The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee – New World Stages, New York City

Cute, funny, even adorable with a splash of improv, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a fun, light-hearted show. It doesn’t have complicated sets, complex technical elements, or extravagant numbers, but it is funny, heart-warming and has an element of “anything can happen.”

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee first came to broadway in 2005, winning two Tony Awards. But its origins are in improv. While the show is mostly scripted it does have improvised moments. When the audience is introduced to the bee contestants, four contestants are called from the audience! Don’t worry!  If you are thinking about going to this show, you can see this show without concerns about being called up to the stage. Volunteers sign up in the lobby before the show. (If you do want to volunteer, make sure you arrive early enough to do so.)

Given the new volunteers participating in the show, the bee moderators Rona Lisa, played by Lilli Cooper, and Vice Principal Panch, played by Jon Cryer, have to improvise on the fly around these new characters. The moderators provide some background description on each contestant. This is when some light fun is had at the volunteer’s expense. Clothes and age seem a comment target. I imagine the performers have a number of zingers in their back pocket based on the characteristics of volunteers chosen.

There are some heart-warming/heart-pulling songs throughout, as various contestants sing about their hopes, fears, etc. But this show shines with its zingers and one-liners. I believe the contestant introductions and when the vice principal provides a sentence when a contestant asks, “Can you use the word in a sentence?” have some improvisation leeway for the actors. Some of the sentences provided were both bizarre and not really useful. Which was funny!

The young contestants are played by adults, and there are some very quirky characters! Past champion Chip. Olive whose parents seem to be largely absent. Logainne has a lisp and has progressive views she shares with the audience. My favorite character Leaf, who seems like he would be out early, but at the last moment goes into a trance and spells the word.  There’s William who has a “magic foot” to help him visualize the answer.  Then there’s Marcy, who is brilliant and seems like the obvious winner.  This was my first time seeing the show, and I had no idea who was going to win the bee. I was guessing until the end.

When I saw it, one of the volunteers was young, pre-teen maybe? He was the last volunteer contestant on stage and was given a difficult word. (The volunteers usually got either a very easy word, like cow, or a very, very hard word.) I’m not sure if it was scripted, or if this young gentleman just guessed right, but he spelled it correctly. What followed was a funny sequence where he had to take another turn. He was then given what I’m sure was a completely made-up word. It was hilarious as it was clear he was supposed to lose and get a good-bye song.

While this show deals with a school age spelling bee, I wouldn’t say this show is for kids. It’s not Disney. There are some edgy jokes and, well, one song about an erection. But it’s not A Strange Loop or Rocky Horror either. I would say it’s probably a PG-13 show.

If you like nostalgia, clever jokes, quick on their feet improvisers, and some good songs, go see The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee!