Melissa Gilbert will miss Spokane performance

Melissa Gilbert will not appear in the national touring production of “Little House on the Prairie, The Musical” in Spokane on April 8-11, because she will be recovering from back surgery. Gilbert hurt her back earlier in the tour and has scheduled a bilateral rhizotomy in Los Angeles. She plans to be back with the show at the next tour stop, Sacramento. In a WestCoast entertainment press release, Gilbert said she is “looking forward to returning, feeling better and stornger than ever.” The role of Ma will be taken over by Gilbert’s understudy, Meredith Inglesby.