Spinning Tree Theatre announces season of musicals and KC premieres

Spinning Tree Theatre’s 2017-18 season includes “two Kansas City premieres, a little gem of a contemporary musical and an intimate retelling of a classic musical,” says artistic director Michael Grayman-Parkhurst.

Here’s the lineup:

▪ “Finian’s Rainbow” (Sept. 1-17): The classic musical fantasy, by Burton Lane and E.Y. Harburg, includes such songs as “Old Devil Moon,” “How Are Things in Glocca Morra” and “Look to the Rainbow.”

▪ “Casa Valentina” (Oct. 27-Nov. 12): Harvey Fierstein’s play, based on real events, takes place in the Catskills of 1962 at an inn that caters to heterosexual men whose favorite pastime was dressing and acting as women. This is the play’s Kansas City premiere.

▪ “Full Gallop” (Jan. 26-Feb. 11, 2018): Cheryl Weaver stars in this one-woman show about “Empress of Fashion” Diana Vreeland. The play, another KC premiere, is by Mark Hampton and Mary Louise Wilson.

▪ “Once on This Island” (April 20-May 6, 2018): The Caribbean-influenced musical tells the tale of a peasant girl who falls in love with a high-class man and needs the help of the gods and goddesses to be with him. It’s by Lynn Ahrens and Stephen Flaherty.

The season will be performed at Just Off Broadway Theatre, 3051 Central. For tickets or more info, see SpinningTreeTheatre.com or call 816-235-6222.

This story was originally published February 16, 2017 at 6:00 AM with the headline "Spinning Tree Theatre announces season of musicals and KC premieres."