The 25thAnnual Putnam County Spelling Bee or Putnam, as it’s lovingly referred to by theater connoisseurs on a time crunch, is a sweetly funny but sincere musical about a small-town spelling bee and the cast of fiercely competitive children (all played by adults) who are vying for first place. It is essentially a comedic A Chorus Line with acne and braces.
Co-directed by first-time Springfield Theatre Centre directors and real-life boyfriend/girlfriend Shelby Bayless and Jake Hankins, Putnam proves to be an easy transition from their personal lives.
“We both work in education so the setting and working with school-age kids really spoke to us,” said Bayless. This is especially apparent in Hankin’s set, which evokes both a generic, Midwestern tiered classroom and the classic tri-fold posterboard used for school projects of yesteryear. Kyle Bolinger’s lighting design further anchors the show’s chaotic plot with situational precision as the opening’s fluorescent glow is so authentic one can almost hear the nostalgic hum of a grade-school gymnasium.
If that isn’t enough to transport you, the thrill and surprisingly nerve-wracking audience participation will revive those begrudged memories of sweaty eighth-grade anxiety. Each night, four volunteers join the cast onstage for much of the first act, braving the spelling rounds (and choreography) without the safety net of a script. This is the true genius of the show: creating genuine spelling bee jitters and palpable suspense as the rest of the audience can’t help but root for one of their own. At the reviewed performance, there was a wave of triumph as the final guest, Jordan DePatis overstayed his welcome by successfully spelling “gnocchi,” forcing the officials to pivot to a harder word just to get him off the stage.
There is no “star” of Putnam as it’s an ensemble cast comprised of six quirky bookworm students and three adults presiding over the event, but there are standouts. Chrissy Mauck plays the bee’s well-coiffed and professional host, Ms. Rona Lisa Peretti, with impeccable perkiness and an enchanting vocal prowess. Her unscripted line deliveries are also a highlight — playfully poking fun at the audience contestants and keeping her co-host, Doug Panch, played by the delightful Jim Dahlquist, on his toes.
“Getting to stretch my improvisational muscles has been my favorite part. It’s a different show every night,” Mauck said.
Relative newcomer to the Springfield theater scene, Tony Nelson-Pisano, who commutes from Bloomington, portrays the strange and home-schooled Leaf Coneybear with an unbridled, animated enthusiasm.
“I very much resonate with Leaf and his ADHD-isms,” Pisano said. His character wears a homemade cape outfit reminiscent of the psychedelic 1960s, and he appears to become occasionally possessed by a drug demon in order to correctly spell words. Pisano delivers each mini-scene hilariously, as if he’s just recently microdosed another mushroom. He owns every part of the stage with a whirlwind of comedic energy and is a joy to watch. This reviewer looks forward to seeing him in future productions.
Although each of the six students are somewhat dutifully given an emotional or moral epiphany to round out an otherwise silly show, Hannah Cobb’s portrayal of Olive Ostrovsky’s abusive childhood most painfully tugs at the heartstrings. Her large second act number, “The I Love You Song,” is a gut-punching stunner with Nate King and Mauck playing her parents and providing beautiful harmonies. Cobb’s resonant delivery is profound and moving, and entirely unexpected considering the first song of the second act is about an erection (comically sung by Jacob Deetz).
Vocal director Wes Bridges said, “My favorite song of the show is the ‘I love you song’ because of the emotion in it, and that’s something everyone brings to all of the songs — their unique personalities.”
The talented Phillip Heppe, Julia Rollens and Savannah Watts complete the cast, who all perform with sly humor to showcase the kids’ hopeless braininess without turning them into stereotypical caricatures. None fall victim to becoming part of a sentimental after-school special, and the audience gets drawn into the spirit of competition — silently hoping for their favorite character to win. This production has a lot of whimsy and heart, and for those of us who participated in spelling bees (or lettered in Scholastic Bowl), Putnam reminds us there’s a certain magic in the camaraderie of simply being “one of the nerds.”
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee continues its run at the Hoogland Center for the Arts April 18-19 and April 24-26 in the LRS Theatre. Friday and Saturday performances start at 7:30 p.m. and Sunday matinees begin at 2 p.m. Tickets are available by calling 217-523-2787 or visiting HCFTA.org
