By John Redmond
Contributing writer
Musicals, in this day and age, come in a huge variety of designs, production values and staging, thanks largely to modern technology.
This technology means that any laptop, in expert hands, can be used to run all manner of lighting consoles, sound mixing desks and trigger special effects devices.
Also, with the average synthesizer capable of reproducing the sound of any instrument and multiple combinations thereof, hiring a full orchestra can mean recruiting as few as three musicians.
The upshot meaning that a lot of modern performances can now be staged in venues previously considered too small and not properly set up as theaters.
The Seoul Players production of Broadway hit musical "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," directed by Margaret Whittum and staged in the intimate setting of Roofers bar in Itaewon, is giving audiences the chance to experience a wealth of expat theater talent.
With a cast of nine actors, a five-piece orchestra and guest participation by "volunteers" from the audience, this very funny musical is set in the timeless, geographically challenged Putnam Valley Middle School.
The plot revolves around six quirky adolescents competing in a Spelling Bee final, run by three equally-eccentric grown-ups. The tension and anxiety levels are running high. Think of the adolescent opposite of Shangri-La.
The children are all played very convincingly by adults, some of whom play other roles as parents with seamless transformations.
Trying to play a nervous kid is never an easy task for any actor, but in an ensemble cast with songs thrown in, points to a high level of commitment.
Some of the characters shine a little more than others. The three highlights of the opening performance were Leaf Connybear (Lance Noe), Chip Tolentino (Mike McDonald) and Marcy Park (Amy Mihyang).
Chip's humiliating and less than gracious exit from the Bee had the audience in stitches, whereas Leaf, somewhere between earth and the stars, had a rather strange selection of words to spell, and seemed to drift in and out of reality, coming back to earth with the authority of an immigration official to correctly spell his word.
Park, was another crowd pleaser for anyone having experienced the Asian stereotype abroad.
Speaking six languages ― French, Spanish, Japanese, Russian, Hebrew, and German, she is a member of all-American hockey, a championship rugby player, plays Chopin and Mozart on multiple instruments, sleeps only three hours a night, hides in the bathroom cabinet, and is getting very tired of always winning.
She is the poster child for the Over-Achieving Asian, and attends a Catholic school called "Our Lady of Intermittent Sorrows." Her solo number was amazing, complete with piano solo.
Even though the focus is on the children, the adults have a lot of fun with some very dry humor in their usage of the words being spelt.
Contestant: "Cow, used in a sentence?"
Judge: "Used in a sentence? Spell the word 'cow.'"
The five-piece orchestra with Daami Cagney at the helm on percussion held the show together perfectly, with precision timing and songs starting bang on cue.
Other cast members include Rona Lisa Peretti (Jessica Coyle), Vice Principal Panch (Kevin Brenneman), Marge Mahoney (Blake E. Bolan), Olive Ostrovsky (Jessica Lofbomm), Logianne Schwarzandgrubineirre (Amber Green) and William Barfee (Lyle Arnason).
The "25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" is on at Roofers until June 13.
The performances are every Friday and Saturday at 8 p.m. and Sundays at 5 p.m.
For information, contact Margaret Whittum on 010 - 7214 - 2534 or email
Entry fee is 10,000 won and reservations are recommended as seating is limited.
Directions to Roofers: Leave Itaewon station (line 6) from exit 3, walk straight one block, turn right at Dunkin Donuts. Walk up the hill two blocks. Roofers is on the right, across from the Foreign Food Mart, on the third floor.