen Celia play Olive, I thought that Lauren Worsham did a great job with the role. This girl has a bright future! Having seen most of the OBC when I saw the show in NYC last summer, I have to say the touring cast does not disappoint. If the show plays your city, see it!

[SweetQintheLights]

Posted: 3/17/07 at 6:00pm

Yay! I'm back.

I went to the show in Ft. Lauderdale. (6th time seeing it- 5 on Bway) and, I have to say- it was good but the original cast will always be the best.
Nobody can take place of Celia, Sarah, Jose, Jesse...etc.
Although, Jennifer Simard (Lisa Peretti) was very impressive!

One of the guest spellers was Louis Aguirre!! The guy from Deco Drive...the one who's really funny and fools around with Lynn Martinez. Lol. You probably don't have a clue what I'm talking about but it was exciting!!
So, I got a picture with him (I look horrible). And then I got one of him alone but it's a bit blurry.
He's cute so I'm gonna post it.

And a quick review. There were a few stumbles but not too obvious for those who haven't seen it. The Spelling Bee sign was crooked- I think one side was lowered lower than the other. I forget at which point it was but the guy playing Mitch forgot the words and made some random words up.
The little rant Logainne made was about Britney Spears shaving her head, Anna Nicole Smith and something else I forget. Although amusing, Sarah Saltzberg's rants were much funnier. I don't think the girl playing Olive was "weird" enough. She seemed too...normal? People found Chip to be hysterical during the erection song but he didn't really cover "it" when he was asking to forfeit his turn. Additionally, the Jesus scene was confusing. The theatre is humongous so it took a while to spot him. He was standing in one of the boxes so the people on that side couldn't see him at all. Bur, I guess that was decided the best place though. The best I think was Jen Simard. Her voice projects so well and she was really into it.

Lastly, they added some jokes to relate to S. Florida.

And here is the picture...


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