The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee (Musical)

Theatre Off The Square in Weatherford proudly presents their 2018 musical, “The 25^th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” book by Rachel Sheinkin; music & lyrics by William Finn; conceived by Rebecca Feldman; additional material by Jay Reiss. (Originally directed on Broadway by James Lapine; originally produced on Broadway by Davis Stone, James L. Nederlander, Barbara Whitman, Patrick Catulla; Barrington Stage Company, Second Stage Theatre) “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” is presented through special arrangement with Music Theatre International (MTI). All authorized performance materials are also supplied by MTI.  www.mtishows.com  The Director is Brad Justice; Music Director, Katie Porter; Assistant Director, Jaclyn Jones; and Stage Manager, Artemis Ramirez. The Weatherford High School theatre student intern is Taylor Fite (Music Director’s Intern).

Interpreter Services will be provided at the performance on Sunday, September 23 at 2:00 pm. Services are provided through a partnership with the American Sign Language Interpreting Program of Tarrant County College Trinity River Campus.
 
Winner of the Tony and the Drama Desk Awards for Best Book, “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” has charmed audiences across the country with its effortless wit and humor. Featuring a fast-paced, wildly funny and touching book by Rachel Sheinkin and a truly fresh and vibrant score by William Finn, this bee is on unforgettable experience. An eclectic group of six mid-pubescents vie for 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 unaffirming "ding' of the bell that signals a spelling mistake. Six spellers enter; one speller leaves! At least the losers get a juice box.
 
Four lucky audience volunteers will also get the opportunity to join the actors on stage and compete in the bee! You may want to brush up on your vocabulary if you want to succeed...these kids are ruthless! Information for those wishing to sign up for the audience participation can be found under “Purchasing Tickets” on the website.
 
The students are played by adults; this is not a youth production. Members of the cast are Cameron Cutshall as Chip Tolentino; Haley Davis as Logainne Schwartzandgrubeniere; Corey Rauscher as Leaf Coneybear; Christian Lopez as William Barfee; Autumn Siegmund as Marcy Park; Kate Cowling as Olive Ostrovsky; Jaclyn Justice as Rona Lisa Peretti; Mac Chestnut (u/s Brad Justice) as Douglas Panch; and Manny Garcia as Mitch Mahoney.