New talent in DPRCA's musical comedy

On July 10 Dakota Prairie Regional Center for the Arts (DPRCA) production of "The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" premiers in New Rockford's Old Church Theater. There are four new cast members joining this production, Jeremiah Mitchell, Jakob Innes, Marisa Sanchez, and Simon Schlenker.

These cast members will portray the various spellers in the spelling bee. Mitchell plays William Barfée, Innes as Leaf Coneybear, Sanchez as Marcy Park and Schlenker plays Chip Tolentino.

Jeremiah Mitchell grew up in Alexandria, Louisiana and graduated from Northwestern State University in 2023 with a degree in theater and a concentration in musical theater. He currently teaches theater and choir at Bolton Academy in Alexandria for students in grades 6-12.

He started doing theater in high school and his first ever role was Benjamin in "Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat."

Mitchell states his character, William, "...has been bullied most of his life so he starts acting like a bully."

On the other hand, Innes' character, Leaf, has been homeschooled and "is a very tender soul and is smarter than he thinks he is."

Jakob Innes has been a part of musical theater since birth. He said, "My mom was always into theater, she's a theater teacher, so it's kind of in my blood."

He is currently attending Western Illinois University pursuing a degree in musical theater. He heard about the play from other cast members that attend the same school and decided to come up to New Rockford.

Just like Innes, Marisa Sanchez is a musical theater major at Western Illinois University and was convinced by fellow cast members to join.

She remarked, "I always liked to sing, dance, and act and I didn't put them together until college." She had a bit of a late start but still enjoys theater like the rest of the cast.

Sanchez plays Macy who's skipped a few grades and believes she's the smartest in her class. Sanchez comments about her character, "She has a come to Jesus moment and becomes very sure about herself."

In contrast, Simon Schlenker's character, Chip, is very sure of himself throughout the whole musical. He won the spelling bee the previous year. He remarks, "Chip is a bit stuck up and thinks he's better than everyone else."

Schlenker is attending college at Baldwin Wallace University in Cleveland, Ohio for a degree in viola performance.

He remarked that one of the hardest parts about this play is singing high notes, but he has been working with coaches and friends to help him improve. The other members commented that the

hardest part for them is playing such a young character.

Innes said, "It's hard to make the characters believable and you have to remember what it is like to be a kid, but I just hope that people enjoy the show."

"The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee" premiers on Wednesday, July 10 at the Old Church Theater and runs through August 4. Showtimes are 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays through Fridays and 2:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.