Generating a Buzz: 'Putnam County Spelling Bee'

AS TIME-HONORED as the pop quiz and the yearbook photo, spelling bees have become an essential part of American nostalgia.

"The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" celebrates the tradition. The musical comedy follows a group of eccentric young people as they enter the world of competitive spelling.

"The best compliments I've gotten are from people who don't go and see musical theater, who don't like musical theater," said Vanessa Ray, who plays speller Olive Ostrovsky. "If you like musical theater, you will like this show. And if you hate musical theater, you will love this show."

Ray's Olive Ostrovsky is a 13-year-old girl with absentee parents who takes it upon herself to enter the competition. Ray describes Olive as a smart cookie who doesn't quite fit in with the cool kids or the smart kids and, therefore, becomes self-reliant.

"I think what resonates [about Olive] for me is that she is so strong," Ray said. "She is under a lot of pressure as a kid without her parents or friends. She still gets up every day and she still looks at the world and chooses to find something positive about even when everything is not in her favor."

One aspect of the show, which may either arouse excitement or terror in the hearts of audience members, is the audience participation aspect of the show. Before the curtain rises, theatergoers can sign up to be guest spellers and become part of the production.

Ray says that the secret to the audience interaction aspect is "knowing your character inside and out. It's kind of like an 'SNL' sketch that was kind of fleshed out. And you get to see every side of the character, rather than just the funny side."

» National Theater, 1321 Pennsylvania Ave. NW; through Nov. 4, $41.50-$151.50; 202-628-6161.

Written by Express contributor Dan Miller
Photo courtesy Joan Marcus