Dezart Performs Announces an Incredible Post-Covid Season Featuring GIRLFRIEND, THE MOUNTAINTOP, GRAND CONCOURSE And EVERY BRILLIANT THING

Like an oasis springing up in the Desert after a year of theatrical drought, the award-winning Dezart Performs of Palm Springs (www.dezartperforms.org) returns with a full four-play schedule that brings music, mayhem, mirth and an exploration of mental health to the fore in their 14thSeason. First up is the critically-acclaimed Todd Almond / Matthew Sweet musical GIRLFRIEND (October 27 - 30) taking place outside at the Rancho Mirage Amphitheater. Kicking off the new year, the company returns to its traditional home at thePearl McManus Theater (at the historic Palm Springs Woman's Club / 314 S Cahuilla Road, Downtown Palm Springs) with Katori Hall's THE MOUNTAINTOP (January 14 - 23), a bold reimagining of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr's final night. Next is Heidi Schreck'sdramatic exploration of compassion and forgiveness as seen through the eyes of a nun in a Bronx soup kitchen, GRAND CONCOURSE (March 4 - 13). Rounding out the calendar is the one-person comedy/drama EVERY BRILLIANT THING (April 1 - 10) by Duncan MacMillan with Jonny Donahoe and directed by Deborah Harmon. EVERY BRILLIANT THING was originally the final production of the 2020 Season, delayed by COVID.

"We are so looking forward to welcoming everyone back in October with a play that is a first in many ways," said Dezart Performs Artistic Director Michael Shaw who directs the first three plays in the upcoming season. " 'GIRLFRIEND is the first musical for Dezart Performs, the first play to be presented outdoors, and it's the first play after a long, dark shutdown."

Following its final live, with-audience performance, SWEAT, on March 8, 2020, Dezart Performs engaged its audience with a series of live online events during COVID: Creating for the Stage: Discussions with the People that Make Shows Happen (November 11 - December 2, 2020) and the interactive online sensation Mental Amusements (January 13 - 31, 2021) with award-winning Mentalist Vinny DePonto.

"Our motto during the pandemic was that we were here, and still dreaming," said Shaw who co-founded the company in 2008. "Now, the dream is being realized again, and we're ready to turn a new decade of dreams into reality."

Dezart Performs, one of the Coachella Valley's preeminent theatre companies, recognizes that the performing arts enrich the life and culture of a community, promote greater understanding and provoke insightful discussion. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit theatre company, its mission is to provide an artistic home for bold and cutting-edge plays, creating an atmosphere of artistic growth for actors, writers, and directors who uniquely contribute to the diverse theatrical environment in the Coachella Valley. Dates for Season Subscriptions and Single Ticket Sales will be announced later this summer. For further information and tickets visit: www.dezartperforms.org.