The Triffo Theatre sign. Amanda Erickson/The Griff

Triffo Theatres’ opening act of the 25/26 musical season

The Triffo Theatre is gearing up for its 2025-26 season. The season began on Oct. 29th, with this year’s opening musical, The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee. 

And what better way to start the season than by selling out the show before it even begins? Ellen Chorley was chosen to direct this musical, and she is attempting to make it more realistic by drawing on her experience working with younger kids in theatre programs and incorporating the way they act into the performance to make it more authentic.  This is a wonderful and entertaining musical to have as the opener of the new season. “It’s got really beautiful music and really hilarious wordplay and lyrics,” says Chorley.

As the title of the show suggests, this performance revolves around pre-teens competing in a spelling bee. Chorley, however, sees this musical as more than its title.“I know that sounds kinda boring, but it’s about sort of all of their inner struggles with the pressure that they’re under to succeed.” It is not only about kids competing in a spelling bee, but it also focuses on topics such as mental health and the struggles children face during their developmental years. “It’s sort of collision of that age of where you are trying to be seen as an adult,” Chorey explains. 

This is something most of us can relate to. Back in middle school, all that we wanted to do was to fit in and be cool. We thought that now that our age had the word “teen” in it, we knew everything. Aside from the questionable outfits and references, our developmental years are usually where kids struggle the most. During that time, people are trying to “figure themselves out”, but there’s only so much you can do when you’re thirteen. With Chorley’s help, this musical is able to combine the challenges pre-teens face while offering the audience comedic relief through the things she has heard as an educator. “They say 6 7,” says Chorley. Yes, the brain rot has reached the theatre. 

Putting on a musical is not an easy task. A lot of work goes into creating it. The show would not exist without all of the people who help create it, such as the directors, cast, set and costume designers, and the tech crew. Without this team, these performances could never run smoothly and be enjoyable for the audience. The department has worked diligently to bring this piece to life. This year’s musical season has been in the works since last May. The summer months were when students and staff were busy with auditions, set design and planning, before rehearsals could begin in early September. While the cast memorizes the choreography and prepares to go off script, the tech team will begin developing the set. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee runs from Oct. 29 to Nov. 2 in the Triffo Theatre. It is the first performance out of four this musical season. 
Although tickets have already sold out for this show, be sure to keep an eye out for future performances at the Triffo Theatre. The next show is Carrie: the Musical, opening on Nov. 26.