He's always busy. A couple of days ago composer Stephen Flaherty was on the phone from Chicago, stealing a few minutes from a production meeting on his musical about Gertrude Stein, which starts previews on Valentine's Day -- "kind of perfect," he says.

	Curt Chandler, Post-Gazette photos Stephen Flaherty says "The Glorious Ones" is simmering. Click photo for larger image. Related article Birthday party gives the Public a gift

But his focus was another new musical, because word had just broken that "The Glorious Ones," created with partner Lynn Ahrens, would have its world premiere at the Pittsburgh Public Theater in the spring of 2007, directed by Broadway veteran Graciela Daniele.

Flaherty, a Dormont native, will be coming home.

"We are all so excited about this premiere," he wrote in an e-mail. "I've never premiered a show in Pittsburgh before, and I thought, 'about time!' And we all know we are in good hands with Ted Pappas," head of the Public, which thus steals a march on Pittsburgh CLO in bringing Flaherty home for a premiere.

Contributing to Flaherty's enthusiasm, he said over the phone, is the chance while working on the show "to live at home" and rediscover Pittsburgh, which has changed a lot since he moved to New York City two decades ago. In fact, he had never seen the O'Reilly Theater, where the Public performs, so he came at Christmas. "Ted gave me the tour. I think it'll be fantastic for this particular show." Since "Glorious Ones" is about street theater, he likes the thrust stage, where "all the stage mechanisms can be exposed."

Flaherty has long been established in New York, where his and lyricist Ahrens' "Once on This Island," "My Favorite Year," "Ragtime" and "Seussical" all played Broadway, and "A Man of No Importance" and "Dessa Rose" won admirers at Lincoln Center.

As to the new musical, well, "new" is relative. "Glorious Ones" is based on Francine Prose's novel, and Flaherty and Ahrens started working on it before "Ragtime." Finally they met Prose, "which sparked a new direction; she's been a champion." The musical is about an itinerant acting troupe in Italy at the time of Shakespeare and "combines lives of historic characters with archetypal commedia dell'arte characters and actual commedia scenarios."

It is "not a traditional musical," Flaherty says, but "more of a collage. As in the novel, each member of the troupe tells a different part of the story, like 'Rashomon.' It's not linear but a collective portrait, with several scenes told in the style of commedia." In all, seven actors will play "thousands of roles."

The plan is to hold "a living room reading" in New York this spring, then in the fall a three-week workshop, necessary because the musical includes "a lot of physicality."

Former Pittsburghers Kathleen Marshall and Stephen Flaherty, outside the August Wilson Theater in New York, are constantly in demand in theatrical circles. Click photo for larger image.

During a November interview in New York, Flaherty had mentioned "The Glorious Ones" only briefly, along with other works in progress. "Some projects just erupt," he said, "but this one is simmering." The problem with it was "that old devil, getting the book to work." He said it had to be "more surreal, with a Felliniesque flow, close to the original novel."

Then, he gave no hint that it might come to the Public Theater. Pappas had long made it clear that the Public's door was open to a collaboration, and Pappas also wanted to work with Daniele, "whom he adores." But it was only in December that the "Glorious Ones" deal became a reality and Daniele was able to fit it into her schedule.

Other projects Flaherty discussed in November included the Gertrude Stein musical, now called "Loving Repeating," a further development of his "A Long Gay Book," which debuted in Chicago in 2003. Director Frank Galati and he had long talked about "taking it to the next level," but it took two years to find the right situation. Now co-produced by the About Face theater and the Museum of Contemporary Art in a 300-seat theater, it deals with Stein's "creation of art and how she hung out with Picasso."

Most recently, Flaherty and Ahrens wrote two original songs for "Chita Rivera: The Dancer's Life," at the request of its writer, Terrence McNally, and director, Daniele -- both of whom also worked on "Ragtime." That was an interesting challenge, because one song had to advance Chita's autobiography and link together several famous songs she would sing, and the other was "a big wild Latin dance number."

Of their past works, "Seussical" (which involved choreographer Kathleen Marshall and director Galati) has proved to have a very active life after not doing well on Broadway. Flaherty and Ahrens rewrote it for the Kathy Rigby tour, then tinkered with it some more. "It was the No. 1 high school show in the nation this past year," Flaherty enthused. He saw one school production in Chappaqua, N.Y., which used 70 students and was "kind of wonderful -- the entire show, all the original keys and harmonies." But there's also been a 90-minute version from Seattle Children's Theatre. Altogether, he says, it has been "a real nice P.S. to the whole mishegas."

"My Favorite Year," also a brief runner on Broadway but now popular in high schools, may have the same experience. "It feels like unfinished business," Flaherty says, so he and Ahrens have gone back and written some new songs, moved some and reworked the movie-star lead.

"The Man of No Importance," based on a successful Albert Finney movie, has had further professional productions. And Flaherty's most recent work, which also premiered at Lincoln Center, is "Dessa Rose," which he dedicated to his father, who died before it opened. A two-disc CD is finally being issued, "almost like a book on tape," since it includes so much of the dialogue.

The Flaherty-Ahrens creative workshop, in other words, is still firing on all cylinders.