Anyone who has seen the 2002 documentary Spellbound knows there is high drama to be found at spelling bees.  The contestants are children, but they need to possess knowledge that surpasses that of most adults.  The personalities capable of such feats skew neurotic, obsessive.  The stakes can bring out the worst in parents.  The musical The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which debuted in 2004, seizes on this drama.  The prize?  The thrill of victory and a $200 savings bond toward college.

Currently being revived at New World Stages, Putnam is a fun, sweet musical.  The characters are types, but they are written and played with an enthusiasm that warrants the recycling.  There is the former winner (Lili Cooper), now moderator, who finds a way to integrate her winning word, syzygy, into her remarks (“in this moment of perfect syzygy”); the vice principal (Jason Kravits) returning as “word pronouncer” after a five-year absence due to some unnamed “incident” (“I’m in a much better place now”); and the former finalist (Kevin McHale) with the “Magic Foot”—he uses his leg as a pencil, spelling the words on the floor before answering the questions.  The script has been revised to update some of the jokes (i.e., there are references to microdosing ketamine).  Several members of the audience are brough up on stage, and each gets to play until they spell one wrong.

Unlike Spellbound, there is not much depth here, few surprises, but Putnam mines pleasure from the clichés.  The cast is game, and the energy is high throughout.  At its best, both the musical and this revival evoke the warm familiarity of a really good community theater.

The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee runs through September 6th at New World Stages.  340 West 50th Street  New York, NY.  1 hour 45 minutes.  No intermission. Photograph by Joan Marcus.