Palm Springs
(Coachella Valley)

WHEN LEGENDS READ, YOU LISTEN A star-studded staged reading proves craft, not spectacle, is the real event Some nights in the theater feel important before they even begin. rePLAY’s closing-night presentation of Better Late at the Plaza Theatre this past Saturday was one of them—not just because of Larry Gelbart’s sharply observed script, but because…

THIS SHOW BUGS ME A Southern Gothic that hints at something deeper but never quite gets there For all its promise, Cockroaches, the 2024 Del Shores Foundation Best Play winner by Emma Schillage, leaves you grasping for clarity—and, at times, patience. Set in a decaying Southern home, the play centers on three sisters—Charlie (Leilani Baldwin),…

ICE, LOVE, AND LOOP PEDALS A technically dazzling two-hander that charms with ingenuity Coachella Valley Repertory closes its season with the inventive two-hander Ernest Shackleton Loves Me, a production that reflects the company’s recent pivot toward more musical offerings; it’s a shift that’s paying off. On the surface, the show—with a book by Joe DiPietro—seems…

SMALL MUSICAL, BIG HEART An intimate Irish story about courage, community, and the quiet power of living truthfully There’s a certain kind of musical that doesn’t announce itself with spectacle, but sneaks up on you—softly, gently—and then leaves you wrecked. A Man of No Importance is that kind of show. Opening May 8 at the…

A CHILLING NIGHT UNDER THE STARS A high-energy production that refuses to look away from history’s shadows Desert Theatricals’ production of Kander and Ebb’s Cabaret, currently running at the Rancho Mirage Amphitheater through April 19, is a visceral reminder of why this show remains so vital. Under the desert stars, the Kit Kat Club has…

A SUMMER OF MEMORY AND LOSS A moving revival that transforms urgency into reflection without losing its emotional core The lights went down at Dezart Performs’ gorgeous new home on Saturday, and I’ll be honest—my heart was in my throat before a single line was spoken. Having been in the audience for the Broadway premiere…

A FINAL BOW WITH HUMOR AND HEART DET closes its run with a sharp, funny family comedy about tradition and change There is a bittersweet irony in Desert Ensemble Theatre choosing Knife to the Heart for its final bow. For fifteen seasons, DET has been a home for sharp, thoughtful theater in the Coachella Valley,…

DESIRE, DANGER, AND A SONG TO SURVIVE Palm Canyon Theatre dives into one of Kander and Ebb’s most intoxicating musical Palm Canyon Theatre brings bold heat to the desert with Kiss of the Spider Woman, the Tony Award-winning musical by John Kander and Fred Ebb, with a book by Terrence McNally, running April 17–26, 2026….

CHICAGO IS EVEN HOTTER IN THE DESERT Desert Theatricals just wrapped up their run of Chicago at the Rancho Mirage Amphitheater, and if you weren’t there this past weekend, you truly missed out on a spectacular night under the stars. It’s one thing to see this show in a traditional theater, but there’s something about…

If you were lucky enough to be in the audience at the historic Palm Springs Plaza Theatre on Friday evening, you witnessed something rarer—and more electric—than a standard play. The second installment of the inaugural rePLAY series delivered a “script-in-hand” performance of Charles Busch’s The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife that proved, beyond a doubt,…

A BEAUTIFUL DOLL CV Rep’s production is one bet you can’t lose It’s amazing. Were this masterpiece from Broadway’s golden age an actual guy or doll, he or she would be scoring Social Security. But make no mistake, this 1950 hoofer is no worse for the wear, thanks to Frank Loesser’s timeless score and Jo…

A Celestial Collision of Wit and Chaos in Meteor Shower Steve Martin’s absurdist comedy Meteor Shower crashes onto the stage at Desert Ensemble Theatre like a cosmic cocktail party gone wonderfully wrong. The company’s current production of the play by Steve Martin—running through this Sunday—is a wild, starlit trip into the absurd, leaning unapologetically into…

There is a profound beauty in watching something fragile survive. In Dezart Performs’ breathtaking West Coast Premiere of Jason Odell Williams’ Destroying David, that fragility is everywhere: in the literal cracks of a 500-year-old statue, in the fractured heart of a grieving mother, and in the very air of the theater itself. Running through March…

On February 28 and March 1, 2026, Morgan Fairchild will be featured in a staged reading of Marilyn, Mom & Me, Luke Yankee’s new play about his mother, Eileen Heckart, and her intense friendship with Marilyn Monroe during the shooting of the 1956 film, Bus Stop. All proceeds from the event will support ongoing programs…