Just Ask!
January 29 - February 23, 2025
A Coterie World Premiere
in co-production with What if Puppets
Just Ask!
Book by Fran Sillau
Music and Lyrics by Mark Kurtz
Based on the book by Sonia Sotomayor
Directed by Fran Sillau
As they work to create a garden, young people with different abilities are getting to know one another. Young Sonia is new, and there is something she hasn’t told the others about herself. Will they accept her? With multicultural music and joyful choreography, this world premiere musical illustrates how to “just ask” about what makes each of us unique. Just Ask! is based on The New York Times best-selling book by Sonia Sotomayor.
Approx. Length: 60 Minutes
Throughout the run of the show, there are several special performances:
- Opening Night: January 31 at 7 pm
- American Sign Language (ASL) Interpreted Performance: February 15 at 2 pm
- Audio Described Performances with verbal commentary to assist patrons who are visually impaired: February 21 at 10 am and February 22 at 2 pm
- Sensory Friendly Performances for neurodiverse audiences featuring technical adjustments, sensory supports, house lights on and flexible audience expectations: February 21 at 10 am and February 22 at 2 pm
Find classroom resources and curriculum extensions, including lesson plans and reading lists, at coterie.edublogs.org.
In August 2024, The Coterie was honored to have hosted best-selling author Sonia Sotomayor to workshop the new musical Just Ask! based on her book, which will make its world premiere on The Coterie stage in January 2025.
The creation of new work is at the core of The Coterie’s mission. World premieres provide us unique opportunities to broaden the range of voices featured on our stage and work with pioneering community partners, increasing access for both audience and artists.
Thank you to all our community partners that helped make our Just Ask! workshop events successful, including What if Puppets, Kansas City Public Library, Rainy Day Books, St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Spinning Tree Theatre, Theatre in the Park, Girl Scouts of NE Kansas and NW Missouri, Big Brothers Big Sisters Kansas City, The Whole Person, and Variety KC.
Original production designs and illustrations by the Kansas City Art Institute Illustration Department’s student staffed agency, MICRO. Just Ask! design by Yeongu Kang.
Additional funding for this production is provided by:
