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Dear Friend,
I’m thrilled to introduce myself as the new Director of Development for Portland Center Stage. After only six weeks with PCS, I can honestly say this organization has the most collaborative, enthusiastic, and loyal teams I have encountered in my 30-year development career. It’s a privilege to be counted as one of them. And while I’ve only met a handful of supporters, it’s not a surprise that you are equally committed and supportive — at least as much through your passion and belief in the company and the works we produce as for the funds you donate.
I look forward to getting to know all of you, particularly as the holidays draw near. I can’t imagine a more rewarding experience during this season of gratitude than spending time with you. I hope to see you at any one of our upcoming events: opening night for Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord (on November 11); opening night for It’s a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play (on November 25); or the It’s a Wonderful Night Holiday Soiree (on December 16). In the meantime, please feel free to call or email if you have any questions or just want to connect.
I hope to see you in person sometime soon. In the meantime, best wishes to you and your loved ones for a healthy, happy, and peaceful holiday season!
Insights from Marissa Wolf 💫
Happy Fall! I’m so thrilled to have Christina Anderson’s the ripple, the wave that carried me home on the U.S. Bank Main stage right now. Anderson — who joined our team for previews and opening — just won the prestigious Horton Foote Prize for this play. Towards the end of the play, a character reads a letter from her mother:
“In my life plan … I’d give you the gift of knowing water’s power and peace. The joy of it. I’d teach you how it establishes a rhythm in your life that can sustain you for the rest of your days.”
This love buoys the characters as they fight for justice, and move through the world tethered together by the pleasure of water and swimming. I hope you’ll join us for this beautiful production, and for the many rich offerings the fall line up at PCS has to offer!
Our Donor Happy Hours have been a treat to host in person! With delicious wine from Argyle Winery, we dig into the inside scoop of the work we’re doing, what we’re dreaming about, and how your support impacts PCS serving this community. I’d love to say hello and connect with you in December when we sit down with Education and Community Programs Director, Kelsey Tyler.
I look forward to seeing you at the theater!
Best,
Marissa Wolf
Join us for a champagne toast!
Donor Happy Hour with special guest Education & Community Programs Director, Kelsey Tyler!
A holiday party for the ages!
Friday, December 16 • 5 p.m. • $250/person ($150/person for show & post-show party only)
Thank you, youth education sponsors!
Portland Center Stage serves more than 6,500 young people annually through a wide range of arts learning opportunities, from in-school playwriting courses, student matinees, and backstage tours to our Teen Council and year-round Teen Academy. Because most of these programs are offered free of charge, we rely on contributions and grants to sustain them, so we would like to thank the following recent donors:
- Ray and Bobbi Davis, for their generous gift in support of this year’s Stage Door student matinees, which will provide free or low-cost tickets to more than 60 schools and non-profit organizations;
- The Juan Young Trust, for supporting free Stage Door workshops in area schools;
- PGE Foundation, for their support of the PCS Teen Playwrights Program, which provides free, month-long playwriting classes in local high schools and learning centers; and
- Reser Family Foundation, for their grant in support of all our youth programs.
To learn more about how Portland Center Stage helps young people discover new perspectives, skills, and self-confidence through theater, visit www.pcs.org/education.
PCS donors are vital to our success and we are grateful for each and every one of you. Please join us in welcoming our newest donors!
We appreciate you, mystery donors!
Throughout the season we receive anonymous gifts from supporters through Amazon Smile, Facebook, and Kroger Rewards. Thanks to those of you who participate in these programs!
If you'd like to learn more, visit our ways to give page.
We’re platinum in more ways than one!
The Armory, PCS’s home, was the first building on the National Register of Historic Places to achieve a LEED Platinum rating from the U.S. Green Building Council. We’re excited to share that Portland Center Stage has also earned a 2022 Platinum Seal of Transparency with Candid! Candid, which merged with GuideStar and Foundation Center in 2019, connects nonprofits, foundations, and individuals to the resources they need to do good through research, collaboration, and training. You can view our Nonprofit Profile at Portland Center Stage at The Armory - GuideStar Profile.
Our Community Values
Theater often brings productive discomfort to the surface. Portland Center Stage is committed to grappling with that discomfort, on and off the stage, and we invite members of our community to participate in that growth process with us. Our goal is to co-create safety for our community by identifying and interrupting instances of racism and all forms of oppression, when we witness them, through specific actions rooted in the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA). Learn more.
Words from the Wings Banner: Jesse Weil in tick, tick ... BOOM!; photo by Shawnte Sims.
Marissa Wolf photo by Gary Norman.
Kristina Wong stars in Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord at La Jolla Playhouse; photo by Jenna Selby.
Education photo by Alec Lugo.
Charles Grant, Andrea Vernae & Orion Bradshaw in Redwood, photo by Russell J. Young.
Graphic design by Mikey Mann.