The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee

Funk Soul Productions. Goodwood Theatres. 30 Jan 2026

That Guy in the Foyer loves opening nights. The buzz in the air, the sense that something might just go gloriously right or spectacularly wrong. And opening night of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee went very, very right.

This is Funk Soul Productions’ second musical outing, and once again Immi Beattie and Gracie Greenrod demonstrate why they were named 2025 Adelaide Critics Circle Emerging Artists. Their previous success with The Guy Who Didn’t Like Musicals hinted at ambition and flair; Spelling Bee confirms maturity, confidence, and a great understanding of tone. A musical rarely staged in Adelaide, this production is dynamic, warm, and joyfully assured.

As far as I can ascertain, Adelaide has seen two prior productions of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, the most recent in 2017 by Marie Clark Musical Theatre, and before that Adelaide Youth Theatre’s 2014 staging directed by Brendan Cooney, a production remembered for its high-energy, comedic snap. I didn’t have the privilege of seeing either but the critical acclaim they garnered was clear. Funk Soul Productions’ iteration of the show first staged on Broadway in 2005 is equally outstanding!

At its core, Spelling Bee follows six mid-pubescent spelling champions discovering, often painfully, that winning isn’t everything, and losing isn’t the end of the world. Rachel Sheinkin’s Tony Award–winning book and William Finn’s vibrant score are delivered here with a light but assured touch. The potentially made-up words arrive thick and fast, the dreaded “ding” of the bell denoting an incorrect answer, lands like a parent’s disappointment and, beneath the comedy, there lies thought provoking reflection on childhood loneliness and the need to be seen. Six spellers enter; one leaves a champion. The others get a juice box and, as we find during the epilogue, some emotional growth.

Greenrod’s direction keeps the show moving at a cracking pace, supported by a clean, flexible set of her own design. Audience participation, often a theatrical nightmare, is handled with warmth and good humour and is inviting rather than intimidating. Musical direction by Beattie keeps Finn’s score, albeit recorded, lively and precise, while Allycia Angeles’ choreography adds physical wit and momentum without ever overpowering character. Lighting by Greenrod, Steven Durey, and Angeles and sound managed by the maestro that is John McCartney, effectively and subtly supports the storytelling.

The cast is uniformly strong. Ruby Pinkerton brings polish and nostalgia to host Rona Lisa Peretti, the former spelling bee champion turned successful realtor. Amelia Boys is quietly extraordinary as Olive Ostrovsky, grounding the emotional spine of the piece with restraint and truth. Boys plays Olive’s character arc with impeccable nuance, culminating in a deeply touching revelation of the profound loneliness experienced by a young girl whose mother is preoccupied with a spiritual quest and father who remains achingly distant. It’s a nuanced performance that lands with anyone who experienced moments in childhood where all they wanted was to be validated by parents. Boys, Pinkerton and Parisya Mosel’s rendition of The I Love You Song is heart rending.

Corey Major leans gleefully into Chip Tolentino’s baseball-capped bravado, steering Chips Lament—a song detailing a teen boys response to a girl he finds…well, deeply alluring—with confidence and comic ease. Neve Sargeant delivers a sharply observed Logainne Schwartzandgrubenierre, tightly wound with ambition, woke consciousness and parental pressure, while Yasmin Fitzgerald’s, Marcy Park is a study in perfectionism beginning to crack. Fitzgerald’s energetic delivery of I speak Six Languages is something to behold.

Matthew Boyd is gloriously odd as Leaf Coneybear, drifting into trance-like states impossible not to find hilarious, while Flynn Turley anchors the chaos with edgy, tenuous authority as Vice Principal Douglas Panch who constantly mispronounces the name Barfée. Parisya Mosel brings warmth and emotional weight to paroled counsellor Mitch Mahoney as well as a range of other characters.

Spelling Bee is notable for its musical high points, and this cast delivers them well. Olive’s My Friend, the Dictionary lands with aching tenderness, William Barfée’s Magic Foot is a masterclass in physical comedy, and the ensemble number Pandemonium crackles with controlled chaos. Those moments are capably brought to life in dance by Allycia Angeles’ choreography, which never overwhelms narrative or character with spectacle

The standout for me is Jaxon Joy as William Barfée. Intensely awkward and physically inventive, Joy delivers a rich performance that while emphasizing the comedy never loses sight of the character’s vulnerability. It’s a performance that understands exactly why Barfée matters.

