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About two weeks before deadline, Portland Center Stage has surpassed the initial fundraising goal in its multiyear “Save PCS” campaign to keep the lights on at Portland’s largest theater company.
PCS has raised $3.6 million, surpassing its Aug. 31 goal of $2.5 million by $1.1 million. The theater got a sizable bump of $1.5 million from the Oregon Legislature at the end of the body’s session in June.
“I’m profoundly grateful for the support of thousands of community members, foundations, and elected officials who have stepped in with new and increased levels of support in the past four months,” says Marisa Wolf, PCS’s artistic director. “This funding ensures that we can launch the ’25–26 season and continue to create a space of belonging for all through transformative theater and vital community programs.”
The next fundraising milestone is a total of $5 million by Dec. 31, which would eliminate the company’s accumulated deficit and build an operating cash reserve, according to the theater’s Save PCS campaign announcement in May. The final goal is a total of $9 million by June 30, 2026.
Wolf says patrons can look forward to a ’25–26 lineup that is filled with “buoyant, joyful work that provides a place of laughter and connection for audiences”:
Primary Trust by Eboni Booth, winner of the 2024 Pulitzer Prize for drama, about the ways the community can hold its most vulnerable with love and tenderness (and mai tais). Starring Larry Owens. Sept. 28-Oct. 26.
Louisa May Alcott’s Little Women, in an adaptation by Lauren Gunderson that puts the legendary novelist at the center of her own story. Nov. 16-Dec. 21.
The Play That Goes Wrong, a madcap comedy by Henry Lewis, Henry Shields and Jonathan Sayer. Jan. 18-Feb. 15, 2026.
Lizard Boy, an indie-rock, coming-of-age musical by Justin Huertas about a boy with green reptilian skin. March 1-29, 2026.
Fat Ham, James Ijames’ Pulitzer-winning reimagining of Hamlet, with the prince of Denmark recast as a queer Black boy from the South. April 19-May 17, 2026.
Kristina Wong, #FoodBankInfluencer, a “karaoke-fueled education on America’s emergency food system” written and performed by Kristina Wong. May 26-June 7, 2026.
Storm Large Makes it Home, the diva’s return to PCS after her 2009 show Crazy Enough played a record sold-out, 21–week run at The Armory. June 12-28, 2026.
SEE IT: Portland Center Stage at The Armory, 128 NW 11th Ave., 503-445-3700, pcs.org.
