Before heading to Demens Landing to watch American Stage in the Park’s The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, you may want to brush up on your own vocabulary words.
The musical comedy is mostly scripted, but has plenty of ad-libbing and audience participation to produce an entirely new show each night. Several members of the audience get pulled into the spelling bee within the production, and that’s a big part of what makes the hit Broadway play such a perfect fit for the outdoor theater along St. Petersburg’s waterfront. The show runs through May 26.
“People say they’ve heard of Spelling Bee, but they don’t know details,” says Steven Flaa, the director of the production. “Musical theater people know it well, though. There is a lot of improv and a lot of comedy.”
And Flaa, who is gay, says the show speaks to a number of audience types, but especially to the LGBT community. It also doesn’t hurt that one of the main characters, a child named Logainne “Schwartzy” Schwartzandgrubenierre, played by Caitlin Longstreet, is parented by two dads, and the show stars local favorite Matthew McGee, who received rave reviews as Dr. Frank-N-Furter during last year’s Rocky Horror Show.
Watermark sat down with Flaa, McGee and Longstreet before a rehearsal at Demens Landing to talk about the production, its characters and it’s LGBT appeal:
WATERMARK: One thing fans will notice is that Matthew McGee isn’t in a dress for this production.
MATTHEW MCGEE: (Laughing) In fact, I’m playing Douglas Panch, a character that I see as an uptight conservative Republican, which is more of a drag than anything else! It’s totally different and I love it. It’s wearing a wig, which is still a funny thing to do outside in Florida in April or May.
It’s a great role. He’s uptight and stuffy and totally in love with the hostess of the spelling bee. By the end he has a nice heartfelt moment, but since I was cast I have been embracing the things I’ve read online about how frustrated teachers and educators get with the education system. I now realize why so many people in the education profession are frustrated, and so is he. And that’s so much fun to play.
STEVEN FLAA: Matthew has certain moments where he can do his thing. There are open things he can change. In one part his character explains why he had a breakdown. Matthew decided that since his character is Republican, that he was a Romney supporter and still hasn’t recovered.
It sounds like every production of Spelling Bee is different than the last.
MM: There is a lot of room to adlib. It’s a sweet story and people have heard about it. But it works so well because it’s sweet. But there’s a strange sense of, “What will happen next?” There’s uncertainty because we bring spellers from the audience on stage. One word I’ve found is ‘mamase mamasa mamakusa.’ [Made famous by a chant in Michael Jackson’s hit “Wanna Be Startin’ Somethin'”].
That’s just mean.
MM: My job is to eliminate spellers. If we get great spellers up there we’re in trouble. (Laughs) Watching audience members spelling like cast members is fun.
SF: We tell the volunteers to really try and spell the words. Art certain times in the show Matthew has to keep up with how many spellers we’re supposed to have left.
Is it scary bringing audience members on stage?
SF: There’s an element of surprise and danger.
MM: I’m looking forward to it. I think that’s when I’ll relax the most and be ready to go.
SF: Matthew is different than most actors in that regard.
Tell our readers a little bit about the LGBT connection in Spelling Bee.
MM: To me it’s strangely even more accessible than Rocky Horror was last year. The show has insights into the way families work and kids grow up. Sexuality is included and one character has two dads. So you see all of this. The role I play was played by Mo Rocca and Jesse Tyler Ferguson on Broadway. For a lot of this play, it helps when you’re a student of pop culture and politics and a lot of people in our community are savvy like that. This show has a slant and appeal for a gay audience.
SF: The concept of outsiders and people who are different will appeal to LGBT audiences. All of the kids have these weird quirks and don’t fit in with the other kids. We’re talking about feelings of isolation and being different. Obviously that’s very prevalent in LGBT youth.
Is it difficult playing a child?
CAITLIN LONGSTREET: Its surprisingly easier than you think to play a child. It is a lot of fun because you let inhibitions go. Children don’t have the barriers adults tend to have. So it’s not as difficult as you’d think to just, let whatever happen.
SF: Actors by breed are childlike. Not childish, but child-like in that they have to be open and accessible and able to absorb these things.
CL: We’re trained to suppress emotions. Adults don’t want to have others see what they are thinking. When your job to portray those emotions anyway, you find a way to let them out. So playing a child isn’t as big as a stretch if you let those barriers fall.
And your character is the child of a gay couple…
MM: She does a nice job and shows the pressure this individual is under. It’s interesting because she has pressure from two dads, and one is extremely controlling. The two dads who push her do it too much. It shows that gay people aren’t necessarily great parents either – but they’re normal.
CL: They do care about her though and want her to succeed. But they are overbearing and don’t always listen to her.
SF: One tells her that “God hates losers. Losers don’t know how to win.’
MM: That’s a horrible thing to say to a child!
Even with all the gay elements, is there mass appeal here too?
MM: As I’m sitting there between my moments and getting my words ready, I’m gleening what’s happening. I’m able to watch it around me and it’s so different for me and I’m able to relate to this show in so many different ways.
SF: Everyone has parents.
MM: Everyone was an awkward kid.
SF: One character notices a fellow speller’s younger sister in the crowd and has an unfortunate erection.
MM: That’s very relatable.
And there is a lot of experience on that stage.
MM: The woman playing ‘Rona,’ Laura Hodos, and I both work at Disney doing improv shows where we remark on guests from all over the world. You find something about everyone and suddenly Steven has cast the two of us to do what we do almost every day at work – riff on people.
CL: The two are extremely funny.
MM: Our characters remind me of the two commentators from the film Pitch Perfect. There’s a charm to it and we’ve already been writing jokes to each other line and then saying, ‘We can’t say that!’ It has a fun appeal but the cast does the heaving lifting. They sing, dance and I even jump into a number or two for some high kicks.
Who is the hero of this show?
SF: The hero is different for different people. We’ve all been these kids and everyone will find the person they want to root for. That’s what makes this show so great – it has a different connection for every different person watching it.
More Info:
WHAT: The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee
WHERE: Demens Landing, St. Petersburg
WHEN: Through May 26
TICKETS: AmericanStage.org
