|
|
||
| presents | ||
|
|
||
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee |
||
| Music and Lyrics by William Finn |
Book by Rachel Sheinki |
|
|
Conceived by Rebecca Feldman |
||
|
Director/Acting Instructor, Talia Frances Music Director, David Stone Choreographer/Dance Instructor, Julia Raza Assistant Music Director, Tyler Prince Assistant Director, Tessa Saville Stage Manager, Justyn Nishimura Artistic Producer, Denise Williams Associate Producer, Ben MacDonald
|
||
|
|
||
|
James Johansen |
Valente Virgilio Tari Vescio |
Amélie Ware-Redman Zoë Wirthensohn |
|
|
||
|
Pit Players |
||
|
David Stone (Keyboard 1), Tyler Prince (Keyboard 2), Ben MacDonald (Horns), Meesha Contreras (Bass Guitar) |
||
.png)
Follow Us:
Our Mission:
Founded in 2005 and based in Toronto, No Strings Theatre is committed to breaking down barriers and providing a platform for emerging artists to flourish, free from socio-economic constraints and biases. Our mission is to develop, empower, and inspire the next generation of performing artists while fostering an inclusive, equitable space for artistic expression.
At No Strings Theatre, we believe in giving artists the freedom to create without limitations—no strings attached. We cultivate emerging talent, provide professional mentorship, and elevate underrepresented voices through theatre, opera, and community engagement.
Our three core programs—Spotlight, Many Voices Many Stories, and ArtConnect—are designed to offer professional development, mentorship, and the opportunity to bring new works and diverse stories to life. By empowering the next generation of performers, creators, and storytellers, we aim to create a lasting impact on the arts and within our communities.
No Strings Theatre is a registered charity. We acknowledge that we would not be able to run programs such as this without the generous support of our donors. For information on how you can become one of our supporters, please visit our website. nostringstheatre.com
Directors Note:
Thank you so much for supporting our Teen Spotlight production of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee! Our small but mighty cast has worked so incredibly hard to put together the show you are seeing today. The ages of our teen performers range from 13-17. While each performer had varying levels of experience with musical theatre coming into this program, they have all proven to be dedicated to their craft, and have shown so much growth in these past few weeks of rehearsals and training. Alongside our teen performers are our two emerging artists who are playing Rona and Panch. We were overjoyed to have these artists step in, not only because of their talents, but because they were able to set a lovely example for how to work as an actor in a professional room. I would like to give a special thanks to our Rona, Tessa Saville, for also stepping into the position of Assistant Director; a role she assumed with much care and conviction!
“We are the slightest bit bizarre!"
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee follows a group of very individual kids who are competing in a Spelling Bee, and all of which are at turning points in their lives. It also features a few adults involved in the Bee who, in turn, have much to learn about themselves, as well. While this show is mainly about kids, it was originally written with the intention of adult actors playing all of the characters. What’s cool about having a cast this young, is that they are not too far away from the ages of the characters, so they understand and can easily empathize with the hardships, quirks, and humanity of them… Of course, this also brought some slight challenges, such as choosing what content to cut or alter to keep things as fun and comfortable as possible for the young cast, and families watching (please see content warning, if curious about the mature subject matter). We have put together a show that I’m so proud of! Many many thank you’s to the cast and their families, the creative team, the ‘No Strings Theatre’ Board of Directors, and volunteers! And thank YOU for supporting this production. Enjoy the show!
Content Warning:
As some of you may already know, this show includes a song about an erection. We kept it in. This decision was rooted in the belief that if we’re all old enough to know what puberty is, and have experienced some form of it ourselves, it’s okay to acknowledge just how strange, embarrassing, and funny it is! AND a parent of the performer happens to be our Music Director, who was 100% okay with this decision. All that being said, if this is a song you’d rather not watch (which we hope isn’t the case!), it takes place right after intermission, so you can shut your eyes and cover your ears until you hear the roar of applause.
Welcome to St. Peter and St. Simon-the-Apostle
On behalf of the clergy and congregation of St. Peter and St. Simon-the-Apostle, welcome. We are delighted to host this performance and to share our beautiful church with you. For generations, music has been at the heart of our worship and community life. We
believe that music has the power to inspire, to bring people together, and to lift our hearts beyond the ordinary. It is our privilege to support musicians and ensembles whose artistry enriches our city and reflects the enduring beauty of the choral tradition.
Whether you are a member of our parish, a loyal supporter of the performing ensemble, or visiting our church for the first time, we hope you feel warmly welcomed. We invite you to take a moment to appreciate this sacred space, where faith, music, and community come together in a spirit of hospitality and hope. If this is your first visit, we would be pleased to welcome you back for worship or one of the concerts, community events, and outreach ministries that take place throughout the year.
Thank you for joining us today, we wish you an inspiring and memorable performance.
Synopsis
The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is a musical comedy, based on Feldman's improvisational play C-R-E-P-U-S-C-U-L-E. It follows six eccentric middle‑schoolers competing in a county spelling bee, revealing their personal struggles and hopes through comedic and heartfelt moments as the contest intensifies. They compete under the supervision of three equally offbeat grown-ups.
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
Shifting Ground Collective: Spelling Bee banner (Jason Dauvin, designer)
Church of St Peter and St Simons Anglican (Performance Venue Partner)
St Matthew's United Church (Rehearsal Venue Support)
Artistic Team:
Denise Williams (Artistic Director)
David Stone (Artistic Co-Producer)
Board of Directors:
Avi Sarkar (President), Margot Miller (Chair & Director of People Experience), Karen Sampson (Secretary), Kevin Mao (Treasurer), Janina Dziedziola (Admin and Fundraising), Eulalie Walling- Sampson, Antoinette Ankrah, Beathy Ashley
Operations Team:
Danielle Serrano (HR Project Manager), Donna Tran (Administrative Assistant) , Angela Ng (Past Volunteer Coordinator)
Canada Summer Jobs Interns:
Liam Eric Dawson (Producer), Talia Frances (Producer), Emma Goulden (Fundraiser),
Sid Malcolm (Community Relations), Justyn Nishimura (Production Assistant/Stage Manager),
Tyler Prince (Professional Training Instructor), Donna Tran (Administrative Assistant)
Friends and Family - you know who you are!
We hope you enjoyed our presentation.
Thank you for attending.
We will be pleased to receive your comments, testimonials and suggestions. Please email us.
