Schedule Change for THE MOUNTAINTOP from Dezart Performs
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Schedule Change for THE MOUNTAINTOP from Dezart Performs
Due to COVID / Omicron Spread Production Postponed
New Dates are March 4 – 13
Shortened Season will Finish with EVERY BRILLIANT THING (April 1 – 10)
Previously Announced GRAND CONCOURSE Cancelled for 2021/22 Season
28 December 2021 – Palm Springs, CA: Due to the rapidly spreading Omicron Variant of COVID-19, Dezart Performs (www.dezartperforms.org) of Palm Springs has announced changes to their upcoming 14thSeason.
The previously announced THE MOUNTAINTOP (originally slated for January 14 –23) will now run March 4 – 13 with EVERY BRILLIANT THING running as previously planned, April 1 – 10. GRAND CONCOURSE will be cancelled for the 2021/22 Season.
“Unfortunately but unavoidably once again COVID has forced us to change our plans,” says Michael Shaw, Dezart Performs founding artistic director. “Given the nature of this most recent variant, and out of an abundance of caution, this decision is based on our concern for the health and safety of our staff, volunteers, actors and audience members.”
According to Shaw, in the coming days, ticket holders will be contacted to arrange refunds or transfer of their tickets to the new date, or as a credit for a future production.
“Our loyal supporters have been incredibly flexible and patient during this challenging time,” said Shaw. “We appreciate them more than ever and look forward to welcoming them back into our theatre soon.”
About THE MOUNTAINTOP:
It’s April 3, 1968 at the Lorraine Motel in Memphis, Tennessee and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. has just delivered his iconic – and final – speech. It’s his last night on Earth and the first day on the job for a very unusual housekeeper named Camae. For playwright Katori Hall it’s the opportunity for a fantastical, moving and prophetic two-step tour-de force for actors Shanté DeLoach and Cortez Johnson. The 2010Olivier Award winning drama is presented by Dezart Performs (www.dezartperforms.org) March 4 – 13,2022 at the Pearl McManus Theatre in downtown Palm Springs.
Not only because of its timing as his final public appearance, but because of its Biblical scope and cadence, Dr. King’s “Mountaintop” speech is considered one of the greatest of the 20th century. Given in defense of the Memphis, Tennessee sanitationworkers strike, it has come to symbolize the over-arching and centuries long struggle for racial equity in the United States. Deeply rooted in that history, Katori Hall has crafted a play that tackles the legacy of one of America’s seminal icons and presents him in all his glorious and flawed humanity. When Dr. King first meets Camae, it is over a hidden flask of alcohol and shared cigarettes: specifically humanizing elements. Also, the language of THE MOUNTAINTOP is at once eloquent and earthy, as grounded in Hall’s Tennessee heritage as King’s soaring rhetoric is based in religion and philosophy.
THE MOUNTAINTOP follows the opening show for the esteemed Dezart Performs, GIRLFRIEND, the first ever musical for the company and its first outdoor dinner theatre production, mounted at the Rancho Mirage Amphitheatre. 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. Individual tickets for remaining shows in our 2021/22 Season are on sale at www.dezartperforms.org or by calling (760) 322-0179.
“For the health, safety and well-being of our patrons, staff and artists, Dezart Performs’ COVID-19 policy requires guests to be fully vaccinated,” reminds Shaw. “Upon arrival at all events, guests must present a photo ID along with proof that they meet the CDC definition of being fully vaccinated against COVID-19, either in the form of a physical vaccination card or a photo of the card. Also, mask must be worn indoors at all times, except when eating or drinking.”
Shaw and the company stress, that this policy is subject to changes at any time, in accordance with local, state and federal guidelines. Please check the Dezart Performs website for current policy guidelines beforeattending any scheduled performance date.
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) nonprofittheatre 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.
All performances take place at the Pearl McManus Theater (at the historic Palm Springs Woman’s Club) 314 S Cahuilla Road, Downtown Palm Springs. Tickets may be purchased online at www.dezartperforms.org, or by calling (760) 322-0179. Showtimes are Fridays at 7:30pm; Saturdays at 2pm and 7:30pm; Sundays at 2pm.
14th Dezart Performs Complete Season Listing
THE MOUNTAINTOP
March 4 – 13, 2022
Written by Katori Hall
Drama
Directed by Michael Shaw
Pearl McManus Theater
2010 Winner, Olivier Award for Best Play
A re-imagined depiction of Martin Luther King Jr.’s last night on earth set entirely in Room 306 of the Lorraine Motel on the eve of his assassination in 1968. After delivering his famous “I’ve been to the mountaintop speech”, King goes to the Lorraine Motel to rest. His world is spun on his axis when he meets Camae, a young, feisty and foul-mouthed maid, who delivers his room service.
“Funny and emotionally charged… a powerful, poetic take on [King’s] legacy.” -Philip Brandes, Los Angeles Times
“Intriguing, shocking, funny… a stunning evening.” – Dale Reynolds, EDGE Los Angeles
* * *
EVERY BRILLIANT THING
April 1-10, 2022
Written by Duncan Macmillan, with Jonny Donahoe
Directed by Deborah Harmon
Comedy/Drama
Pearl McManus Theater
You’re six years old. Mom’s in the hospital. Dad says she’s “done something stupid.” She finds it hard to behappy. So you start to make a list of everything that’s brilliant about the world. Everything that’s worth living for. 1. Ice cream. 2. Kung Fu movies. 3. Burningthings. 4. Laughing so hard you shoot milk out your nose. 5. Constructions cranes. 6. Me. You leave it onher pillow. You know she’s read it because she’scorrected your spelling. Soon, the list will take on a life of its own. A play about depression and the lengths we will go for those we love.
“A heart-wrenching, hilarious play…One of the funniest plays you’ll ever see about depression—and possibly one of the funniest plays you’ll ever see, full stop!” —The Guardian