It was neither barbecue nor Constitutional debate that drew Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor to Kansas City this August, but a workshop to prepare a new project for the Coterie Theatre. Just Ask! which opens at the Coterie this January 29th, is an adaptation of Sotomayor’s children’s book Just Ask: Be Different, Be Brave, Be You, which became a New York Times bestseller after its release in 2019. 

It is now a musical, thanks largely to the inventive Omaha-based theater artist Fran Sillau and his composer/lyricist partner, Mark Kurtz, both of whom joined Sotomayor, the Coterie cast and crew, and members of What If Puppets in early August for a full-on workshop presentation. 

The project began with a 2019 phone call from Nina Meehan, then-director of the Bay Area Children’s Theatre, who contacted Fran after seeing Sotomayor on television, discussing the new book. “She said, did you watch The Today Show this morning?” Fran said recently. “And I said yes, I saw it. And she said … we want to make it a musical and I’d like you to be the playwright. And I said, well certainly: I would love to do that!” 

A few months later, the pandemic brought theater worldwide to a halt. Nina subsequently left the Bay Area company, which itself ceased operations in 2023, but Fran was determined to keep the project alive. He pitched the concept to Sotomayor’s literary agent, Peter Bernstein, who responded almost immediately. 

“My experience has been that it takes about six to eight months, maybe a year, for someone to get back to you,” Fran said. “Three weeks later I got an email from Peter saying, ‘Justice Sotomayor would like to meet with you on Zoom.’ ” 

Thus was Just Ask! born, to which Sotomayor took a notably hands-on approach. When Fran asked if she had ideas for other disabilities that had not made it into the book, “she gave me seven,” he said, “and we were able to include some of them in the show.” Sotomayor was so perceptive in her “notes” that at one point Fran suggested she might have another career in store some day. 

“I told her that if at any time she didn’t want to be on the Supreme Court, she could be a dramaturg,” he said with a laugh. “She was taking everything and looking at it breaking it down and saying, You know, you’re going to have to go back seven steps on this concept. … And it all made the work stronger.” 

Everyone agreed that each role would be performed by an actor (an adult, generally) with a disability corresponding to that of his or her character: Thus a production can choose seven from the dozen or so characters created, in modular fashion depending on the actors at hand. 

The premise of Sotomayor’s graceful book, with vibrant illustrations by award-winning artist Rafael López, is that some people are faced with special challenges in life — and that it’s important for children, and especially those with disabilities, to know that it’s okay to be different. The reader is introduced to a dozen kids, each of whom describes how his or her disability presents challenges but also empowers. 

“I’m Anthony, and I use a wheelchair to get around,” says one. “Even though I can’t run with my legs, I can go super-fast!” One of the little girls, whose name is Sonia, has juvenile diabetes and tells us that “several times a day, I have to prick my finger to measure the sugar in my blood.” Thus Sotomayor introduces herself to the reader — as a little diabetic girl who, throughout her life, has been regarded with bewilderment, suspicion, even hostility when giving herself life-saving insulin shots. 

All of the children in Just Ask! are tending a garden throughout the book, and this metaphor is as much a part of Sillau’s and Kurtz’ musical as it is of Sotomayor’s book. “Each of us is doing what we do best, each child is doing something to contribute to the garden, despite how they’re differently able,” Sotomayor told NPR. 

Fran embraced Sotomayor’s book immediately, both as a leading figure in children’s theater and as a pioneer in theater for people with various abilities. The native of Council Bluffs, Iowa, has cerebral palsy, and he has used his voice and influence to lay groundwork for new paths toward inclusive theater.

He began acting and writing when he was quite young but never let his disability hinder his irrepressible passion for theater — thanks largely to influential mentors and to supportive parents. 

“My parents would not just sit back and say, no you can’t, yes you can,” said Fran, who is executive artistic director of Circle Theatre, Omaha’s theater for individuals of varying abilities and disabilities — as well as the United States representative for the International Inclusive Arts Network. “They would say, in the nicest possible way, Fran you’re going to have to work twice as hard as hard as everybody else: That’s just the way it is.” 

Young Fran also underwent surgeries that eventually enabled him to walk on forearm crutches: seven operations, which included extended recovery periods. These gave him time to reflect on life, theater, the future.

“During those down periods, those rehabilitation periods, there was lots of time to think and imagine and create,” he said. “And so that time was a great gift.” 

Later, as he grew into leadership roles, he began to recognize the need for more opportunities for young people with disabilities. He was accessibility coordinator for The Rose Theatre (officially Children’s Theatre Company), Omaha’s leading company for youth theater.

Now, under his leadership, the Circle Theatre is becoming a bellwether in the realm of theater for individuals with disabilities. He is also artistic director of Trike Theatre, Northwest Arkansas’ youth theater company. 

Fran’s efforts were well known to those at the Coterie, including Producing Artistic Director Khalia Davis, who was also artistic director of Bay Area company at one point. Theater for disabled artists is coming into its own, and it might not be long before most cities have at least one company devoted to it. 

“As we’ve explored equity and diversity as an industry,” said Coterie Managing Director Jonathan Thomas, “we’ve found that it’s not just marginalized communities that need representation onstage. There are many communities who don’t often get to see themselves on stage. How often do you see folks in a wheelchair in a professional theater setting?” 

Mark’s songs for Just Ask! “push the boundaries of Broadway,” Fran added. “This is not your standard Broadway or children’s theater fare.” Each song in this show is written in a different musical style, to match the individual character being portrayed. 

“This was meant to sound as diverse as the cast onstage,” Fran said. “Every song fits within the world of the play, but has its own individual style.” 

But why a musical? “Because music propels the play forward,” Fran said. “It can help give an outside voice to the characters’ internal feelings — which can help the audience say, ‘Oh, I’ve felt like that.’ ” Young people are often unable to verbalize their feelings, “but the music can help them find external expression to those feelings.” 

For her part, Sotomayor’s goal is to inspire kids. “If I can affect the lives of children,” she told The Daily Show, “if I can inspire them to be bigger, better, braver than they believe they can be — then I’ve left a real legacy.” 

—By Paul Horsley

Just Ask!, directed by Fran Sillau, runs January 29th through February 23rd at the Coterie Theatre at Crown Center. Contact: 816-474-6552 or thecoterie.org. 

To reach Paul Horsley, performing arts editor, send an email to paul@kcindependent.com or find him on Facebook (paul.horsley.501) or Twitter/Instagram (@phorsleycritic).