A delightful addition to the performer bios in the program notes, the inclusion of each cast member’s favourite words, was a small but thoughtful touch perfectly encapsulating the show’s exploration of language, individuality, joyful nerdiness and the production teams attention to detail.

Fast-paced, funny, and, for me, unexpectedly touching, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee staged by Adelaide’s dynamic Funk Soul Productions, is memorable event for all the right reasons.

Go. See. It.

John Doherty

When: 30 Jan to 7 Feb

Where: Goodwood Theatres

Bookings: Closed

A Promenade of Shorts - Season 3

Red Phoenix Theatre Co. Goodwood Theatre. 16 Jan 2026

The ultimate feast for greedy theatre fiends. Red Phoenix crams nine plays into one night at the theatre.

They are short plays, some very short. They are very different. And they are delivered with professional flourish by a mass of very fine actors and directors plus techs and backstage support. The full catastrophe as Zorba might say.

But in the nicest way.

This production is season three, and it is a rip roarer. Audiences are colour-tagged in three groups, so they swap venue to venue in the theatre, sitting in each venue for three plays. Each group has a characterful minder, so the pack movements are slick and there’s the bar for stops betwixt and between. This promenade formula was devised by Red Phoenix when Covid restricted audience numbers. It was a way to fill the house and make a buck without crowding. The groups can be bigger these days.

In the Main Theatre, the night begins with In Farce, by Steven Bucko, a quaint confection based on the endless opening and closing doors of classic farce theatre. Directed by Norm Caddick it is a delicious folly, albeit it needs a bit of a hurry-up. Chilled Wine by Dorothy Lambert and directed by Alicia Zorkovic is the least pithy of all the plays but works as an attenuated revue skit. Indeed, the following play, Go to the Light by Laurie Allen is also a big skit. This one, however, is as pithy as can be as a diabolical send-up of Facebook addiction. Several of the plays are very skit-like and take one back to the long-lost days of revue. A Bottle for a Special Occasion by William Kovacsik is tragic comic with a tinge of romance, as is When I Fall in Love It Will Be by Susan Middaugh. It centres on the tragedy of dementia; melancholy charm and lovely performances therein from Adrian Barnes and Lisa Lanzi. This work is under Libby Drake’s direction and if there’s a director’s competition in the production, she wins outright with imagination and exuberance, bringing the cast of Jan Probst’s Road Trip back and back to The Studio stage as an unruly band of stagehands changing sets. They throw out funny memes and create delicious chaos. As for Road Trip, what a clever little work of physical comedy with gorgeous characters.  On Queue by Morey Norkin and James McLindon’s Choices are part of Hayley Horton’s directorial three and perhaps the trickiest and least pithy, despite valiant performance. These are very fine actors, a hearty reminder of the quality of stage acting which surrounds us in this city. Up there at the top are Michael Eustice and Sharon Malujlo who perform a period costume piece by Rob Taylor called Mrs Thrale Lays On…Tea! It is an outrageous and ingenuous gem and wild actors’ exercise.  It features also one of those jewels of bit part excellence from Zoe Battersby as the maid. 

There is too much to praise and too many names. Rounds of applause to Lyn Wilson, Lindsay Dunn, Joanne St Clair, Laura Lines and Bec Kemp, Cheryl Douglas, Peta Shannon, Jo Coventry, Adam Tuominen, Matt Chapman, Jack Robins, Jethro Pidd, Stuart Pearce, Jess Corrie, Laura Tregloan, Monika Lapka…and, and, and…

Include there Richard Parkhill, Will Gee and all the corollary workers. 

Red Phoenix continues to be a classy company.

Samela Harris

When: 15 to 24 Jan

Where: Goodwood Theatre

Bookings: trybooking.com

The 60 Four Christmas Proms

Ben Francis. Adelaide Town Hall. 7 Dec 2025

It is impossible not to rave about this group. 

The 60 Four is/was/will be one of the star turns of this country.

Its Christmas Proms special had the crowds massed and jammed really early at the Adelaide Town Hall. Come on down every Baby Boomer in town. 

And the four Adelaide boys, fresh home from intensive touring—five countries and several states in the last month, cruise ships, concerts, you name it—gave the crowds just what they craved. It was yet another five-star, high-energy two hours of good spirit. Christmas spirit in this case. They jazzed up all manner of Christmas songs but scratched the old fans’ itch with some Frankie Valli and Beachboys, even Beatles old hits. And the crowd tapped feet, clapped along and whooped for more.

The secret to The 60 Four’s ever-growing popularity is not just pure talent but, significantly, consistency of high discipline. Indeed, these one-time school mates have honed their act with immense professional discipline. They are rehearsed to perfection. 

