The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

[bradhig]

Anyone seen it? It l.ooks like a HSM ripoff to me.

[Jasmine1022]

Never even heard of it, it sounds utterly ridiculous!

[skyler888]

i thought speeling bee was already a musical on broadway,
and I'm pretty sure it came out before hsm

[JiminyCrick91]

i thought speeling bee was already a musical on broadway,
and I'm pretty sure it came out before hsm

It did. There workshop was in 2004 and opened on the great white way the next year. Around the same time really but nnot even close to being the same from what I have seen of it.

[SpringHeelJack]

It came out waaaaaaaay before HSM and is at least 800 times better. Reserve all judgements on this show until you actually see it, it is HYSTERICAL. Pretty much every score that William Finn does is hysterical, catchy, and heart-breaking, and this is no exception.

Apart from the fact that it involves a high school, I'm not sure why you think its a rip off of HSM.

[candydog]

I think the show you're thinking of is "25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee". It really is nothing like High School Musical and was in development long before.

[Anthony]

Yes it was out long before the crappy HSM. I have not seen the 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, but I have tickets for the Toronto show on January 31, 2008! I'm so excited to see it!!

[bradhig]

25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. That is it.

[Nandor]

Anyone seen it? It l.ooks like a HSM ripoff to me.

Seriously, is there ány reasoning behind this?

Spelling Bee is a somewhat weird musical, in my opinion. I don't really enjoy the songs (though some are quite fun), but the spoken parts are where the comedy lies.
'Your word is... Jihad.'

[SpringHeelJack]

'Your word is... Jihad.'

In a sentence...

"Billy, quick, duck behind this Western Wall. I think I see a jihad coming."

And the infamous "caterjunes" (or "catterjunes" or "catarjoons" or however you like it).

[bradhig]

I don't hate HSM or spelling bee it just looiked to me like someone was trying to cash in on HSM's success.

[SpringHeelJack]

I don't hate HSM or spelling bee it just looiked to me like someone was trying to cash in on HSM's success.

But why did you think that, is my question? Because the only real comparison is that it involves school kids.

[bradhig]

because it looked similar.

[Escapay]

because it looked similar.

If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and talks like a duck...
























It could be a platypus!

Escapay

[2099net]

A platypus doesn't walk like a duck.

I have a feeling this isn't a HSM "rip-off" (I mean, was HSM really that original in the 1st place?). It's just a revival of something so that they can <strike>cash-in</strike> capitalise on the popularity of HSM.

Really, what does it matter? If you want to see it, you see it. If you don't you don't.

[skyler888]

A platypus doesn't walk like a duck.

I have a feeling this isn't a HSM "rip-off" (I mean, was HSM really that original in the 1st place?). It's just a revival of something so that they can <strike>cash-in</strike> capitalise on the popularity of HSM.

Really, what does it matter? If you want to see it, you see it. If you don't you don't.

But it came out before hsm....

[SpringHeelJack]

Yeah, really...there is no comparison save for the fact they both involve students. "25APCSB"'s students are even supposed to be younger than high school, though they are played by adults. There's really nothing in "Spelling Bee" that is attempting to work off the fame of HSM, especially since as was already pointed out, HSM came out later. "25APCSB" is more like the movie "Spellbound" if anything.