Keenan-Bolger & Ferguson to Star in Finn's Bee

Broadway.com has learned that Celia Keenan-Bolger and Jesse Tyler Ferguson, who appeared in world premiere of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee at Barrington Stage Company this summer, are set to reprise their roles in Second Stage's off-Broadway mounting of the William Finn musical.

"I have always been interested in the spelling bees on ESPN," Keenan-Bolger told Broadway.com. "And the fact that this has grown from an improv piece to a full musical is just thrilling. It's hilarious. I had such a good time doing it this summer. It's definitely on the right path."

Keenan-Bolger and Ferguson previously appeared together in the Michael John LaChiusa musical Little Fish at Second Stage. Keenan-Bolger also appeared on the New York stage in Summer of '42. She starred as Clara Johnson in both regional mountings of The Light in the Piazza coming to Broadway under the auspices of Lincoln Center Theater later this season. The actress is currently in Seattle in rehearsals for the Intiman Theater production of Our Town.

Ferguson is best known for his performance in the Broadway revival of On the Town. In addition to Little Fish, he has appeared off-Broadway in Kean, Newyorkers and Where Do We Live?. He was announced for a part in the upcoming Broadway musical Spamalot, but has withdrawn from the production to continue with Spelling Bee.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee had its world premiere at Barrington Stage Company in the Berkshires, where it was co-directed by Rebecca Feldman and Michael Unger, in July. The show, conceived by Feldman, features a score by Finn and a book by Rachel Sheinkin. A new helmer, past Finn collaborator James Lapine, has come on board for the Second Stage mounting. Despite this director switch, the majority of the cast which was composed of Keenan-Bolger, Ferguson, Deborah S. Craig, Derrick Baskin, Dan Fogler, Lisa Howard, Jay Reiss, Sarah Saltzberg and Robb Sapp is expected to remain with the project. However, no casting has been officially confirmed at this time.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is expected to begin performances off-Broadway on January 11.