POST Wednesday, February 9, 2023 • Vol. 15 No. 19 • FREE
Fate of ‘Spelling Bee’ Remains Uncertain By Ann Wishart
Cardinal Boosters To Raffle Off Preston Truck page 4
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Drama surrounding Cardinal Schools’ proposed production of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” took center stage Feb. 1 during an informal but tense discussion among the controversy’s central cast. Production Director Vanessa Allen, Superintendent Jack Cunningham, board members Wendy Anderson and Katie Thomas, Cardinal Middle School Principal Mike Hall and a teachers’ union representative met to discuss how best to move forward following the board’s Jan. 25 decision to cancel “Spelling Bee” over its PG-13 content (see related story on page 6). Among the options discussed was making changes to the production. There are legal limits to doing so — characters and storylines can’t be changed, and any changes must go through the company that holds production rights, Allen said — but it might not be an insurmountable challenge.
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School Board Drops Curtain On Musical: ‘Not Family-Friendly’ page 6 SUBMITTED
This screenshot from a choreography video shows the cast of “The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee” practicing for the musical the Cardinal Schools Board of Education canceled during an executive session Jan. 25.
Local volunteer assistant director Mandi Matchinga verified by phone Feb. 3 the “Spelling Bee” writers are willing to collaborate on a rewrite. “We did receive an email from Rachel Sheinkin, one of the original writers,” Matchinga said. Scheinkin offered, if given a specific list of issues, to sit down with the other writer and make adaptations and modifications to the script to address the board’s concerns and make it appropriate for our community, she added. Concerns about the musical were brought to the board’s atten-
tion when a resident sent an email dated Jan. 11 to the board objecting to various facets of “Spelling Bee.” The email read: “I have heard some rumblings about the content of this year’s musical. I read the script and did find it very troubling for a school performance (sexual and religious references). I also understand that the performance for the middle school will not happen due to the content. “Also, hearsay from a student in the show is that the musical staff is trying to see how far they can go with it now and in the future. I would appreciate you looking
into this and letting us know your thoughts. “Thank you in advance.” Cunningham reiterated during the Feb. 1 meeting that several board members were also concerned about crude language in the “Spelling Bee” script and a song about puberty. Allen explained one student sings she has two dads, but no one professes them to be gay. Anderson said most people who sent emails just assumed the dads were gay. See Musical • Page 7
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Huskies Put Bite on Red Devils By Rich Kelly sports@karlovecmedia.com
As cold as Northeast Ohio was on Friday night, Cardinal Huskies post player Paul Gall applied a huge amount of heat to anything the Crestwood Red Devils tried to get done near the basket, thwarting several scoring chances. His efforts of blocking and rebounding sparked the Huskies’ early lead, which they never gave up, winning 57-48 in Chagrin Valley Conference action. After Dekota Johnson took a fast pass from Augie Schweickert for the game’s first points, with just under two minutes off the clock, a Gall put-back tied the score and ignited a 16-0 run for the Huskies. It was not the most artistic of point splurges, but still efficient, establishing a lead that looked rock solid in the moment. A Charlie Schweickert 3-pointer and a bucket and free throw from See Basketball • Page 8
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Cardinal’s Paul Gall grabbed 17 rebounds and scored 15 points against the Crestwood Red Devils.
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