YOUNG AMERICANS Premiere, TICK, TICK...BOOM! & More Announced for Portland Center Stage 2022-2023 Season

The season includes a world premiere by acclaimed playwright Lauren Yee, which was commissioned by PCS, and Tarell Alvin McCraney’s music-infused Choir Boy.

By: Apr. 13, 2022
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YOUNG AMERICANS Premiere, TICK, TICK...BOOM! & More Announced for Portland Center Stage 2022-2023 Season

Portland Center Stage's 2022-2023 season will kick off in August with Jonathan Larson's rock musical tick, tick ... BOOM! The nine-show lineup includes the Portland debuts of new works by PCS-commissioned playwright Christina Anderson; performance artist Kristina Wong; master of classic adaptations Kate Hamill; and Mohegan theater-maker Madeline Sayet.

The season includes a world premiere by acclaimed playwright Lauren Yee, which was commissioned by PCS, and Tarell Alvin McCraney's music-infused Choir Boy. A holiday classic and a Shakespearean comedy complete the season. PCS's support of new work also continues, with five artists under commission and the return of the annual JAW: New Play Festival in late July of 2023.

"This season will roar to the stage in a way that feels exciting and filled with life," said Artistic Director Marissa Wolf. "From the bright, moving world premiere of Lauren Yee's Young Americans to a boisterous celebration of love in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, we hope to offer a beautiful abundance for our community."

Beyond the stage, PCS's 2022-2023 calendar will be packed full with vibrant community events, including First Thursday gatherings, live music and comedy showcases, art exhibits, community discussions, classes, and more. PCS's youth programs will continue to grow in the season ahead as well, with increased student matinees, ongoing classes for teens, and robust in-school offerings.

Season tickets are on sale now. Group tickets of 10+ are also available for early reservation. Single tickets will go on sale on August 2, 2022. PCS will continue offering a wide array of prices to make its productions and events affordable for all, including two Pay What You Will performances for each production, discounted rush tickets that can be purchased as early as noon on the day of a performance, and more. Full details below.

PCS's 2022-2023 Season Lineup

tick, tick ... BOOM!

Book, Music & Lyrics by Jonathan Larson

Directed by Marissa Wolf

On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

August 20 - September 18, 2022

If you love Rent, you'll love this raw, hilarious, genre-cracking rock musical.

Before he electrified the world with Rent, Jonathan Larson was a young man struggling to make his mark in the theater. While he waits tables and seeks his big break, the pressure to give it all up grows as Jon approaches his 30th birthday. Will he sell out to keep the lights on? Will he lose the love of his life? Will he finally write the soaring song that can change everything? And if he does, will anyone be there to see it? Set in 1990 and scored by the music that redefined a genre, tick, tick ... BOOM! cracks open the ticking-time-bomb world of creating theater to celebrate the power of finding your voice and holding onto a dream.

"Larson's songs thrum with the intense feeling, larky humor, and musical vitality that are the hallmark of enduring theater. Heart-grabbing." -The New York Times

... the ripple, the wave that carried me home

By Christina Anderson

On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

October 8 - 30, 2022

A co-production with Artists Repertory Theatre.

Like diving into a glorious pool of water, this play suspends you with its joyful humor and healing depth.

When Janice is pressed to return to her hometown and speak at a ceremony honoring her father, she has to reconcile with the childhood she's tried to distance herself from and forget - one defined by her parents' political activism and fight for the integration of their local swimming pools. Drawing on history that spans from 1930s segregation to the Rodney King trial and beyond, this deeply moving story explores the joys and challenges of forgiveness, justice, and the weight of one's family legacy.

"Anderson is a gifted playwright you want to pay attention to. She has the voice of a poet." -Variety

Kristina Wong, Sweatshop Overlord

Written & Performed by Kristina Wong

Directed by Chay Yew

In the Ellyn Bye Studio

November 5 - December 18, 2022

A co-production with Boom Arts.

Critics are raving that this "laugh riot" is "so good, so powerful" and "both heartening and cathartic."

Three days into the pandemic shutdown, performance artist Kristina Wong - driven to help make a difference in the world - began sewing masks out of bedsheets and bra straps on her Hello Kitty sewing machine. Before she knew it, she had recruited hundreds of volunteers to join her as "The Auntie Sewing Squad." With sharp humor and brilliant social commentary, this tour-de-force look at the early days of global change offers a guide for community building and an inspiring path back into a healing world.

"Wong's larger-than-life stage persona is endearingly boisterous ... a celebration of ingenuity, community, and survival." -TimeOut

It's a Wonderful Life: A Live Radio Play

Based on the Story The Greatest Gift by Philip Van Doren Stern

Adapted by Joe Landry

Directed by Chip Miller

On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

November 19 - December 24, 2022

Spend your holidays at PCS with this beloved classic!

Reimagined for the stage as a live 1940s radio broadcast, idyllic Bedford Falls is brought to life with an exciting ensemble cast, gorgeous music, lavish period costumes, and delightful folly effects. Small-town, everyman George Bailey is having a Christmas Eve that can only be saved by a miracle. Enter George's guardian angel, Clarence, who takes him on a heartwarming journey of redemption proving that "no one is a failure who has friends."

