The upcoming season — the first assembled by new artistic director Barry Ivan — will pay tribute to "director/choreographer Susan Stroman, perhaps the most renowned woman in musical theater today," according to the company's official website.

The season will include productions of The Producers and Contact, which Stroman directed and choreographed, as well as the revival of Show Boat, which featured choreography by Stroman and direction by Harold Prince. The North Shore line-up will also include productions of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee; Bye, Bye Birdie; and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels. (The production of Spelling Bee is subject to availability.)

The season at the theatre-in-the-round will kick off May 13, 2008, with Mel Brooks' The Producers. The musical, based on Brooks' hit 1968 film of the same name, will run through June 1. Spelling Bee, which features a Tony-winning book by Rachel Sheinkin and a score by Tony winner William Finn, will follow, playing June 10-29. Michael Stewart, Charles Strouse and Lee Adams' Bye, Bye Birdie will be presented July 8-27, and the dance musical Contact — co-conceived by Stroman and John Weidman will run Aug. 26-Sept. 14. The groundbreaking musical Show Boat, which boasts a score by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II, will play Sept. 23-Oct. 12, and the North Shore season will conclude with Jeffrey Lane and David Yazbek's Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Nov. 4-23.

For subscription information call (978) 232-7200 or visit www.nsmt.org. The North Shore Music Theatre is located on Dunham Road in Beverly, MA.