Jen Silverman’s proudly queer play about five women on the verge of “thea-tah”
Desert Ensemble Theater (DET), in residence at the Palm Springs Cultural Center, will present Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties by award-winning playwright Jen Silverman. This “fult-tilt lesbian/bi-curious/genderqueer/Shakespearean comedy for everyone,” (New York Times) explores anger, sex, love and the “thea-tah” through the experiences of five women named Betty.
Performances are part of DET’s 13th Season “Off-Center at the Cultural Center.” The play runs November 10–12 and 17–19, with curtain times of 7:30 pm Friday, 2:00 pm and 7:30 pm Saturday, and 2:00 pm Sunday. Tickets are $37.50 and are available at www.desertensembletheatre.org. For more information, call (760) 565-2476.
DET Artistic Director Jerome Elliott Moskowitz stated: “Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties continues DET’s track record of bringing new and recent groundbreaking works to our community. Specific to LGBTQ+ theatre, when we produced The Beebo Brinker Chronicles in 2021 – based on Ann Bannon’s series of lesbian pulp fiction novels – women responded in box office-breaking numbers. A common response was that plays about queer women are so rare in the Desert and there was a consensus that audiences wanted to see more. When director Kudra Wagner brought Jen Silverman’s play to my attention, I knew that it would be perfect for DET. It contains all of the trademarks of our best productions: with its unusual premise, sharp humor, stylization, and out on a limb approach.”
Wagner, who directed last season’s production of Kill the Editor (Aren Haun), directs the five-person ensemble featuring renowned tv and film actress Tammy Taylor (Days of Our Lives, Meatballs Part II, The Wedding Dress) in her Coachella Valley theatre debut, with Angela Landis, Shelby Victoria, Katrina Dixon, and Ashton Loyo.
Collective Rage: A Play in 5 Betties premiered off-Broadway at the Lucille Lortel Theatre in 2018. Nicole Serratore of Variety wrote: “Anger, love and loneliness are comedically but honestly rendered in this occasionally absurd, stylized, queer-centric play… With hilarity and poignancy, Collective Rage offers a broad spectrum of queer voices rarely seen on stage.”
DET is located at the Palm Springs Cultural Center, 2300 E. Baristo Rd. in Palm Springs. For additional information visit www.desertensembletheatre.org or call (760) 565-2476.
PHOTO:
- Tammy Taylor. Photo by Glen Wexler © Glen Wexler Studio.
