Spelling Bee

[Jarethan]

Posted: 7/15/17 at 8:12pm

Just curious.  I never saw Spelling Bee until this week, at a professional Summer Stock production on Cape Cod.  Went with 5 other people.  1 liked it a little, 1 thought it would have been more enjoyable if they left out the music, 4 -- including me -- hated it.

Here's the thing.  We all thought it was well directed, the set was professional and that there was not a weak link in the cast.  Which would suggest that we didn't like the book, music and lyrics.  (I personally thought the book was better than the score/lyrics, which I thought were solidly awful).

I know that the show ran over two years on the great white way, and that there are a lot of folks on this site who love it.  So, what did we miss?  Obviously, just seeing it in 2017 is an indication that I haven't had much interest over the years, even though there were other opportunities to see it.  I am wondering whether it was just something I was never going to like...that I am not into whimsy enough (although there were clearly some serious themes incorporated) or that I need a more traditional score.  

PS -- I did't much like Avenue Q, although I suspect that I would have enjoyed it more if I was not sitting next to my wife, who hated it.

[JBC3]

Posted: 7/15/17 at 8:29pm

I found Spelling Bee to be a slight, but enjoyable show. The quirkiness of the characters made it stand out a bit at the time if I recall, and the chemistry among members of the original cast probably raised the level of the material a good deal. I saw it once but have never felt a need to see it again.

[dramamama611]

Posted: 7/15/17 at 8:47pm

It's very sweet, but more like an 'after-school special' then anything really meaningful.  It felt like a lesson.

 

I've never had a desire to watch it, produce it or even listen to the recording.  And without seeing the production you did, it's kind of hard to know what you might have "missed".  Maybe it's something THEY missed.

[GeorgeandDot]

Posted: 7/15/17 at 9:03pm

I think it's the best musical comedy of this century so far.  It's original, touching, relatable, and funny.  It's colleagues like Book of Mormon, Avenue Q, and The Producers are all hilarious and great, but never quite reach the humanity of Spelling Bee.  It's a very sincere show.  I saw the original production and also a couple of regional productions.  This is a show that needs to be handled with a great deal of precision and detail to really work.  Everyone in the cast needs to be charismatic and on the same page.  Perhaps the production that you saw was not handled properly.

Updated On: 7/15/17 at 09:03 PM

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 7/15/17 at 9:36pm

I'd be curious to know what you don't like about the book, music, and lyrics. Did you not think it was well-written, was it not your thing, what?

[NewDawnRisin]

Posted: 7/15/17 at 10:32pm

I don't know how the production you saw handled the songs, but they are meant to be a little off.  They represent the characters' need to be perfect, but not quite reaching it. The genius of the score, in my opinion, is the grating harmonies at points: where the score goes wrong enough to make you feel something for the characters.  I feel like in productions of this show where the actors are singing TOO well, that can be missed. There is a delicate balance here.

[Gink]

Posted: 7/15/17 at 10:40pm

My family loves Spelling Bee--with a husband who generally does not love musicals. With the exception of Olive's parents' song which drags a bit for me, I find the show hilarious and inventive. To each his own.

 

[Jarethan]

Posted: 7/16/17 at 12:23am

Alex Kulak2 said: "I'd be curious to know what you don't like about the book, music, and lyrics. Did you not think it was well-written, was it not your thing, what?

 

I suspect the key issue is that it just wasn't my thing...that is why I was trying to get some insight from others.  

Re the music, I really did not think there was a single good song, from beginning to end, so that didn't help.  I thought the book was better and did try to provide both a light and a dark dimension.  I guess I have concluded that it was just sort of trivial, and that the score added nothing and was amateurish.  It is an interesting perspective that the songs were intentionally a little off...maybe the production, which I previously said was well directed and had a solid cast, wasn't idiosyncratic enough.

 

Updated On: 7/16/17 at 12:23 AM

[hork]

Posted: 7/16/17 at 1:00am

I think Avenue Q and Spelling Bee are the two funniest musicals ever written, so maybe it's just not your type of humor? Although, for me, the funniest bits were the improvised stuff done by the guy playing the moderator, so maybe it just depends on the production.

[Stage Door Sally]

Posted: 7/16/17 at 9:23am

I loved the "spelling bee" part of this show. Super funny and creative. Bringing up someone from the audience - hilarious. But I did not care for the music, I felt the songs were very slight. I believe it also suffers a bit from what I call "the list" factor. Where you know from the get-go that everyone is going to tell their sad stories and list the reasons for their personal angst. Repetitive and boring — waiting for issues to be checked off the list.

This song (not from Spelling Bee) is the ultimate victim of the "list factor." I just can't get into it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QwOU3bnuU0k 

 

Updated On: 7/16/17 at 09:23 AM

[Alex Kulak2]

Posted: 7/16/17 at 10:23am

If the show is not your thing, I totally get that. William Finn's music is really an acquired taste. It took me a while before I really got into his music.

[Jarethan]

Posted: 7/16/17 at 10:36am

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.  I am thinking that it is just different enough, and that the differences are not my thing.  I concluded when I saw Avenue Q that it was not my thing when the audience was laughing hysterically and I was sitting there stone cold, although I could hear that the score included a number of well written numbers.  

it did not help that my wife HATED it and was fidgeting non-stop.  When my wife really doesn't like something, she gets angry that it has wasted time that she won't get back.  In the last 20 years, she hated Avenue Q, Newsies, and Catch Me If You Can more than any shows I can ever remember and was borderline obnoxious trying to get out of the theatre during the curtain calls.  At least we were on the aisle for Q and Newsies.

[gypsy101]

Posted: 7/16/17 at 1:54pm

William Finn really is not everyone's bag. i love him but know many who do not. he's a bit eclectic as both a writer of music and lyrics.

your wife sounds a bit irritating to sit next to though lol

[devonian.t]

Posted: 7/16/17 at 2:51pm

I'd be curious to know what she does find funny