Spelling Bee - Playlovers

When I was 12 years old I was a freak. I grew my hair long, dressed like a hippie and, much to the disgust of my father who was certain I was going to burn down the house, burnt incense in my room. After seeing Playlovers latest production of Spelling Bee I can finally say that I had a normal childhood. For those not familiar with the musical, "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" tells the story of six strange and quirky young men and women who are entered into a spelling bee but end up confonting family problems, medical conditions, individuality and growing up, as well as the to be expected, nearly impossible, words to spell. The amount of detail which has gone into this show is truely amazing. Before even entering the theatre the show had begun with the amazingly decorated foyer. Make sure you read the notice board if you arrive early and be sure to get a clue of the inner workings of some the character's minds by peeking into their lockers. Even the sneakers hanging from the lighting rail was a touch all to its own and along with the amazing set made the audience feel like they had been thrown into the high school gymnasium with these poor kids...and if you are lucky you can actually be thrown in by volunteering to be a 'speller'. The real standouts of this show for me would have to be Lauchlan Bain (playing William Barfee), and Jeanetter Teh (playing Marcy Park). Bain brought an amazing array of skills to a character who has the potential to go through the show being thoroughly disliked by the audience. His physical comedy as he spelt out a word in slow motion still has me laughing. But his talent was not confined only to his obvious talent for movement, as an actor Bain brought a well thought out character to the stage, whether it be in the way he corrected his name "Bar - fay", or to the intricate detail of how to push up his glasses or check the underside of his 'magic' foot. It was an absolute delight to watch. Teh, much like Bain, had obvious talents other than acting to her credit which she was given full opportunity to exploit in this production but the real highlight for me was during 'I speak six languages' where she turned musician Tim How out of his seat and consequently out of a job. I also loved the dry way in which she was able to deliver her accuracy in spelling which was in complete contrast to the young woman she grows into by the shows end. Overall the production is amazing with barely a thing to fault from the performers: Joshua Brant was adorable as he entered into the audience to sell us peanut m & m's and conveyed the right amount of adolescent annoyance at a world that is unfair and injust. It was also delightful to see him playing such a different role to his turn in "bare". Breeahn Jones, much like Bain, was confronted with a character which has the potential to be disliked by the audience. I was ever so thankful that the lisp was kept in check throughout the show and didn't cross over into irritating. Instead we saw a frightened little girl who was confused as much by the world as by the question of why she has two fathers. I almost cried when she was yelled at by Vice-principal Panch, the fear and hurt was incredibly believable from Jones. Tyler Jones was wonderful in the role of Leaf Coneybear. His dry wit and ability to deliver lines both scripted and ad-libbed in a manner which allowed the audience to laugh but for the humour to go right over poor Leaf's head made this character wonderful. Tamara Woolrych was lovely as the gentle yet clever Olive Orstrovsky. Woolrych is required to be both vulnerable and deeply tormented while also being playful and childlike for this character and she delivered with believable passion. One thing I had trouble with though was the amouont her face was covered by her hair, making it difficult for the audience to see her face. At times she was reduced to just a nose and mouth. The adults in this show were also brilliant. Vicki Kirkman provided wonderful improvised comedy, tormenting the poor spelling volunteers as they attempted the impossible words thrown at them. Chris Gerish had a stare which proved a little too believable at times as Douglas Panch. As I stood up on stage and asked for the definition to 'cow' I truely felt like I had done something wrong and should apologise. AMAZING and incredibly ruthless Gerish. Manuao Te Aotonga as Mitch Mahoney was a fantastic counsellor offering 'advice' to the rejected spellers although he really came to life in his secondary role as Logan's father. Overall this production is amazing. Kimberley Shaw has done an superb job directing such an intricatly detailed script and along with Kristin Twynam-Perkins (choreographer) has made it seem effortless in slotting in a few extra 'performers' each night. One last mention must of course go to the fantastic band and musical direction led by David Gray and Deborah Rogers. Audience numbers were a little light on for opening night, something I am sure will not be the case in the weeks to come. Fantastic production! Highly recommended! Get your tickets quick and start practising your spelling now!