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Oh, the adolescent terrors of a spelling competition are nothing compared with the terrors of simply existing as an adolescent, writes Orlando Sentinel Theater Critic Matthew J. Palm.
Oh, the adolescent terrors of a spelling competition are nothing compared with the terrors of simply existing as an adolescent. That’s a message of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” a chipper musical prone to moments of darkness as it follows six young students, played by adults, through the rigors of a public display of their ABC’s. Celebration Theatre Company is staging the .
Celebration Theatre Company continues its fifth season with Rachel Sheinkin and William Finn s Tony Award-winning The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, running from April 30 - May 9, 2021 at the Dr. Phillips Center for Performing Arts Alexis and Jim Pugh Theatre. Audiences will buzz along with six highly (and some not-so-highly) intelligent children and their personal relationships with life, love, family, and their passion for spelling.
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee features an eclectic group of six mid-pubescents going head-to-head in the spelling championship of a lifetime. While candidly disclosing hilarious and touching stories from their home lives, the tweens spell their way through a series of (potentially made-up) words, hoping never to hear the soul-crushing, pout-inducing, life un-affirming ding of the bell that signals a spelling mistake. Six spellers enter; one speller leaves! At least the losers get a juice box.
Image: Penn State Behrend April 22, 2021
ERIE, Pa. Art imitates life, right?
Penn State Behrend’s fall theater production, like much of the country at that time, was locked down: The cast gathered on Zoom, performing from individual rooms in the college’s Perry Hall.
“They made the most of it,” said Emily Cassano, assistant teaching professor of music, theater and visual arts, “but they never had an opportunity to fully bond as a group. They were always in different rooms.”
The spring production, which runs April 22-25, reflects the later stages of the pandemic. The performances will be outdoors, under tents on the Wilson parking lot. The cast will be together, but still distanced; audience members also will be separated, although those who purchased tickets as a group can sit together.