Plácido Domingo, Renée Fleming, Midori, Cat Cora, Zandra Rhodes, Sarah Chang, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Nina Kotova and Marc Bouwer to Headline a Series Of Events From March 20, 2016 Through April 24, 2016
The Palm Springs Life Festival (www.palmspringslifefestival.com) today announced the launch of the first season of the premier cultural arts and lifestyle event in the Coachella Valley to be presented by Palm Springs Life magazine and IMG Artists and produced by Barrett Wissman, the Chairman of IMG Artists. The inaugural festival will feature a stellar lineup of some of today’s top artists, fashion designers and culinary superstars. Some of the stars to appear include opera legends Plácido Domingo and Renée Fleming, violinists Midori and Sarah Chang, cellist Nina Kotova, pianist Jean Yves Thibaudet, guitarist Angel Romero, fashion designers Zandra Rhodes, Michael Costello and Marc Bouwer, and chefs Cat
Cora, Gail Gand, and The Hearty Boys.
Last spring, the festival was launched in a one-day event at the Sunnylands Center and Gardens in Rancho Mirage. Performers and curators included producer Quincy Jones, opera star Renée Fleming, Ballet dancer David Hallberg, and conductor Philippe Jordan. Due to the event’s success, executive producers Barrett Wissman and IMG Artists decided to partner with Palm Springs Life to present the first full season of the Festival in 2016.
This year will bring together the Festival’s arts programming alongside two desert standouts, the Palm Desert Food & Wine Festival (www.palmdesertfoodandwine.com) and Fashion Week El Paseo (www.fashionweekelpaseo.com), giving the Coachella Valley an unprecedented array of talent across multiple disciplines.
“I think it’s a real opportunity for Southern California to have an independent festival that can bring many art forms together from music, to fashion, to the culinary world. To have a first season that includes luminaries such as Plácido Domingo, Cat Cora, Renée Fleming, and Zandra Rhodes is inspiring,” said Wissman, Executive Producer of the Palm Springs Life Festival and Chairman of IMG Artists.
The Festival will open with a gala concert at The Show at Agua Caliente Casino Resort and Spa, featuring Plácido Domingo, Renée Fleming and the LA Opera Orchestra and will continue with an array of music, food and wine and fashion events over the following four weeks. Concerts and events will take place at multiple venues in the greater Palm Springs area including the new Rancho Mirage Amphitheater, The Helene Galen Auditorium at The Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower and the Gardens on El Paseo. The Festival will be capped off on April 23 and 24 with a signature event “In Vino Veritas” at The Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage. The event will feature the greatest Italian wines, winemakers and chefs of today and will be presented in partnership with and curated by Gambero Rosso, the leading Italian guide to the best wines and restaurants of Italy (www.gamberorosso.it).
Said Maestro Plácido Domingo: “I am very much looking forward to coming to Palm Springs with the LA Opera Orchestra. The surroundings are absolutely spectacular and I can’t wait to perform for the audience there.“
The sixth annual Palm Desert Food & Wine Festival™ Presented by Agua Caliente Casino Resort and Spa takes place April 8-10, 2016 in Palm Desert, CA. Organized by Palm Springs Life, this festival features the brightest and most inspired chefs from across the country for three extraordinary days of culinary and wine tastings in the heart of the famed El Paseo shopping district. The event features a standout roster of celebrity chefs demonstrations and showcases the Coachella Valley as the ultimate culinary destination. In previous years, the event has featured well-known chefs such as Roy Choi, Cat Cora, Gale Gand, Ari Taymore and Brian Malarkay. The 2016 line-up will be announced shortly.
The festival begins Friday, April 8 with the four-course James Beard Gourmet Four-Course luncheon, expertly prepared by celebrity chefs and served in an elegantly-appointed tent. The luncheon is followed by two days of Grand Tastings, featuring delectable morsels from more than 40 restaurants, created by renowned chefs from all across California. More than 60 premium wines and champagnes will be offered as well, and participants will be able to interact with the vintners and chefs to discuss in detail about the offerings.
For full schedule (http://www.palmspringslifefestival.com/events/) and ticket information for the Palm Springs Life Festival, visit www.palmspringslifefestival.com.
