THEATER: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Marc de la Concha, Allyssa Schmitt,
Eleanor McCormick, and James David Larson.
Photos provided by Millbrook Playhouse.

THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE is currently playing at Millbrook Playhouse and it is full of talent. This is the second time this summer that I have seen ...SPELLING BEE... and I am not sure how I feel about the play itself, but I am positive about its ability to showcase talent.

The plot is simple; eleven middle school students have gathered to compete in a spelling bee. The audience gets a chance to get to know quite a bit about them as the contest progresses.

The unique thing about the play is that it depends on the cast to be able to improvise freely. In fact four of the “contestants” are randomly chosen from the audience, requiring the hostess of the Bee to use some very original biography material about them.

Many of the cast members have been regulars at Millbrook and it was fun to see a different side to some of them. Space does not allow for me to go into the details that they deserve.

Moderating the Bee were realtor Rona Lisa Perretti, played by Jamie Beth Weist, and Vice Principal Douglas Panch, played by Jon Erkert. The two of them were responsible for most of the ad libs required by the show.

The student contests were David Raposo, Allyssa Schmitt, James David Larson, Marc de la Concha, Stephanie Mieko Cohen, and Eleanor McCormick. If you think that you have seen any of this group before, wait until you see them in this show.

Marc de la Concha, Allyssa Schmitt,
Eleanor McCormick, and James David Larson.
Photos provided by Millbrook Playhouse.

Brandon Hanks had the fun job of not only playing Mitch Mahoney, the man doing community service, but several of the fathers.

The details that each actor brought to his role made each adolescent stand out. I am sure that much of the credit for the freshness of this production goes to Dax Valdes, the director and choreographer. The season is almost to an end so I should not be surprised what these people are capable of.

THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE will run until July 31st.  Following it on the Main Stage will be The Odd Couple. Fat Pig opened July 28th on the Cabaret Stage. The final show will be Ain’t Misbhavin’ in the Cabaret.