ATC EDUCATION UNIT TEACHERS' PACK - Auckland Theatre ...

ATC EDUCATION UNIT TEACHERS’ PACKNovember 6 – 29 SKYCITY THEATRECast Jackie Clarke, Semu Filipo, Eryn Wilson, Jason Te Patu, Esther Stephens, Madeleine Sami,Cameron Douglas, Christina Cusiel, Kristian Lavercombe.Band Piano/Conductor - Grant Winterburn, Percussion – Barry Widerstrom, Cello - MiriamHartmann, Reeds – Jim Langabeer, Keyboards – Terence Penk.Director Murray LynchSet and Costume Design John ParkerMusical Director Grant WinterburnChoreographer Sacha CopelandLighting Design Bryan CaldwellProduction Manager Mark GoslingTechnical Manager: Bonnie BurrillStage Manager: Mitchell TureiRehearsal Stage Manager Carol Harding Assistant Stage Manager: Nicola BlackmanLighting Operator Robert HunteFOH Audio Operator Ratu GordonOnstage Audio Jesse AbernathyProperties Manager: Bec EhlersFlymen Bernie Brown, Ray PafalaniSet Construction: 2 ConstructWardrobe Supervisor and Construction Cathy PopeVolunteer Coordinators Candice De Villiers, Glen Pickering, Lynne CardyATC Interns Anna Gardiner and Sarah Stephenson.THE 25 th ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE is 100 minutes long without an intervalTeachers’ Pack compiled and edited by Lynne Cardy, Creative Development & Education ManagerProduction Photos by Michael SmithSuitable for year levels 7+ - contains minimal use of coarse language.1

WHAT IS A SPELLING BEE?A national sport in America for over 80 years, spelling bees have recently grown inpopularity in New Zealand, particularly since the release in 2003 of the populardocumentary SPELLBOUND.In America, spelling bee students usually start competition in elementary schools or middle schools(primary and intermediate schools). School children usually have a class bee to select contestantsfor the school bee, and they are given a list of words to study. Usually, the student who places firstat their school bee goes on to a district or regional bee (like those in Putnam County).The top 10 children at the district bee go on to the regional/state bee and the winner of thatcompetition goes on to represent their region at the Scripps National Spelling Bee.The Scripps National Spelling Bee awards a cash prize to the winner. Scripps uses the Merriam-Webster unabridged dictionary, the Webster's Third New International Dictionary (which weighs5kg), as the final authority for all of the words in the competition.In 2008, 13 year old New Zealander Thomas North, from Hamilton Boys HighSchool, (pictured) went to Washington DC to compete against more than 200 ofAmerica's best spellers in the Scripps National Spelling Bee.Thomas is the firstboy (and the fourth speller) to represent New Zealand in the USA.Thomas, a New Zealand National Spelling Champion, got as far as the first roundwhere he went out after misspelling MENISCUS. 2 Thomas was also a volunteerspeller in the opening night performance of the ATC production.HOW IT WORKS:Spelling bees follow a strict format:1. The contestants are given a word2. They repeat the word and ask for a definition3. They ask for word to be used in a sentence4. They spell the word5. They repeat the word.In addition, as the cast explain in a song at the beginning of the show, there can be no going backover the spelling. Once a contestant starts to spell a word, they have to proceed with that spelling;they can’t go back and change any of the letters and they can’t write the word down. Every wordmust be visualized, prompting innovative techniques like Barfee’s ‘Magic Foot’ and Schwarzy’s arm‘writing’.2 A crescent moon or the curved upper surface of a column of water.4

CHARACTERSThe play isn’t just about spelling. It’s about the characters, and particularly thechildren; an unlikely collection of underdogs, lovable misfits, nerds and neurotics,each one searching for their identity or trying to work out who they are in the world.For CHIP TOLENTINO, it’s the physical changes of puberty forcing him to question who he is andChip’s big song (like many in the show) captures the angst,exhilaration, and heartache that makes growing up so painful andso wonderful.RONA PERETTI (Jackie Clarke)The #1 Realtor (Real Estate Agent) in Putnam County, a formerPutnam County Spelling Bee Champ and returning moderator.She's a sweet woman who loves children but can be very sternwhen it comes to dealing with Principal Panch, who has feelings forher that she most likely doesn't return. Her favorite moment of theBee is the minutes before it starts, when all the children are filledwith the joy of competition, before they begin to resent each other.She sings that she likes how everyone has an equal chance ofwinning, citing as an example that last year's winner can be thisyear's loser and vice versa. Another favorite moment is when thelast winners go head to head for the top spot because it is sosuspenseful and filled with hope.VICE PRINCIPAL DOUGLAS PANCH (Eryn Wilson)After five years' absence from the Bee, Panch returns as judge. There was an "incident" at the 20thannual Bee, but he claims to be in "a better place" now, thanks to a high-fiber diet and Jungiananalysis. He is infatuated with Rona Lisa Peretti, but she does not return his affections.MITCH MAHONEY (Jason Te Patu)The official Comfort Counselor. An ex-convict, Mitch is performing his community service with theBee, and hands out juice boxes to losing students.OLIVE OSTROVSKY (Christina Cusiel)A young newcomer to competitive spelling. Her mother is in an ashram in India, and her father isworking late, as usual, but he is trying to come at some time during the Bee. She made friends withher dictionary at a very young age, helping her make it to the competition.WILLIAM BARFÉE (Semu Filipo)A Putnam County Spelling Bee finalist last year, he was eliminated because of an allergic reactionto peanuts. His famous “Magic Foot” method of spelling has boosted him to spelling glory, eventhough he only has one working nostril and a touchy personality. He has an often mispronouncedlast name: it's Bar-FAY, not BARF-ee ("there's an accent aigu,").5