Festival Partners and Sponsors include The Saxony Group, Agua Caliente Casino Resort and Spa, City of Palm Desert, City of Rancho Mirage, Indigo Auto Group Desert European Motorcars, Donna MacMillan/El Paseo, El Paseo Jewelers, The Gardens on El Paseo/El Paseo Village, John and Victoria Hill, Just Blow Drys, Lexus, Living Herbs, My Little Flower Shop, Performing Arts Live, Raymond James, Rigler-Deutch Foundation, Rum Chata, Tequila Alderete, The Island Hotel, The Resort at Pelican Hill, The Ritz-Carlton, Rancho Mirage Trio, VOSS, Whole Foods, Wink Lash & Beauty Bar, and Chef Works.
Plácido Domingo and Renée Fleming Performing With the LA Opera Orchestra
March 20 @ 8:30 pm – 10:00 pm
The Show at Agua Caliente Casino Resort and Spa, 32-250 Bob Hope Drive, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 United States
Plácido Domingo will conduct Renée Fleming as she performs many of opera’s greatest arias and duets, in association with the LA Opera Orchestra. As a special treat, Maestro Domingo will perform selected duets with Ms. Fleming, offering an unforgettable concert at this one-night-only performance. Generously underwritten by: Rigler-Deutsch Foundation and James Rigler Tickets: Orchestra: $400 Box: (seats 12-14): $250 Loge: $175 Mezzanine: $100 Balcony: $65
Midori in Concert
March 25 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
The Helene Galen Auditorium at The Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower, 39000 Bob Hope Dr, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 United States. Tickets: $45-$60
Internationally acclaimed solo violinist Midori will showcase her stunning talent at The Helene Galen Auditorium at The Annenberg Center for Health Sciences at Eisenhower. Midori has played in venues around the world and has received numerous honors for excellence. She has commissioned new works from an impressive array of some of the most talented of today’s composers, which demonstrates her enthusiasm for playing and supporting the music of our time. Midori will be performing a solo recital exclusively featuring the works of Johann Sebastian Bach.
Sarah Chang with the Salastina Society Orchestra
March 26 @ 7:00 pm – 8:30 pm
Rancho Mirage Amphitheater, 71560 San Jacinto Dr, Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 United States
Sarah Chang is one of the outstanding violinists of her generation. She has performed internationally with renowned orchestras, conductors and accompanists in a career spanning more than two decades. She was the youngest person ever to receive the Hollywood Bowl’s Hall of Fame award and was named Young Global Leader for 2008 by the World Economic Forum (WEF), and the US Embassy’s Artistic Ambassador from 2011 Ms. Chang will be performing Astor Piazzolla’s Four Seasons of Buenos Aires, Piazzolla’s exciting iconic work for violin and orchestra that pays homage to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons while infusing it with his own tango compositional style and rhythms.
Tickets: $65 – Reserved seating; $50 general admission
Jean-Yves Thibaudet and Nina Kotova
March 31 @ 7:00 am – 9:00 pm
Rancho Mirage Amphitheater, 71560 San Jacinto Dr., Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 United States

Internationally acclaimed pianist Jean Yves Thibaudet and cellist Nina Kotova will come together for a spectacular duo recital featuring some of the greatest works written for both instruments. Hailed as “one of the best pianists in the world,” Jean-Yves Thibaudet continues to captivate audiences around the world with his thrilling performances, profound artistry, poetic musicality and dazzling technical prowess. Thibaudet has recently been elected to the Hollywood Bowl Hall Of Fame. Russian-born cellist Nina Kotova has been hailed “passionate and inspiring”. According to Newsweek magazine, “she‘s a fantastically gifted cellist…..Very expressive, imaginative, and she has a powerful stage presence.” Ms. Kotova has toured the globe with orchestra and in recital and has collaborated as well across genres with artists such as Sting, Bobby McFerrin, Jeremy Irons and John Malkovich. Tickets: $50 – $65
Angel Romero, Classical Guitarist
April 1 @ 7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
Rancho Mirage Amphitheater, 71560 San Jacinto Dr., Rancho Mirage, CA 92270 United States

Angel Romero, Classical Guitarist
Hailed for his superior artistry as an iconic master of the classical guitar, ANGEL ROMERO has an eminence in the music world as soloist and conductor that is heralded by audiences and critics alike. One of the most sought-after musicians on the concert stage, Angel Romero has appeared in the world’s major cultural centers. In February 2000 he was presented with the Grand Cross of Isabel la Católica, Spain’s highest national honor, and was knighted Sir Angel Romero in recognition of his astounding musical accomplishments. Maestro Romero will be performing a recital of solo works for guitar that feature works of his native Spain. Tickets: $50 – $65
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