Broadway Comes Back to the Desert: Historic Plaza Theatre
Announces Season 2 of rePLAY
Peri Gilpin and Lillias White Among the Stars Set to Appear in the Script-in-Hand Series
Last season, rePLAY turned the Plaza Theatre stage over to Broadway legends for an unforgettable experience of comedy, wit, and star power. This November, the desert's favorite script-in-hand series is back and raising the curtain for an even bigger season.
Season 2 of rePLAY brings a trio of wildly different comedies to downtown Palm Springs: a backstage musical romp, a brand-new comedy about fame in the internet age, and a Noël Coward classic that's been making audiences laugh for nearly a century. Tony winner David Zippel returns this season to direct Fashion, The Musical and Fanboy/Diva. On Fashion, The Musical, Zippel will be joined by Grammy and Tony winner Mary-Mitchell Campbell (Mean Girls, Death Becomes Her) who will serve as Music Director and appear in the show. Rounding out the series, five-time Tony winner Susan Stroman will direct Noël Coward’s Private Lives.
Casts include SAG Award winner Peri Gilpin (Frasier, Hot In Cleveland), Tony winners Faith Prince (Guys and Dolls) and Lillias White (Hadestown, Chicago), joined by Tony nominees Kate Baldwin (Hello, Dolly!, Finian’s Rainbow), Mary Testa (Oklahoma, Wicked), and Max von Essen (An American In Paris). Scripts in hand and nothing held back: this is theater at its liveliest.
Season tickets will be available September 8 – 20, exclusively at the Plaza Theatre box office or by phone (760-593-5768); the box office is open Monday - Saturday from 11am to 4pm for in person sales. Single ticket sales open on September 25. With only three performances per show, seats for this season are expected to move quickly. Season 2 of rePLAY is generously sponsored by David C. Lee.
Fashion, The Musical
November 13, 2026 7:30pm
November 14, 2026 2:00pm & 7:30pm
In this timeless musical comedy of manners about nine women whose amateur theater club is rehearsing a musical. They play both the men and the women, except for the phony French count, played by their sexy male director.
Directed by David Zippel. The cast features Tony winner Lillias White (Hadestown, Chicago), Tony winner Mary-Mitchell Campbell (Mean Girls, Death Becomes Her), three-time Tony nominee Mary Testa (Oklahoma, Wicked), three-time Tony nominee Kate Baldwin (Hello, Dolly!, Finian’s Rainbow), Tony nominee Max von Essen (An American In Paris), Alix Korey (Anastasia, Beauty and The Beast), Ruth Williamson (Guys and Dolls, The Music Man), Mary Faber (Parks and Rec, American Idiot), and Julie Garnyé (Come From Away).
Fanboy/Diva
March 5, 2027 7:30pm
March 6, 2027 2:00pm & 7:30pm
A new comedy with songs by four-time Emmy winner Cheri Steinkellner (Cheers, Sister Act) that follows a once-iconic Broadway star trying to reclaim her legendary role, only to discover her online identity has been hijacked by a teenage superfan. The two are forced into an uneasy alliance, blurring the lines between admiration and confrontation.
The cast includes Tony winner Faith Prince (Guys and Dolls), SAG Award winner Peri Gilpin (Frasier, Hot in Cleveland), Jason Graae (The Merry Widow), Mitchell Sink (A Christmas Story), and local thespians Elizabeth Eldar (MTU: Musical Theatre University) and Chris Carranza (Tale of the Allergist’s Wife).
Lyrics by David Zippel, and music by Walter Afanasieff, Cy Coleman, Alan Menken, and Matthew Wilder. Book by Cheri Steinkellner. Directed by David Zippel. Musical Direction by Jon Blauerfeld.
Private Lives
April 2 , 2027 7:30pm
April 3, 2027 2:00pm and 7:30pm
Noël Coward comedy of manners about a divorced couple, Elyot and Amanda. While honeymooning with their new spouses in the South of France, they discover they are staying in adjacent hotel rooms. Joyce Bulifant (Mary Tyler Moore Show, Happiest Millionaire) and Ryan Spahn (Star Trek: Voyager, An American Daughter) have been confirmed to join the cast of Private Lives.
Directed by five-time Tony winner Susan Stroman.
David Zippel returns as Artistic Director of rePLAY, working alongside Producing Director Debbie Green Miller to bring the biggest stars of Broadway to the Plaza stage. All ticket sales from rePLAY Season 2 benefit the Palm Springs Plaza Theatre Foundation. Every actor, director, and producer involved has generously donated their time to bring rePLAY to life.
“Script-in-hand productions create a lively, immediate experience that showcases the brilliance of the writing and the spontaneity of the actors,” said Debbie Green Miller, Producing Director. “This second season of rePLAY we are doing a musical, a brand-new comedy with songs, and a classic Noel Coward comedy. With a lineup of world-class talent, audiences will experience the joy of live theater in a way that feels both intimate and electric."
Three shows. One historic stage. rePLAY Season 2 kicks off this fall, and with tickets available for a limited window, the Plaza Theatre encourages patrons not to wait.