LOGAINNE SCHWARTZANDGRUBENIERRE (Shwarzy) (Madeleine Sami)Schwarzy is the youngest and most politically aware speller, often making comments about currentpolitical figures, with two overbearing gay men as parents 9her surname is an amalgamation ofboth their names). She is a bit of a neat-freak, speaks with a lisp, and will be back next year.MARCY PARK (Esther Stephens)A recent transfer from Virginia, Marcy placed 9th in last year’s nationals. She speaks sixlanguages, is a member of all-American hockey, a championship rugby player, plays Chopin andMozart on multiple instruments, sleeps only three hours a night, hides in the bathroom cabinet andis getting very tired of always winning. She is the poster child for the Over-Achievers, and attends aCatholic school called "Our Lady of Intermittent Sorrows." She is also not allowed to cry.LEAF CONEYBEAR (Kristian Lavercombe)The second runner-up in his district, Leaf gets into the competition on a lark: the winner and firstrunner-up had to go to the first runner-up's Bat Mitzvah. Leaf comes from a large family of formerhippies and makes his own clothes. He spells words correctly while in a trance. In his song, "I'mNot That Smart", he sings that his family thinks he is "not that smart" but insinuates that he ismerely easily distracted.CHIP TOLENTINO (Cameron Douglas)A boy scout and champion of the 24th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, he returns to defendhis title, but he finds puberty hitting at an inopportune moment.6

PRODUCTION HISTORYThe 25 th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee began when New York composerWilliam Finn heard about a comedy troupe called The Farm an improvised playentitled C-R-E-P-U-S-C-U-L-E. Finn’s source told him that the show would be perfect for amusical comedy. After watching a videotape of it, Finn agreed. He then worked with lyricist RachelSheinkin (a former student of Finn’s) to develope the piece (originally conceived by RebeccaFeldman), into a full-length show.In 2004, following a workshop production at the Barrington Stage Company, THE 25TH ANNUALPUTNAM COUNTY SPELLING BEE (directed by Rebecca Feldman and Michael Unger), wasproduced in a small theatre, by that company, and was an instant success with audiences andcritics. In May 2005 the show opened officially on Broadway at the intimate Circle in the SquareTheatre and went on to win two Tony Awards. The show also won four Helpmann Awards, the2005 Lucille Lortel award for OUTSTANDING MUSICAL and the 2005 Drama desk Award BESTBOOK of a MUSICAL.The Auckland Theatre Company season of THE 25TH ANNUAL PUTNAM COUNTY SPELLINGBEE is the first professional production of the musical in New Zealand.THE MUSICAL ‘BOOK’A musical consists of three elements; the score (music), the lyrics (words of thesongs) and, perhaps the least understood element, the book (the story).Also called the libretto – the book is the most dramatically important element of a musical. It is thenarrative structure that keeps the score from being nothing more than a disjointed medley of songs.For many years, the main point of most shows was to showcase a score and/or a major star. As aresult, the books of most Broadway musicals were a series of scenes, jokes and sight gagsdesigned to get from song to song. By the 1940s, audiences were ready for something more, and itbecame imperative that the book and score interweave to tell a cohesive story. More than oneexpert has observed that musicals with great scores and weak books tend to fail, while those withmediocre scores and solid books have a better chance of succeeding. After all, the first job of everyplay – musical or not – is to tell a good story. In 2005 Rachel Sheinkin won a Tony Award for BESTBOOK of a MUSICAL for the 25 th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee.A Musical book must do the following:• Keep the story line clear and easy to follow.• Create characters that are easy to relate to, without resorting to stereotypes.• Create situations that call characters into song.• Move in and out of songs as smoothly as possible.• Hand over much (and sometimes all) of the plot and character development to the songsand choreography.• Make the audience care at all times. (If the action gets dull, nothing guarantees anaudience will stay to learn the ending!)• And all this must be done within a script that seems skeletal compared to a full lengthdrama. At least fifty percent of a musical's running time belongs to the songs and dances.7

