Local performance venues launching fall season built around participation

Palm Springs-area arts organizations are preparing for a fall season that will give residents opportunities not only to watch films and live theater, but also to write, sing, act and take the stage themselves.

Among the first major events of the season is Cinema Diverse, the Palm Springs LGBTQ+ Film Festival, which returns in September for its 19th edition with two weekends of feature films, documentaries, shorts and web series at the Palm Springs Cultural Center. Screenings will run Sept. 17-20 and resume Sept. 24-27.

The festival opens Sept. 17 with Mineshaft: The Cruising Murders, a documentary from Emmy-winning director Jeffrey Schwarz examining the real-life murder that inspired William Friedkin’s Cruising, along with the controversy and protests surrounding the film.

More than 100 short films are scheduled over the course of the festival, along with feature-length dramas and documentaries. The first weekend also includes the world festival premiere of two new episodes of Some Kind of Wonderful, an LGBTQ+ comedy-drama series now set in Palm Springs and created, written and directed by Palm Springs filmmaker Ricky Reidling.

Individual tickets (available here) and festival passes (available here) are currently on sale. An all-access pass, which provides entry to any Cinema Diverse screening, costs $179, while a six-pack offering admission to six screenings costs $79 and individual tickets start at $14.50.

“I am excited about this year’s program,” said Michael Green, the Cultural Center’s executive director. “We have a diverse selection of topics, with something for every letter of the LGBTQI+ alphabet.”

Live theater will return to Palm Canyon Theatre in October as the company begins its 30th anniversary season in Palm Springs.

The season opens with Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat from Oct. 9-18, followed by Sordid Lives from Oct. 30-Nov. 15 and The Producers from Nov. 27-Dec. 13. The season continues into 2027 with productions including Evita, Beautiful: The Carole King Musical, Titanic: The Musical and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels.

Season subscriptions are now on sale, with packages priced at $312 for all eight productions, $240 for six shows and $166 for four. A Patrons’ Choice package offers 10 tickets in any combination for $400.

Individual tickets, including fees, cost $46 for adults and $20 for students, with group discounts also available. Tickets may be purchased at palmcanyontheatre.org or by calling the box office at 760-323-5123 from 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Monday through Friday.

Performances are generally at 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays, 2 p.m. Sundays and 7 p.m. Thursdays at 538 North Palm Canyon Drive in Palm Springs, with additional shows expected to be added during the season.

Coachella Valley Repertory in Cathedral City will combine its own stage season with fall programs that allow residents to take part in the creative process.

CVRep’s 2026-27 performance season begins Oct. 28 with The Minutes, Tracey Letts’ political satire about a small-town City Council where questions about the previous month’s meeting minutes begin exposing secrets and power struggles. The production runs through Nov. 15.

Around the World in 80 Days, adapted by Mark Brown from the Jules Verne novel, follows from Dec. 2-20, with five actors playing 40 roles. The season continues Jan. 13-31 with Million Dollar Quartet, centered on the night that brought Elvis Presley, Johnny Cash, Jerry Lee Lewis and Carl Perkins together for a jam session.

CVRep will then present Les Misérables from Feb. 24-March 21. The production is the Coachella Valley regional premiere of a restaging of the musical, following Jean Valjean as he seeks a second chance while being pursued by Javert.

Ticket information can be found here, while those interested in subscriptions should visit this site.

Before those productions begin, CVRep’s Conservatory will offer several ways for residents to develop their own performing and writing skills.

A comedy sketch writing intensive Sept. 18-20 is open to adults with or without previous writing experience. Instructor Darren Held will teach sketch structure and character-driven humor, with participants expected to write five types of sketches during the intensive.

CVRep also will offer an acting class taught by Conservatory and Youth Outreach Director Howard Shangraw from Sept. 21-Nov. 23 and a singing class taught by Broadway and musical theater veteran Teri Ralston from Sept. 22-Dec. 8. Both are open to adults and culminate with showcases for family and friends.

More information about the classes can be found here.

“Classes offered by CVRep Conservatory provide professional level theatre training for young people and adults,” Shangraw said. “CVRep is committed to enriching arts and theatre-based opportunities for everyone, experienced theatre-veterans and beginners alike.”

Younger performers will have an opportunity to participate through CVRep’s anti-bullying awareness production of Harry’s Law, a play about youth cyberbullying that will feature Coachella Valley middle and high school students.

Auditions are scheduled Aug. 31 from 4-6:30 p.m. at CVRep’s Black Box Studio, 68510 East Palm Canyon Drive, with additional auditions planned at several Coachella Valley schools. Students may arrive with a prepared monologue, or audition scenes will be provided. Complete details about the auditions are available here.

The play follows Max, a socially awkward student who begins tutoring popular student Sara in chemistry before personal rumors about him begin circulating online. Shangraw will direct the production.

Rehearsals are scheduled for Sept. 8-20, with performances Sept. 21-25 at CVRep. Classes of students will be bused to the theater for the performances courtesy of CVRep.

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