"Putnam County Spelling Bee' in Norristown

I first saw The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at its 2004 world premiere in Great Barrington, Mass.— performed in a genuine school gym, where many spelling bees are held. I caught it again on Broadway. In both venues this musical comedy explored childhood and adolescence through the sweet and funny prism of school spelling competitions.

But in some respects the new Theatre Horizon production staged by Matthew Decker in Norristown is the best version yet. Decker has added some nice touches, and his cast improvises more, as some of them approach their roles differently than the original cast.

Six goofy adolescents are featured in the competition, along with several audience members recruited at each performance. As the 100-minute show progresses, we discover the kids' vulnerabilities, and we fall in love with them as each participant reveals a distinct and compelling personality.

Meet the contestants

The intensely driven competitors include Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre, a precociously political youngster who has two dads; Marcy Park, an intensely serious Asian girl; Olive Ostrovsky, a lonely daughter of a woman who has left her family for a lengthy visit to India; Chip Berkowitz, the reigning champion; and William Barfee, a sickly goof who knows that he's the smartest kid in the room.

Then there's Leaf Coneybear, a gawky kid who never excelled in anything and is only in the competition because the girl who beat him in his school's preliminary is having her bat mitzvah (and the first runner-up had to attend the bat mitzvah). Leaf is full of insecurity and an individualism displayed in his hilarious wardrobe.

Olive is played touchingly by Rachel Camp, who gets the show's most beautiful song: a heart-wrenching vision of her absent mother expressing her love for her daughter. Camp also reveals impressive dancing ability in this fantasy sequence.

Steve Pacek lacks the physical awkwardness of the original Barfee, but he brings out an endearing quality behind the boy's obnoxious egocentrism. There's a special bond that slowly emerges between Barfee and Olive.

Marcy Park is played with admirable deadpan by Amanda Morton, who possesses diverse talents for everything from piano playing to baton twirling. Logainne, who finally breaks out of the role imposed on her by her well-meaning dads, is sympathetically portrayed by Alex Kieper. Chip is amusingly played by Greg Nix, who hits memorable high notes. Michael Doherty almost steals the show (as he did in Theatre Horizon's Holiday Show) with his stumbling, cross-eyed embodiment of Leaf.

Pressure on the grown-ups

We learn plenty about the three "adults" on stage too, each of whom struggles with identity issues almost as much as the kids do, and the pressure of the competition pushes them toward some self-discovery. The bee's host and chief judge, marvelously played by Jennie Eisenhower, is a former contest winner who remains a fierce competitor in every way. Eisenhower possesses a strong singing voice, and she creates a three-dimensional woman who touches our hearts. Eisenhower also carries the burden of having to improvise introductions and comments about each of the volunteers from the audience, which she does with considerable wit.

Her co-judge is an uptight school vice principal suffering from severe personal problems, convincingly portrayed by Dave Johnson. The comfort counselor who gives each loser a hug and a cardboard box of juice is an ex-convict reluctantly performing community service for the county.

In this latter role, Carl Clemons-Hopkins astonished me with his booming voice and charismatic presence. But I shouldn't have been surprised: He was the evil dentist in Theatre Horizon's Little Shop of Horrors, and in the Walnut's Musical of Musicals he channeled a creepy character from Sweeney Todd and a corny, sunny one from Oklahoma! I can't think of any role that would be beyond his talent.

Rachel Sheinkin created Spelling Bee's concept and script, while William Finn (of Falsettos fame) wrote the music and lyrics. His interior rhyming is hilarious and his catchy tunes embody the emotions of the characters.