"A marvelous show that will please the entire family ... the radio play is entirely faithful to the classic story." -BroadwayWorld

Ms. Holmes & Ms. Watson - Apt. 2B

Written by Kate Hamill

Adapted from the Stories of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle

Directed by Marissa Wolf

On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

January 14 - February 12, 2023

"Hamill's adaptations of the classics are endlessly ingenious ... whatever she decides to do, it will be worth seeing." -The Wall Street Journal's Playwright of the Year

Fast-paced and wonderfully farcical, this is the bold, feminist take on the iconic crime-fighting duo that you've been awaiting. It's present-day Baker Street and female roommates Holmes and Watson careen from caper to caper. Eventually, they come face-to-face with a supervillain who seems to have all of the answers. Get ready for a quasi-dysfunctional, "Odd Couple" comedy that packs in non-stop laughs and pulls all the punches!

Developed at PCS's JAW: New Play Festival, 2021.

"Bloody good ... if the classic characters are the heart of Apt 2B, then near-broad comedy is its soul." -Black Bee Buzz

Young Americans

By Lauren Yee

Directed by Desdemona Chiang

In the Ellyn Bye Studio

February 11 - March 26, 2023

A co-production with Pittsburgh Public Theater.

A world premiere from one of the hottest playwrights in America!

Young Americans takes us on two road trips, 20 years apart. In one, an exhaustingly upbeat father and his stressed-out, college-bound daughter depart on a trip across the country. Their journey mirrors another trip the father took decades earlier with her mother - as near strangers, full of fresh hopes and dreams, on their way to a new life together. This intimate, music-led comedy veers back and forth in time, offering a fresh look at a U.S. road trip through the lens of the immigrant experience. Yee explores what home and belonging mean to those in transition.

Don't miss this PCS-commissioned play from the acclaimed playwright of The Great Leap and Cambodian Rock Band.

Where We Belong

Portland Center Stage presents the Woolly Mammoth Theatre Company production of Where We Belong in association with Folger Shakespeare Library.

By Madeline Sayet

Directed by Mei Ann Teo

On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

February 25 - March 26, 2023

An Indigenous theater-maker journeys across geographic borders, personal history, and cultural legacies in search of a place to belong.

Where We Belong follows the journey of Madeline Sayet, a Mohegan theater-maker who traveled to England in 2015 to pursue a Ph.D. in Shakespeare. Madeline found a country that refused to acknowledge its ongoing role in colonialism, just as the Brexit vote threatened to further disengage the UK from the wider world. This intimate and exhilarating solo piece - played by an Indigenous actor who will assume the role of Madeline and echo her journey to England - forces us to consider what it means to belong in an increasingly globalized world.

"An important story - thought-provoking, respectful, and alive." -MD Theatre Guide

Choir Boy

By Tarell Alvin McCraney

Directed by Chip Miller

On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

April 15 - May 14, 2023

"Captivating and fresh." -The New York Times

From the Academy Award-winning writer of Moonlight, comes this exhilarating story about Pharus, a young, gay student leading the gospel choir at his elite, all-boys prep school. Can a rigid institution that prides itself on producing "strong, ethical black men" contain Pharus, who is a quiet rebel at his core? Or can Pharus inspire the very nature of the school to shift forever? Identity and community clash in this Tony-nominated hit. Filled with rousing music and soul-stirring dance, this play rejoices in all that it means to march to your own drum.

"Choir Boy ascends and its choirboys achieve, as long as the notes hold, what feels like freedom." -The Guardian

A Midsummer Night's Dream

By William Shakespeare

Directed by Marissa Wolf

On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

June 3 - July 2, 2023

Kings, queens, fairies, lovers, and sprites all collide in an enchanted forest one midsummer night proving that "the course of true love never did run smooth." One of Shakespeare's most popular comedies takes us on a beguiling odyssey full of mistaken identities, misguided passions, love potions, and magic spells. Fall in love all over again - but watch your step!

"There is, of course, no such thing as a foolproof play, but A Midsummer Night's Dream comes about as close as anything written in the last 400 years." -The New York Times

TICKETS & INFO

Subscriptions are on sale now and single tickets will go on sale on August 2, 2022. To purchase season tickets, visit pcs.org/2022-2023-season or call the box office 503-445-3700, between 12 p.m. and 6 p.m, Tuesday-Sunday. Ticket packages start at $108 for three plays. Special discounts are available for students and K-12 educators. The Armory Card, a hugely popular option for those who are 35 years old, or younger, starts at $125 for five admissions. Groups of 10 or more can sign up for priority seating now to get an early bird special of 25%. PCS will continue to responding to the global health crisis in real-time, offering the ultimate flexibility and recommended safety measures as needed throughout the season.


Portland Center Stage was established in 1988 as a branch of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival and became independent in 1994. The company produces a mix of classic, contemporary, and world premiere productions, along with a variety of high-quality education and community programs. As part of its dedication to new play development, the company has produced 28 world premieres, many of which were developed at its JAW New Play Festival. Portland Center Stage's home is The Armory, a historic building originally constructed in 1891. After a major renovation, The Armory opened in 2006 as the first building on the National Register of Historic Places, the first performing arts venue in the country, and the first building in Portland to achieve a LEED Platinum rating.

Portland Center Stage is committed to identifying and interrupting instances of racism and all forms of oppression, through the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility (IDEA). Learn more at pcs.org/idea.



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