Spelling Bee Starts at Broadway's Circle in the Square April 15

William Finn and Rachel Sheinkin's The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee, which has been rumored for a Broadway transfer since it began at Second Stage Theatre in January, is indeed moving to the Great White Way. The tuner will begin previews at the Circle in the Square on April 15 in preparation for a May 2 opening.

“[Director] James Lapine and the rest of the creative team are so excited about the Circle in the Square,” producer David Stone told Broadway.com. “It allows us to create a special environment of a middle school auditorium more than a traditional theater would allow.”

Spelling Bee tells the stories of six obsessed word lovers. These outsiders use competition to define themselves, apart from their crazy families, while their struggle to escape childhood is overseen by grown-ups who never completely succeeded in escaping it themselves. The show, conceived by Rebecca Feldman, features a score by Finn and a book by Sheinkin.

The tuner, directed by James Lapine, received mostly glowing reviews when it opened off-Broadway on February 7. In his Broadway.com Review of the show, Eric Grode wrote: "The overall caliber of onstage talent is alarmingly high… and they have a intelligent, surprising and very sweet piece to work with. The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee is hardly the weightiest or most soul-scouring show in town. Being the freshest, most delightful show in town will have to do." Spelling Bee is scheduled to end its off-Broadway run on March 20.

The Circle in the Square has been vacant since Frozen ended its run there on August 22. Sarah Jones' Bridge & Tunnel was expected to land at the theater in April, but that production has been pushed back until the fall.