Danny Mefford will helm the new production of the William Finn-Rachel Sheinkin musical after staging a starry run at the Kennedy Center.
By
Logan Culwell-Block
June 16, 2025
Danny Mefford
Heather Gershonowitz
William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin's The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee will make a NYC return at Off-Broadway's New World Stages, with performances to begin November 7 ahead of a November 17 opening night. The limited engagement will continue through February 15. The revival will mark the 20th anniversary of the 2005 musical.
The revival will be a new production, directed and choreographed by Danny Mefford (Kimberly Akimbo). The NYC engagement follows an earlier run, also helmed by Mefford, at Washington, D.C.'s Kennedy Center. That bow featured a starry cast led by Bonnie Milligan, Noah Galvin, Beanie Feldstein, and more. No casting has been revealed for the New York engagement.
The musical, which premiered on Broadway in 2005 after an Off-Broadway run, features a Tony-winning book by Sheinkin (adapted from a play by Rebecca Feldman) and music and lyrics by the late two-time Tony winner Finn. The work is set at a fictional middle school spelling bee, where a lovable band of misfits—plus a few lucky audience members—assemble to duke it out on their knowledge of word spellings and languages of origin. The show was a Best Musical nominee at the 2005 Tony Awards, winning for Sheinkin's book and original cast member Dan Fogler's featured performance.
The Educational Theatre Foundation, Disney Theatrical Group, and Music Theatre International recognized exceptional student-led programs across the country.