MUSIC – Grant Winterburn, Musical Director“The 25 th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a refreshinglywitty, clever production with wonderful characters and someterrific musical surprises.The score has great variety with interesting syncopated rhythms to keepthe musicians busy during the synchronised spelling routines. It is alsovery much an ensemble piece, with a large number of complex groupvocal arrangements.It has been a thrill to go on the journey from day one of rehearsals with aroom full of people and a myriad of notes and to gradually build themusical layers towards the finished product on opening night.Collaborating with such a talented cast, band and creative team has been an entertaining andgratifying experience” (Grant Winterburn)SONGSThere are sixteen songs in total in the show, including:• The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee – Company• Spelling Rules/My Favorite Moment of the Bee – Ms.Peretti and Company• My Friend, the Dictionary – Olive and Company• First Goodbye – Mr. Panch and spellers• Pandemonium – Mr. Panch, spellers and Mitch• I'm Not That Smart – Leaf, spellers and Mr. Panch• Second Goodbye – Panch and spellers• Magic Foot – William, Ms. Peretti and Company• Pandemonium (Reprise)/My Favorite Moment of the Bee(Reprise) – Ms. Peretti and Company• Prayer of the Comfort Counselor – Mitch, Mr. Panch andspellers• My Unfortunate Erection (Chip's Lament) – Chip• Woe Is Me – Logainne, Carl, Dan and Company• I'm Not That Smart (Reprise) – Leaf• I Speak Six Languages – Marcy, Ms. Peretti and girls• The I Love You Song – Olive, her parents, and Mr. Panch• Woe Is Me (Reprise) – Logainne, William and Olive• My Favorite Moment of the Bee (Reprise)/Second – Ms. Peretti, Mr. Panch, William, Oliveand Company• Finale – Ms. Peretti and Company• The Last Goodbye – CompanyThe original Broadway cast recording was nominated for a Grammy Award.8

AUDIENCE INTERACTIONAbout half an hour before the show begins, audience members are given the chanceto sign up to participate in the show as "spellers." The registration form asks for name,occupation, hobbies, description of clothing, spelling ability, and age range. Interviewers look forpeople with no acting experience, unique names, traits and backgrounds.The audience participants are taken backstage prior to the show and are shown where to standand given instruction about what to do when called upon to spell. They are asked to request adefinition of each word and its usage in a sentence, and to attempt to spell each word rather thangiving up. During the performance, the actors sitting next to the audience help them to negotiatethe stage, for example, during the dance routine for “Pandemonium”. This aspect of the show isinspired by the controlled anarchy of improvised comedy – where ‘Spelling Bee’ began.As the show proceeds, each audience volunteer is eliminated with successively more difficultwords. The final audience participant to be eliminated is serenaded by MITCH ("Prayer of theComfort Counselor") on-stage. MITCH also gives each eliminated finalist (both audience membersand regular characters) a juice box and a hug.In addition, the musical treats the audience members as if they were the audience at a spellingbee. Characters single out audience members as their "family" members and Chip is distracted byattractive female audience members.Thomas North, the 2008 New Zealand National Spelling Champion was invited to be a contestantat the opening night performance of the show.9

DESIGNSET and COSTUME – John Parker“I like Broadway shows, so having the chance to bring alesser known one that I admire to Auckland, has been a gift.I get off on research when working on a design. My set is an evocativestylisation of every gym in every American film from GREASE to HIGHSCHOOL MUSICAL” (John Parker)Set model – John Parker.When thinking about costume, John says; “I enjoy creating back stories for the characters whendesigning costumes. The costumes become individual personalities that the actors can inhabit.”John had some delightfully quirky characters to design for in ‘Spelling Bee’; compare his costumesketches for William Barfee and Schwarzy with the finished product (on the following pages)10

William Barfee – costume design John Parker11

Semu Filipo as Barfee onstage12

Shwarzy costume design – John Parker13

Madeleine Sami as Schwarzy onstage.14

REVIEWSPress reviews are posted as released on the Auckland Theatre Company website www.atc.co.nzPlease give us your feedback in the Audience Review section.REFERENCES & SUGGESTED RESOURCES OR LINKSONLINEOriginal Broadway production: www.spellingbeethemusical.comAbout Musicals: www.musicals101.com/book.htmHistory of Musical Theatre: www.wikipeadia.comThe Scripps National Spelling Bee: http://www.spellingbee.com/DVDSPELLBOUND – Oscar nominated documentary directed by Jeffrey Blitz (2002/03)ABOUT THE ATC EDUCATION UNITNow in its seventh year, the Auckland Theatre CompanyEducation Unit promotes and encourages teaching andparticipation in theatre and acts as a resource for secondaryand tertiary educators. It is a comprehensive and innovativeeducation programme to nurture young theatre practitioners andfuture audiencesThe Auckland Theatre Company Education Unit has directcontact with secondary school students throughout the greaterAuckland region with a focus on delivering an exciting andpopular programme that supports the Arts education ofAuckland students and which focuses on curriculumdevelopment, literacy, and the Arts.Auckland Theatre Company acknowledges that the experiences enjoyed by the youth of today arereflected in the vibrancy of theatre in the future.15