The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee Reviews

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:22pm

Broadway.com is a Rave:

"The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee has packed up its unabridged dictionary and moved to Broadway. And William Finn and Rebecca Sheinkin's jubilant musical didn't leave behind a single laugh, stellar performance or moment of psychological clarity.

The consistently adventurous Finn, whose musicals have explored the deaths of loved ones (Falsettos, Elegies) and his own near-fatal brain tumor (A New Brain), took what at first appeared to be a step backward in ambition, turning his songwriting talents to the intrigues of… an elementary-school spelling bee. But with the help of the best ensemble on Broadway and James Lapine's buoyant staging, Finn and bookwriter Sheinkin have transcended the material to create a profoundly embracing reminder that heartbreak or joy or a new friend can be just a consonant away.
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To watch Coneybear and his dwindling number of oddball peers is to feel, between the barrage of belly laughs, one's own heart swell. I like--I love--The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee."


http://www.broadway.com/gen/Buzz_Story.aspx?ci=511476

[Caroline-Q-or-TBoo]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:22pm

already!? wowzer

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:23pm

They're always a little early.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:26pm

Good so far...

[Plum]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:30pm

I admit I get some sick amusement from critics' barbs at the worst shows, but the joy that comes across in a rave review is a lot of fun, too. And it's definitely nicer in the long term.

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:31pm

I just KNOW this is going to depress me. Bee was between it's Off-Broadway run and it's previews on Broadway when we were there - and it's one of the ones I really wanted to see. Ah well, it happened last year with Caroline, and then the theatre gods smiled on us here in LA. I'll hopefully see it eventually!

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:33pm

Hopefully it will tour, which I think will be a smart idea. I can't imagine at the least, regional productions springing up.

And I am positive after it's Broadway life, community theatres will snatch this one up in no time.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:33pm

Well, Dgrant, unlike Caroline, Spelling Bee looks to get mostly rave reviews and it'll likely have a far more healthy run than Caroline so you'll certainly get to see it here on your next trip.

Updated On: 5/2/05 at 06:33 PM

[Kevo711]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:35pm

i cant wait to see this show!!

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:35pm

It will definitely be near the top of the list for next year if it's still playing!

Did the Tony races just get a little more interesting?

[Benzy92]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:36pm

keep the raves coming.. this show deserves it :)

[bwaysinger]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:36pm

I really expect raves for this show and that's certainly going to turn the balance of power right now for the upcoming Tony nominations...

[Plum]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:36pm

Brantley has yet to weigh in, and I think he and Kuchwara are the biggies. But my instincts (wonky though they may be) are telling me he'll like it. This could be another Avenue Q vs. Wicked situation, except with fewer frighteningly obsessive prepubescent girls.

Updated On: 5/2/05 at 06:36 PM

[MasterLcZ]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:37pm

It probably will get more raves that not.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:38pm

Oh, I think a lot of us saw the Tony race get a lot more interesting the second it was announced Spelling Bee was moving to Circle in the Square before the deadline. Watch for it to grab Tony nods in AT LEAST a half dozen categories (and be a major contender in each).

[MasterLcZ]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:40pm

Right now, I would say that Folger is a lock for a nomination for a best supporting. Though I frankly preferred Llana (who IMHO got the funniest scene and song in the show).

Updated On: 5/2/05 at 06:40 PM

[wendy72]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:42pm

Really--who in particular do you think will receive noms? I agree with the Broadway.com reviewer--Dan Folger sort of scared me, too. And in no way to I think it has as many laughs as Avenue Q.

[GovernorSlaton]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:45pm

Nods I'm predicting as sure things:
-Musical
-Score
-Book (Which it will most likely win, deservedly)
-Direction
-Featured Actor (Fogler, maybe Ferguson as well)

It could also snatch nominations in Best Lighting, Best Set, Best Orchestrations, and Best Featured Actress.
Updated On: 5/2/05 at 06:45 PM

[Plum]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:45pm

It is as funny as Avenue Q, even if some of the laughs are more erudite than those in the latter show. And Jesse Tyler Ferguson ought to get a nomination; he was a delight, and, along with Fogler, had the clearest character arc in the show.

[BobbyBubby]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:45pm

I think Fogler is almost guaranteed a nom, although, I thought that about Ann Harada last year.

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:46pm

I found it a LOT funnier than Avenue Q and I've seen both twice.

It'll be nominated for Musical, Director, Book, Score, Featured Actor (Fogler and Ferguson) and Featured Actress (Keenan-Bolger)

[MargoChanning]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:50pm

Talkin Broadway is Mixed-to-positive:

Humor is just as plentiful, but most everything else is less spellbinding the second time around at The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. If you missed the show during its lauded engagement at Second Stage, you now have another chance to see one of the season's most laugh-packed musicals (the funniest to open on Broadway, at any rate). But the more compelling war of words than the one onstage at Circle in the Square is the one between H-I-T and T-R-A-N-S-F-E-R.
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As the spellers are eliminated, the survivors and the losers make their quiet and often painful progression toward adulthood until, at the end of the show, there's nothing left to do but explain exactly how this one fateful day impacted all their lives. The musical's affecting final scene is a triumphant tribute to not just the victor, but to the art of competition and the glory of youth, in which - in many ways - anything goes, and everyone can be a winner. This remains on Broadway a powerful, pleasing message.

But though the Broadway production is superior in many respects (most of them technical), it's less earnest and less polished than it seemed Off-Broadway, lacking much of the cutting earnestness that gave it what heart it had. While many shows (Caroline, or Change being a recent, highly visible example) can use time between mountings to fix problems, most of Spelling Bee's issues have not been sufficiently adjusted.

That's most notable in Finn's score, which is attractively adolescent in its worldview (including songs like "I'm Not That Smart," "My Friend, the Dictionary," and "I Speak Six Languages") but only theatrically ornamental. Only the title song, the singing of the competition's rules, and the hormone-inspired lament by an eliminated unlock any musical storytelling possibilities for the show; the other numbers feel like time-wasters, however charming, that lack the punch of necessity that even the best musicals need. (The score is playfully orchestrated by Michael Starobin, and Vadim Feichtner provides the lively musical direction.)

But if Finn erred in not making significant adjustments to his lackluster score, Sheinkin scored by leaving firmly in place her book's sharp-edged hilarity and undercurrent of pathos. She develops her characters so cleanly, cleverly, and completely in her dialogue that one can see why Finn was reluctant to fully integrate his songs with it: Sheinkin has provided one of the 2004-2005 season's tightest and most satisfying musical librettos.

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Whether The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee will prove as successful remains to be seen. If it's more relatable and human - at least on paper, if not currently in the broader than ideal production - it never obtains quite the synthesis of word, music, and concept that has made Avenue Q so captivating to so many. Ultimately, it's that more than the quality of the transfer itself that will spell either doom or success for this well-intentioned but not yet entirely realized show.



http://www.talkinbroadway.com/world/25AnnualPCSB.html

Updated On: 5/2/05 at 06:50 PM

[MusicalDirector109]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:51pm

No to get off the subject but...
Best Musical
"Pizazza"
"Bee"
"DRS"
and "Spamalot" ?????
Can't wait to see this show!!

[Benzy92]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:53pm

I have always hated Matthew Murray's reviews and this one just proves my disliking again.. the show didnt lose ANYTHING when it transferred, and the cast has only gotten stronger, not worse!

[leomaxfrank]

Posted: 5/2/05 at 6:55pm

Margo - do you think it's a strong possiblity for a Best Musical win? I know there has been plenty of talk about that on here - the whole small musical debate. But I'm curious what you think...