The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is one of those special musicals that is entirely unique with each viewing experience. With many improvised and off-the-wall performances, the show can become a hive mind for a casts’ collective sense of humor.
I am very happy to say that all the people involved with Twelfth Night’s most recent musical not only have a great sense of humor, but a tremendous amount of energy and passion for this production. Given the delaying of the show due to COVID-19, I am very glad that it all led up to this musical being helmed by an extremely talented director and cast.
Walking into the theatre I was first struck by bleacher’s style seating, an American flag pole to the side and a minimal set. I could not help but overhear several audience members commenting on what a perfect venue the Youngstown Cultural Arts was for this show, and I completely agree. The auditorium-style of the theatre made the experience more immersive than a larger stage, and added an extra layer of authenticity to the performances.
One of the most advantageous parts of this book is that each actor is given a relatively equal amount of attention:
Graham Arthur Blair as Vice Principal Douglas Panch brings the perfect amount of nervous, erratic energy to the “straight man” role of the show. Some of the hardest laughs came from his ability to shift from deadpan to wildly frustrated delivery.
Kawika Huston perfectly encapsulates the athletic Chip Tolentino, who’s mid-intermission distribution of snacks led to many audience members being hit directly in the face with a rice crispy treat. The giddy laughter from the audience with each pummeling of m&ms, carnival cookies and candy bars was absolutely infectious.
Justin Jay Smith brought a whole other caliber of physical comedy as Leaf Coneybear. I would encourage audience members to pay attention to what they are doing in the background of each scene, as there are several hilarious character interactions that might otherwise go unnoticed. They also did a wonderful job dropping the Coneybear persona and transforming into the role of Logainne SchwartzandGrubeniere’s father.
Speaking of which, Cass Neumann’s performance as SchwartzandGrubeniere strikes that perfect balance between obnoxious and endearing. She provides a certain child-like expressiveness to her character that was hilariously over-the-top without distracting from the rest of the cast’s performances.
Jacqueline Tardanico as Marcy Park had the difficult challenge of being the most reserved character in a cast of lunatics. She brings a much-needed level of groundedness to a very silly show.
Admittedly, I could barely take my eyes off of Adam Minton as William Barfee. Everything down to his smallest mannerisms embodied the character perfectly. I cannot express how much his performance added to the uniqueness of this particular production.
Karin Terry was wonderful as Olive Ostrovsky, and was the perfect leading role to guide the audience through the show’s pandemonium.
Lastly, I would like to especially highlight Britt Boyd and Michael Moon, who both seamlessly transform into several different roles throughout the show. Britt Boyd has that certain amount of “excited mom” energy in her characterization and Moon’s performance as Mitch Mahoney made a side-character I once overlooked unforgettable
The vocal performances and accompaniment were overall very strong. However, the one criticism I would have for this production is that due to the venue, the accompaniment is placed between the audience and the stage. I thoroughly enjoyed the chance to view these wonderful musicians perform, however at times the volume of these live instruments muddled the cast’s vocal performances.
Overall, Twelfth Night’s 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a must-see show for anyone looking for a hilarious, fast-paced musical comedy. It is extremely rare that you find a cast where each actor is perfect for their roles. Especially in an ensemble-focused show such as Spelling Bee, it can be difficult to remember each character distinctly in the long-run. However, Director Harry Turpin clearly cares a lot about this musical and it is very apparent when watching. There are so many minute character interactions and jokes that kinetically spiral audience giggles into rolling laughter. However, these moments are never distracting, and instead personify these characters to a greater degree than a by-the-numbers approach. I would need to rewatch this production several times to feel fully satisfied in my viewing experience, and I would be very happy to do so.
Twelfth Night’s 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is performed at the Youngstown Cultural Arts Center April 22 – May 8th. Tickets are available at https://twelfthnightproductions.org/