Musical Comedy Spelling Bee Makes Winners Out of Talented Misfits
September 4, 2007
The Tony Award-winning musical comedy The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee makes its State College debut with performances at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday and Thursday, Sept. 19 and 20, in Eisenhower Auditorium on the Penn State University Park campus.
Hear an exclusive podcast interview with cast member James Kall at www.cpa.psu.edu/previews.
In The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, six young people in the throes of puberty, overseen by grown-ups who barely managed to escape childhood themselves, learn that winning isn't everything and that losing doesn't necessarily make you a loser. This tuneful, offbeat and at times heartwarming show offers audience members the opportunity (strictly voluntary) to become part of the action as on-stage spellers. Four volunteer spellers will be chosen at each performance, and the Sept. 20 performance features celebrity speller Graham Spanier, president of Penn State.
Section one and two tickets for the Center for the Performing Arts touring Broadway presentation are $54 and $48 for an adult, $44 and $38 for a University Park student and $49 and $43 for a person 18 and younger. Buy tickets online at www.cpa.psu.edu or by phone at (814) 863-0255. Outside the local calling area, dial 1-800-ARTS-TIX. Tickets are also on sale at four State College locations: Eisenhower Auditorium (8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays), Penn State Tickets Downtown (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday), HUB-Robeson Center (11 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays) and Bryce Jordan Center (10 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays). A grant from the Penn State Student Activities Fee Funds makes University Park student prices possible.
James Lapine, the Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize winner (Sunday in the Park with George, Into the Woods) who directed the Broadway production of Spelling Bee, directs the national touring production. The musical, conceived by Rebecca Feldman with additional material written by Jay Reiss, features music and lyrics by Tony winner William Finn (Falsettos, Elegies, A New Brain) and a Tony Award-winning book by Rachel Sheinkin. Spelling Bee features scenic design by Beowulf Boritt, costume design by Jennifer Caprio, lighting design by Natasha Katz, sound design by Dan Moses Schreier and choreography by Dan Knechtges.
"Can you spell i-r-r-e-s-i-s-t-i-b-l-e? Spelling Bee is riotously funny and remarkably ingenious. Gold stars all around," writes The New York Times. The Wall Street Journal describes Spelling Bee as "perfect in every possible way–that rarity of rarities, a super-smart musical that is also a bona fide crowd-pleaser. An ingenious blend of simplicity and sophistication; it's not merely funny, it's wise."
The musical in based on C-R-E-P-U-S-C-U-L-E, an original play by The Farm improvisational group in New York City. Spelling Bee had its world premiere production in July 2004 at Barrington Stage Company in Sheffield, Mass. Under the direction of Lapine, Spelling Bee opened Off-Broadway on February 7, 2005, at Second Stage Theatre, where it ran for two months. The show then moved to Broadway's Circle in the Square Theatre (where it continues its run), where previews began on April 15, 2005, and the official opening took place on May 2, 2005.
M&T Bank sponsors the performance. WTAJ-TV 10 and 95.3 3WZ are the media sponsors. Audio description, which is especially helpful to patrons with sight loss, is available for the Sept. 20 performance at no extra charge to ticket holders. Artistic Viewpoints, an informal discussion featuring a visiting artist or local expert, is offered in Eisenhower Auditorium one hour before each performance and is free for ticket holders. Artistic Viewpoints regularly fills to capacity. Seating is available on a first-arrival basis.
Contact: Laura Sullivan, 814-863-6379