MONROE - Cast members of the Monroe High School spring musical in February had a record 17 nominations for the Tommy Awards, a program hosted by the Overture Center honoring excellence in high school musical theater of southern and central Wisconsin.
This year's show, "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," was a one-act comedy focusing on the students' insecurities and family stresses while taking part in a competitive spelling contest.
Award nominations include: Outstanding Orchestra; Garret Schroeder as Leaf Coneybear, Daniel Sniff as William Bafee, Jahir Valentin as Chip Tolentino, Elise Smith as Olive Ostrovsky and Ruth Tuttle as Rona Peretti for Outstanding Lead Performance; Paolo Lucas as Vice Principal Douglas Panch and Grace Keith as Michelle Mahoney for Outstanding Supporting Performance; Director Jennifer Moehn for Outstanding Direction; Janine Brown with the orchestra for Outstanding Musical Direction; Kathryn Zastrow for Outstanding Choreography, the theatre crew and stage crew teams for Outstanding Stage Management; Technical Director Jennifer Bochar for Outstanding Overall Design, Outstanding Sound Design and Outstanding Light Design; and Kathy King and Brenda Davis for Outstanding Scenic Design and Outstanding Sound Design.
Reviewers' comments pointed to ensemble as exceeding consistent in acting, singing and engaging as characters.
"The small cast size enabled more individual focus on not only leads, but also on ensemble members," one reviewer wrote in a comment. "Members of the Spelling Bee who were cheering them on remained focused on stage and directed their focus appropriately at the action, while visibly responding. In this way, they worked well as a cohesive unit."
Reviewers also described the individual actors nominated for their performances as confident and well-timed.
The cast received one more nomination than from the actors in the 2017 rendition of "Willy Wonka," which received 16 nominations. The award winners will be announced in May.
This year's show, "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee," was a one-act comedy focusing on the students' insecurities and family stresses while taking part in a competitive spelling contest.
Award nominations include: Outstanding Orchestra; Garret Schroeder as Leaf Coneybear, Daniel Sniff as William Bafee, Jahir Valentin as Chip Tolentino, Elise Smith as Olive Ostrovsky and Ruth Tuttle as Rona Peretti for Outstanding Lead Performance; Paolo Lucas as Vice Principal Douglas Panch and Grace Keith as Michelle Mahoney for Outstanding Supporting Performance; Director Jennifer Moehn for Outstanding Direction; Janine Brown with the orchestra for Outstanding Musical Direction; Kathryn Zastrow for Outstanding Choreography, the theatre crew and stage crew teams for Outstanding Stage Management; Technical Director Jennifer Bochar for Outstanding Overall Design, Outstanding Sound Design and Outstanding Light Design; and Kathy King and Brenda Davis for Outstanding Scenic Design and Outstanding Sound Design.
Reviewers' comments pointed to ensemble as exceeding consistent in acting, singing and engaging as characters.
"The small cast size enabled more individual focus on not only leads, but also on ensemble members," one reviewer wrote in a comment. "Members of the Spelling Bee who were cheering them on remained focused on stage and directed their focus appropriately at the action, while visibly responding. In this way, they worked well as a cohesive unit."
Reviewers also described the individual actors nominated for their performances as confident and well-timed.
The cast received one more nomination than from the actors in the 2017 rendition of "Willy Wonka," which received 16 nominations. The award winners will be announced in May.
