Andrew Ribner/Photography Editor

While the Theater Department show “The Great God Brown” goes up in the CFA theater this weekend, I urge you to seize the opportunity to see William Finn’s musical “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” Thursday through Saturday at 8 p.m. in the WestCo Café.  “The Spelling Bee” is a beautiful production directed by Lily Martin ’14 that focuses on all the woes of growing up in an ultra-competitive society.  We are guided through the competition by the sickeningly perky Rona Lisa Peretti (Tess Jonas ’15), a real-estate-agent-turned-spelling-bee-hostess who assures us that “just to be here is winning,” and, for this production, she is absolutely correct.

In the opening scene, the audience is plunged into a local spelling bee—a group consisting of six pre-teens and some audience volunteers all vie for a spot in the national competition in Washington, D.C.  Each speller/performer utilizes their moment in the spotlight brilliantly.  The most impressive introduction, perhaps, comes from Paul McCallion ’15, who marvelously steps into the role of Leaf Coneybear, a frightening tween who makes his own

clothes and assured us that he’s “not that smart,” although he quickly falls into a semi-catatonic state in which he subconsciously spells each word correctly.

Equally brilliant is Beanie Feldstein ’15 in the role of Loggaine Schwartzandgrubenierre.  A great moment came when Loggaine’s gay father assures her that “God hates losers,” which is quickly followed by a hilarious anthem “Woe Is Me,” an ode to the anguish of having two gay dads, one of whom has adopted a “Tiger Mom” approach to parenting.

Word-reader Douglas Panch (Solomon Billinkoff ’14) took advantage of a hysterical script, executing jokes with flawless timing.   Beyond the hilarious dialogue was some incredible physical acting, particularly noticeable in Feldstein’s feigned lisp and in reigning spelling bee champ Chip Tolentino’s (Scotty Shoemaker ’13) attempts to combat an erection while trying to spell the word “tittup.”

The douchebaggiest of all competitors is William Barfee (Michael Linden ’15), who doesn’t let his character’s nasal issue affect his resounding tenor voice as he advances further and further into the competition. Adding a touch of humanity to the cut-throat competition is Olive Ostrovsky (Em Trambert ’14), who pleads with an audience member

Andrew Ribner/Photography Editor

to leave a seat open for her parents, who seem to be too busy to attend the bee. Musically, the most extraordinary number comes from Olive and her parents (Tess Keller ’14 and Gabe Gordon ’15) who take advantage of a short time on stage by harmonizing perfectly through a touching ballad entitled, “The I Love You Song.”

Artistic Director/Choreographer Kayla Stoler ’14 beautifully uses the small stage space that WestCo Café offers, creating dances that at times grab your attention and otherwise perfectly underscore the music performed. The show offers a great take on what life is like for adolescents in this modern world, with more of an adult spin than one might expect.

Director Martin thought the show was well-suited for the Wesleyan community.

“It’s really fun, and up-beat, and silly show,” she said, “and I think the humor is going to be really well-received.”

Stoler, who designed the set as well, said, “[The show turned out] totally how I pictured it,” not a small task considering the limited resources involved in a Second Stage production.

But a perfect set and impressive choreography would be nothing without a cast to execute the production, and execute these actors did.

“They’re the best part of the show; they are so talented,” Martin said.  “People stumbled upon the audition, and people stumbled exactly into the right roles.”

If you have ever been bullied, cheated to win, or had an unfortunate erection, Martin’s “Bee” will provide you with the catharsis you need to keep on spelling.