By JON LINDLEY
A Seat on the Aisle
Let me spell this out for you: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, currently playing at Indiana Repertory Theatre (IRT), is D-E-L-E-C-T-A-B-L-E! And “delectable,” it just so happens, is one of those maddening words that I always seem to end up having to look up. I think of myself as a good speller, but maybe I have to admit the skill has atrophied over time since the rise of spell check.
Not so for the set of colorful characters inhabiting Spelling Bee. This rollicking musical, with music and lyrics by William Finn, book by Rachel Sheinkin, and conceived by Rebecca Feldman, was directed for the IRT production by Patdro Harris with huge dollops of boisterous spirit, sharp-witted humor, and theatrical panache.
The setting is a school gymnasium, and the title of the piece tells you what you need to know: we’re at the annual spelling bee, and the champs of their respective schools are convening at this summit of spelling prowess to try to take home the trophy.
The contestants – The Spellers, in the jargon of this world – are six smart kids, played exquisitely by six slightly older young adults. Three adults oversee the proceedings. For an extra fun gimmick of the play, another team of Spellers is assembled from volunteers from the audience. It’s a tough competition. The words pitched out by The Pronouncer (the adult who pronounces the word and offers hints such as language of origin and use in a sentence) are ones most of us have probably never heard before, nor tried to spell. If the speller “at bat” makes one mistake, they’re out. Those are the rules. A hug and a juice box are the slim consolation the losers get as they’re escorted off the stage.
The cast was brilliant, each young actor taking a moment to shine in succession, then handing it off to the next in turn, then going around again in a giddy, joyful – even if occasionally angst-filled – round-robin. The adults grounded the proceedings with a sense of rules and structure but, thanks to a wickedly smart script and perhaps a bit of improvising, kept the feeling in the room more party than procedure.
The cast of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, on stage now at IRT. (Photo by Zach Rosen)
The design was IRT-caliber at its best: a nicely turned-out gymnasium, ready for something clearly more special than dodgeball to transpire. And with a magic that only the modern American musical theatre can craft, charming little surprises were available for the perusing eye and attentive ear: a scoreboard that seemed to be in on the fun was a glowing example, nifty sound effects that punctuated without intruding …
Director Harris deserves an extra callout, I should add, for some deft choreography, which served to bump up the already pulsing energy of this show, at just the right times and in just the right places.
Wrapped in the whimsy and charm of this theatrical confection is a thoughtful message for us to ponder as we step back into the Burnout Society that most of us inhabit these days. Whether we’re proper spelling bee contestant age or considerably older and ruminating on our own contests of life, we all know the feeling of stepping up to the mic to put our knowledge and skill on the line. We want to succeed, of course, though we know, as quick as the ding of a bell, we may fail. Spelling Bee gently and with agile humor reminds us of some of the ways we can roll with the result, whatever it may be. But if that’s a bit too weighty for you, it’s all right. Just sit for a spell at this superb IRT production and enjoy. It’s a winner!
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee continues at IRT through Oct. 13. Ticket information is available at irtlive.com or by calling (317) 635-5252.
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