News on your favorite shows, specials & more!

Reiss Leaves Spelling Bee on Oct. 25; Fogler Takes Time Off

By: Oct. 20, 2005
Get Show Info Info
Cast
Photos
Videos
Get Access To Every Broadway Story

Unlock access to every one of the hundreds of articles published daily on BroadwayWorld by logging in with one click.




Existing user? Just click login.

The bright youngsters of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee will spell "cast change" on October 25th. Greg Stuhr (Taller Than a Dwarf) will replace Jay Reiss as the stern Vice Principal Douglas Panch, while Tony-Award winner Dan Fogler, who plays William Barfee, will take a leave of absence.

Reiss, who is an established playwright, will leave Spelling Bee to work on a film (for which he wrote the screenplay). However, he will continue to supply context sentences to the audience participation-heavy musical. Barfee is also taking off time from the show to shoot a film; he was recently cast in an upcoming comedy called Balls of Fire. Understudy Todd Buonopane will show off his own magic feet during Fogler's absence; a temporary replacement has not yet been announced. 

LATEST NEWS

STEREOPHONIC Settles Lawsuit For Alleged Copyright Infringement
Video: WICKED Star Ariana Grande Surprised With Original 'Glinda' Wand
Photos: Broadway Marquees Dim In Honor Of Gavin Creel
Video: Broadway Dims Its Lights In Honor of Gavin Creel
Also starring Derrick Baskin, Deborah S. Craig, Jesse Tyler Ferguson, Lisa Howard, Celia Keenan-Bolger, Jose Llana and Sarah Saltzberg, the show boasts music and lyrics by Finn (Falsettos, A New Brain), and a Tony Award-winning book by Rachel Sheinkin. Conceived by Rebecca Feldman and directed by James Lapine (Sunday in the Park with George, Falsettos), the show (which was nominated for a 2005 Best Musical Tony) has broken all house records at Circle in the Square Theatre (50th St., between Broadway and 8th) and plays to sold-out audiences each week. In addition to Sheinkin, Fogler (who plays William Barfee) received a Tony Award for Featured Actor in a Musical. A sit-down Chicago production, to open in March 2006, was recently announced for the show.

In the show, six young people in the throes of puberty, overseen by grown-ups who barely managed to escape childhood themselves, learn that winning isn't everything and that losing doesn't necessarily make you a loser. A cast album is available on Ghostlight Records.

Tickets, which range from $25 to $95, are available through Telecharge at 212-239-6200 (or at www.telecharge.com), or at the Circle in the Square box office.





Videos