Two Muses Theatre Presents THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE, Now thru 10/20

Two Muses Theatre presents The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, with music and lyrics by William Finn and Book by Rachel Sheinkin. The show will be performed weekends from tonight, Sept 27 through Oct 20. Two Muses Theatre performs in the intimate 150-seat theatre inside Barnes & Noble Booksellers, located at 6800 Orchard Lake Road in West Bloomfield (south of Maple).

Mix good actors with a clever script, add music, stir in the setting of a spelling bee and awkward adolescent characters, and you arrive at a great evening of belly laughs and pure enjoyment. Sprinkle in some unpredictable audience participation in the bee, and it becomes a musical theatre experience you will never forget. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, directed by Two Muses co-founder Barbie Weisserman, follows six students as they try to spell their way toward a two hundred dollar savings bond and a chance to compete in the Nationals. Professional actors play the children full of the usual insecurities and prepubescent goofiness. There's Chip (Jason Wilhoite), who is growing up a bit faster than makes him comfortable, Leaf (Richard Payton), who doubts everything that could be good about himself, classic overachiever and multi-talented Marcy (Stefanie Bainter), who feels the pressure of being perfect, Logainne (Liz Jaffe), whose parents have her convinced that winning is the only real option in life, William (Jared Schneider), the schlub with no social graces who has a foot that helps him spell, and Olive (Halle Bins), who is neglected by her parents and calls the dictionary her only reliable friend. The adults who oversee the bee have barely survived childhood themselves, with Rona (Diane Hill), a realtor who lives in the memory of her own spelling bee conquest, Douglas Panch (Alan Madlane), hung up that he's always a vice-principal--never a principal, and Mitch Mahoney (John DeMerell), who is doing his community service work at the bee by handing out drink boxes to the losers. But there are no losers here. Like the musical itself, each and every one is a winner.

Two Muses Theatre, West Bloomfield's newest not-for-profit professional opens its third season with the popular musical comedy in September, and in the first weekend of October, Two Muses will add a special Breast Cancer Awareness theme to their production. Director, Barbie Weisserman said, "By adding fun little surprise touches to our shows that weekend, we are working to bring more awareness to Shades of Pink Foundation, a local organization that offers temporary financial assistance to breast cancer patients and their families during their time in need."

Advance tickets are available for $23 for adults and $18 for students and senior citizens, and can be purchased at www.twomusestheatre.org or by calling 248.850.9919. Tickets are also available at the door for an additional $2.

Photos by Steve Hill