Justin Cooley, Kevin McHale and More Join the Off-Broadway Revival of Spelling Bee

Initial casting has been announced for the upcoming off-Broadway revival of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. The production will have a limited 14-week engagement at New World Stages, beginning previews November 7 ahead of a November 17 opening. Performances will run through February 15, 2026. Danny Mefford directs and choreographs. 

Joining the cast are Philippe Arroyo (& Juliet) as Chip Tolentino, Leana Rae Concepcion (Merrily We Roll Along) as Marcy Park, Grammy and Tony Award nominee Justin Cooley (Kimberly Akimbo) as Leaf Coneybear and SAG Award winner Kevin McHale (Glee) in his New York stage debut as William Barfée. Arroyo and McHale both reprise their performances from the fall 2024 Kennedy Center production. Additional casting for the off-Broadway revival will be announced shortly.

The production's creative team includes costume designer Emily Rebholz, lighting designer David Weiner, sound designer Haley Parcher, scenic designer Teresa L. Williams and music supervisor Carmel Dean.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, a musical comedy about six anxious adolescents who face off in a regional spelling competition, features a Tony Award-winning book by Rachel Sheinkin and a Tony-nominated score by William Finn. The show was conceived by Rebecca Feldman with additional material by Jay Reiss and is based on "C-R-E-P-U-S-C-U-L-E," an original play by The Farm. First developed at Barrington Stage Company, Spelling Bee debuted off-Broadway at Second Stage Theater in 2005, transferring to Broadway's Circle in the Square Theatre where it ran for nearly three years.