Review: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, EdFringe

Greenside at George Street is a very busy and lively venue – to the point that the performance I attended of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee actually began twenty minutes late. While this was a little annoying, it was not the fault of the production itself – and it is a show well worth the wait!

This production is staged by the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art, featuring their MA/MFA Musical Theatre Class in four rotational casts. The performance I attended was carried out by the ‘Honeycomb Company’ and executed to a near-professional standard; all of the actors are completely committed to their roles and have superb vocals. Standouts include Eloise Earnshaw as Rona Lisa Perretti in a strong comedic and vocal performance, along with Aaron Reyes-Bordado as Chip, George Rohan as William Barfee and William Harvey as Vice-Principal Panch. All three of these actors provide great comedic moments, and all three play their roles in all four casts for the twenty-one show run: a very commendable feat! In addition, all of the actors playing children do a good job of the difficult task of characterising themselves as such, particularly Marni Granek as Olive.

The show’s comedic qualities are excellently done, with laughter being elicited from the audience on numerous occasions. The inclusion of audience members as competitors in the Bee is particularly humorous and the actors are adept at guiding the slightly baffled participants through the motions of musical numbers and onstage bickering. The costumes, done in partnership with the Beijing Institute of Fashion Technology, are thought-through and reflect each character well – Leaf’s costume in particular deserves mention as being very detailed and perfect for the character!

There are a few minor flaws within the production. For instance, given the almost two-hour runtime, an interval would be beneficial to give the audience a chance to stretch their legs outside of the rather hot theatre space (though perhaps this would be logistically hard to accomplish given the Edinburgh Fringe’s tightly packed schedule). In addition, while all the performers have strong voices, it is occasionally hard to make out what they are saying over backing vocals or the sound of heavy footsteps; something that could be bettered by a few adjustments at the sound desk and some softer-soled shoes.

This is a very entertaining show and well worth a viewing. These performers are talented and I sincerely hope that this production is just the beginning of great things for all of them.

Written by: Jay Reiss and William Finn
Directed by: Graham Hubbard
Produced by: Music Theatre International and the London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee plays at EdFringe until Saturday 23 August.