An ambitious new nightlife series is kicking off in West Seattle: Spelldown After Dark is the Skylark’s new weekly adults-only spelling bee, featuring cash prizes. Every Friday in September, up to twelve spellers will compete to demonstrate their mastery of letters, with a thrilling championship finale on September 30. Contestants will be divided into two groups—one group will spell from the stage while the other spells from the audience—and players will be given opportunities to "pass" and "punt" challenging words to their competitors.

Speaking just for myself, I still harbor resentment from getting booted from a sixth-grade spelling bee for missing “gnarled,” so this might be a prime opportunity to overcome whatever spelling-related baggage we’re all carrying around from our youth.