There has been an ever-growing buzz about a new bar game that actually stimulates intellectual activity. The Spelling Bee, otherwise known as the Spleling Be, invites people come out to Germantown bars once a month to have a beer and compete in a spelling bee that is actually quite rigorous (the MC uses a GRE vocabulary flashcard deck). I only made it to the second round.
Patrons show up the night of the bee and register (for free) to compete, immunity on one foul-up is given to anyone wearing a bee costume, or some combination of yellow and black. The spirit of the event isn’t just competition. Participants cheer each other on, laugh, and overall enjoy a night out at the bar. Spellers compete for a $50 prize be it concert tickets, gift cards, etc.
For a while the night was held at the Nach Bar, but it has now moved to Zanzabar and the rules have broadened to allow teams to compete versus only individuals (however, there is no more bee-suit immunity).
The Spelling Bee, started by Emily Foerster as an interesting twist to a night out to break the winter blues, but it has since grown into something more important and with that it has garnered a lot of attention. Recently, the Spelling Bee has partnered with the Idea Festival to continue putting on the bee in Louisville and now in Lexington, too. Louisville Magazine has hailed Foerster’s success of bringing out a young crowd with the promise of intellectual stimulation, and the monthly event has been featured on the mental_floss magazine website.
The next Spelling Bee is on December 22 at Zanzabar on Preston, registration starts at 7:30pm and the bee starts at 8:30pm.
