Critically Acclaimed “Deal With the Dragon” in Palm Springs
Media contact: David Perry / (415) 676-7007 / news@davidperry.com
Kevin Rolston’s Critically Acclaimed
“Deal With the Dragon”
Comes to Palm Springs Cultural Center
May 29 – June 8
One man comedic tour-de-force is latest production from
Jerome Joseph Gentes’ TigerBear Productions
27 March 2025 — Palm Springs, CA: Kevin Rolston’s critically acclaimed Deal with the Dragon, a three-character, one-man performance hailed as “truly bravura” (Edinburgh Guide) and “meticulously written and exquisitely performed” (Huffington Post), comes to the Palm Springs Cultural Center for a limited run, May 29 – June 8. Developed with and directed by M. Graham Smith, written by/starring Rolston, and produced by Jerome Joseph Gentes’ TigerBear Productions in association with Desert Ensemble Theatre, the captivating comedy unfurls a cunning grown-up fairy tale laced with terror. Audiences will experience a full, complete production of this free-wheeling fantasy, which was selected as one of the top 20 theater shows (out of 900) to see at the 2016 Edinburgh Fringe by The List. Deal with the Dragon runs Thursday through Sunday at 7:30pm, with Sunday matinees at 2pm at the Palm Springs Cultural Center (2300 E. Baristo Road, Palm Springs, CA). For tickets and more information, visit desertensembletheatre.org, dealwiththedragon.com, or tigerbearproductions.com.
“It’s a smooth and sexy mix of smart, funny, and sophisticated,” said Gentes, whose ground-breaking production of the edgy interactive opera UNBOUND, set in a gay sex club, wowed Coachella Valley audiences in 2022. “It’s aperfect combo for Palm Springs locals and visitors alike.”
Deal with the Dragon, Rolston’s first solo show, finds an artist desperate to land a gallery show at a prestigious museum, an acolyte who will stop at nothing to protect the artist’s process, and a flamboyant rival competing for the same museum slot. All are portrayed by Rolston in a performance SF Weekly called “infused with razor blades that have been soaked in honey.” The show was also named by KQED Arts’ John Wilkins as one of six “singular and brilliant theater pieces” of 2016. “Deal with the Dragon gave me more after-the-fact pleasure than any other play this year,” he declared. “This show burrowed into my mind.”
Kevin Rolston is a San Francisco-based actor and playwright. His first play, Crystal Christian—about the hypocrisy of loud-mouthed homophobes who get caught doing crystal meth with gay hookers—enjoyed a workshop production at Magic Theatre in 2008. His second play, This Many People, covered the lives of Bay Area LGBTQ senior citizens and premiered at Counterpulse as part of the 2010 Queer Arts Festival. As an ensemble actor, Rolston has performed in venues across the Bay Area including A.C.T., CalShakes, Marin Theatre Company, and TheatreWorks Silicon Valley.
M. Graham Smith is a San Francisco-based director, educator, and producer. A recipient of the O’Neill/NNPN National Directing Fellowship and a proud Resident Artist at Crowded Fire, Smith has directed productions across the country including the world premiere of Obie-winner Christopher Chen’s Home Invasion and the Bay Area premiere of White by James Ijames. His recent projects include a hip-hop musical film adaptation of As You Like It and the musical The Mortification of Fovea Munson at The Kennedy Center.
“TigerBear Productions started on its journey long before 2019,” Gentes recalls. “Our fore’bears’ include the first artists who inspired us as wee cubs, and those who shaped and shared them with us. As we grew, we wondered again and again: who could we gather to tell a story with, and who could we gather to tell it to? Print and stage and screen evolved, and so did we, yet we kept renewing our love of making stories and making them happen. Here, now, we keep telling and making them, with more inspirations in our hearts and imaginations than we can count.”
WHAT:
Kevin Rolston’s critically acclaimed Deal with the Dragon, a three-character, one-man performance hailed as “truly bravura” (Edinburgh Guide) and “meticulously written and exquisitely performed” (Huffington Post), comes to Palm Springs for a limited run. Developed with and directed by M. Graham Smith, written by/starring Rolston, and produced by TigerBear Productions in association with Desert Ensemble Theatre, the show is a grown-up fairy tale with teeth. Called “infused with razor blades that have been soaked in honey” (SF Weekly), this shape-shifting solo performance was named one of KQED’s “six singular and brilliant theater pieces” of 2016.
WHEN:
May 29 – June 8, 2025
Thursday–Saturday at 7:30pm, Sunday at 2:00pm
WHERE:
Palm Springs Cultural Center
2300 E. Baristo Road, Palm Springs, CA