“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee,” an underdog little musical about overachieving little kids, is funny as snot.
And when you meet young William Barfeé, you are going to learn just how funny nasal mucus can be.
This is a lovable and laugh-out-loud-funny yarn about angst-ridden kids finding happiness in not always having to live up to adult expectations. And it’s all the more endearing for its modesty.
“Putnam County” has no production values to speak of; its score is unremarkable. In fact it barely survives a corny opening number that makes you wonder whether this is going to be one of “those shows” – the kind that drowns in its own treacliness.
But by the time hormonally supercharged Chip Tolentino (Miguel Cervantes) sings “My Unfortunate … ” (the next word in the title rhymes with “election”), this show has achieved a wonderful balance between heartfelt poignancy and raunchy, middle-school humor.
It wins you over with winning characters and witty writing. Despite a definite lull, there is one 30-minute span where “Putnam County” is the funniest thing I’ve seen in years. And the casting for its first national touring production, now stopping here in Denver, is stellar. Perfect from A to Z.
“Putnam County” depicts an actual spelling bee, during which our ex-champ moderator Rona makes “Best in Show”- type comments about the contestants (“Olive dressed as road kill last Halloween!”); while our official speller/vice principal Mr. Panch delivers one deadpan “use-it-in-a-sentence” punchline after another (“Mexicans: a slang term used by Americans for all persons from Mexico, Central and South America”).
While kids ponder their answers, the show goes off on creative tangents that reveal back stories and dreams. One kid inadvertently summons help from Jesus, who has the two best lines of the night. One: “This isn’t really the kind of thing I care very much about!”
As “Putnam County” is a geographically vague place, local references to John Elway and “President Ritter” add to the fun.
And eventually, one contestant is crowned champion.
The spellers (all played by riotously talented young adults) represent a pantheon of juvenile angst: Marcy (Katie Boren) is a no-nonsense Asian transfer who’s not allowed to cry. Leaf (Michael Zahler) is a Boulder granola kid who can’t spell without going into a trance.
Poor, pitiful Olive (Lauren Worsham) has a mom who has fled to an Indian ashram. William (Eric Petersen) has medical issues – and spells with a magic foot. Logainne’s (Sarah Stiles) drive is driven by her two gay dads. And Chip’s drive is driven by his …
Ahem. Anyway, after Tuesday’s performance, I asked my 13-year-old niece, Jaime, her favorite speller. She said, “David Fletcher.” Who could disagree? But you won’t find David’s name in the program because he was one of four volunteer audience members who are brought on each night to compete as fellow bee contestants.
Like the core cast members, these guests are mocked for their appearance and spell until they drop. Some even join in on the choreography, adding to the general mayhem. It’s a fun gimmick that ensures a different show each night.
Fletcher was so funny you’d naturally assume he was a ringer, but he was chosen the usual way: by a show official who screens potential volunteers in the lobby before each show. But the theater community knows Fletcher well as an accomplished actor who recently played a KGB agent in Next Stage’s “Chess.”
He not only played along here, he played. He nailed one ridiculously difficult word that shocked the cast, but shouldn’t have: Fletcher was once a spelling-bee champ himself. And this was no cameo: He got more than an hour of stage time.
All this may have you wondering whether “Putnam County” is entirely appropriate for children. The show’s official recommendation is for ages 10 and up. I suspect that’s not because they’re afraid that the kiddies won’t get the jokes – they’re afraid that they will.
Bring them. Vocabulary has never been so much fun.
“The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” | *** 1/2 RATING
MUSICAL|National touring production|Buell Theatre, Denver Performing Arts Complex, 14th and Curtis streets|THROUGH JAN. 28|8 p.m. Tuesday-Friday; 2 p.m. and 8 p.m. Saturday; 2 and 7:30 p.m. Sunday|1 hour, 50 minutes with no intermission|$25-$65|866-464-2626, denvercenter.org, King Soopers stores
More online: Read a full transcript of John Moore’s fun interview with fourth-grader Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre, as channeled through actor Sarah Stiles. You can listen to a clip too. listen at denverpost.com/theater
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