The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee - The Musical

Spelling bees are curious institutions. On the one hand they foster a hyper-competitive atmosphere of winner takes all word-smithery. On the other, they can be a place for the more introverted, less popular kids ('nerds' for want of a better word) to come together as one. The 25th Annual Putnam Spelling Bee takes this setting and runs (and sings and dances) with it.

Originally conceived in the early 2000s as a non-musical play by Rebecca Feldman, it was developed and work-shopped into a full blown musical, which premiered off-Broadway in 2005 to great success. Its transfer to Broadway at The Circle in the Square Theatre later that year was equally well received, winning two Tony Awards.

The show follows six competitors as they strive for glory. There's Marcy Park, who can speak 6 languages and sleeps 6 hours a night. She's up against the incredibly shy Olive Ostrovsky, whose best friend in all the world is a dictionary. And let's not even start on the judges...While all the competitors may start out with only one thing in mind, by the end bonds have been formed, tears have been shed and maybe they've discovered that sometimes winning isn't everything.

With music and lyrics by William Finn and a cast which includes original Broadway run actors Christian Busath and Eric Bilitch, Bee is packed with lyrical playfulness and hilariously typical teenage humour.