Their manager is Ben Francis, of the wild falsetto, and he has had the business nous to make the boys into hot property.

And, the energy never lets up.  They give, give, give. They work, work, work. They just get better, better, best.

It is not just the vocals of Jack Conroy, Lachlan Williams, Finnigen Green and Ben Francis but also it is the slick choreography and their flawless co-ordination as a group.

They really know how to “sell” a song. And, how to present as a quartet while also delivering an endearing sense of who is who. Together in identical stage outfits they are “the four” but through solos and chats, they are likeable individuals and one feels their friendship. Cheeky, fun asides pass between them. A warm intimacy is conveyed.

Of course, their demographic is interesting. Their fan base is grey-haired. The young in the audience were largely grandchildren. And, how deliciously The 60 Four merch reflects their understanding of this. Fabulous shirts may have flown off the merch table, but not as fast as the tea towels.  Yes, tea towels are star souvenirs and way more useful than t-shirts when you think about it. Good quality, too. We bought one of everything. Oh, and the Christmas special was 2026 calendars.

Ben Francis has created a brand and these spectaculars of The 60 Four are not the only goodie on the menu. His Elton John tribute show was a wow. There are more fan thrills to come on the entrepreneurial front. 

He announced their Fringe program, too, once more, spreading the cheer around from Fringe core in the parklands to the Shedley and Hopgood.

Oh, and one more thing.

The boys are all grown up. They are men now. a harmony of wonderful, brilliant, dazzling men.

Samela Harris

When: 7 Dec

Where: Adelaide Town Hall

Bookings: Closed

Book now for their Fringe shows: adelaidefringe.com.au

Harvey

Peter Goërs/Holden Street Theatres. 21 Nov 2025

Mary Chase’s Harvey is better known for the 1950s film adaptation of the play starring James Stewart as Elwood P. Dowd.

It’s fondly remembered for its impeccable comedy involving a delightfully genteel gentleman and invisible best friend Harvey, a six-foot rabbit with whom he travels the bars of New York making friends everywhere.

This greatly displeases his sister and niece with whom he resides, given his reputation may harm his niece’s marriage prospects, not to mention the struggle of coping with an invisible guest for whom a place at table must always be set.

His sister decides, in agreement with her daughter, that shipping Elwood off to a Sanitarium for the insane, then having power of attorney to sell the house Elwood actually owns, will solve everything,

No. It does not play out that way.

Elwood (Peter Goërs) outsmarts everyone. He drifts in and out of snares, accompanied by Harvey, happily dispensing compliments and kindness wherever he goes. Instead, it’s his sister Veta (Rebecca Kemp) committed to the Sanitarium by mistake. After his escape, his niece, Myrtle May’s (Dora Stamos) putting the house on the market comes unstuck. Sanitarium head psychiatrist Doctor Chumley (Ron Hoenig) has everything he knows professionally, completely challenged, alongside his new assistant, Doctor Sanderson (Christopher Cordeaux.)

Harvey is a comedy of errors as much it is a sweet reflection on what really matters in life, being oneself, making the best of relations with others.

Director Rosie Aust’s production goes for a performance stye close to the era of the play’s origins. Working to highlight absurdities and physical comedy eliciting a happy go lucky popcorn feel to the production.

This partly works, but overall has a cookie cutter feel to it, limiting what the ensemble can bring to their characters. They work at it though.

Most successful at getting beyond this constraint is Goërs, whose Elwood P. Dowd is a delightful creation. Perfectly paced, wonderfully clever and completely wise and heart warming. His counterpart. Rebecca Kemp as sister Veta Louise Simmons, is a rich, completely earthy being at whom one can laugh and yet sympathise with simultaneously.

Dora Stamos as her daughter Myrtle May gives an outstanding, carefully measured comic performance you just have to love. Leighton Vogt goes for it as Sanatarium guard Wilson, the only silly hard arse in the show.

There are actors whose work suits that in context, namely Amanda James’ fabulous Mrs Chumley, Antoinette Cirocco’s perfect, romantic sweetheart Nurse Kelly and Christopher Cordeaux’s know-it-all, smart-arse Doctor Sanderson, along with Brian Wellington’s Judge Omar.

Overall, this is a satisfying production. However, allowing the cast greater freedom to find immediacy in their work, rather than over focusing on style might increase its pace and add gumption to the comedy given the length of the work.

David O’Brien

When: 4 to 22 Nov

Where: Holden Street Theatres

Bookings: Closed