Portland Center Stage at The Armory’s 2019-2020 Season

IN THE HEIGHTS × MACBETH × REDWOOD ×

MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY × HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH × SCHOOL GIRLS; OR, THE AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY ×

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME × 9 PARTS OF DESIRE × HOWARDS END × CAMBODIAN ROCK BAND ×

The Armory Announced New Artistic Director Marissa Wolf’s First Season Lineup

March 11, 2019 — PORTLAND, OR. Portland Center Stage at The Armory announced their 2019-2020 season, the first that new Artistic Director Marissa Wolf has planned for the company.

“You’ll find a lineup brimming with music and humor, that also wrestles with the urgent ideas and questions of our time,” said Wolf, who joined the company as artistic director in September 2018. “You’ll find classic titles envisioned through a bold, relevant lens. You’ll find new plays that light up fresh perspectives. You’ll find musicals that will lift you a foot off the ground with their buoyant melodies and irresistible beats.”

“With a wonderfully diverse body of playwrights who bring perspectives from around the world, each show invites us in – to laugh, to gasp, to wonder – as we travel through landscapes we recognize and regions we get to experience for the first time,” Wolf continued.

Subscriptions are on sale now! To purchase season tickets, call 503-445-3700 or visit www.pcs.org. The Create Your Own Package starts at $105 for three plays. The U.S. Bank Main Stage Series starts at $245. The Everything Series starts at $350. The eight-admission Flexpass is available for $520. The Armory Card, a hugely popular option for those who are 35 years old or younger, starts at $100 for five admissions. Groups of 10 or more can sign up for the priority seating list now. Groups that book by August 1 receive 25% off regular ticket prices. To order group tickets call 503-445-3794 or visit www.pcs.org/groups. Find out more about the 2019-2020 season at www.pcs.org/2019-2020-season.

IN THE HEIGHTS

Music & lyrics by Lin-Manuel Miranda

Book by Quiara Alegría Hudes

Conceived by Lin-Manuel Miranda
Directed by May Adrales

Aug. 31 – Oct. 13, 2019 | On the U.S. Bank Main Stage

Opening Night/Press Night: Sept. 6, 2019

The sizzling musical from the creator of Hamilton! Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Tony and Grammy Award-winning musical takes us to New York’s vibrant Washington Heights, where the air is filled with the sounds of salsa, merengue, soul, hip-hop, and R&B. It’s a community on the brink of change, where a tight-knit group of friends and neighbors struggles to achieve their dreams.

• “The energy it gives off could light up the George Washington Bridge for a year or two.” – The New York Times
• “One of the great and necessary musicals so far this century.” – Seattle Magazine
• Winner of 4 Tony Awards, including Best Musical, Best Original Score, and Best Orchestrations
• Produced in association with Milwaukee Repertory Theater, Seattle Repertory Theatre, and Cincinnati Repertory Theatre

MACBETH

By William Shakespeare

Edited script by Lee Sunday Evans

Original Music by Heather Christian
Directed by Adriana Baer

Sept. 28 – Nov. 24, 2019 | In the Ellyn Bye Studio
Opening Night/Press Night: Oct. 4, 2019

Shakespeare’s infamous tale of political gluttony and supernatural vengeance finds refreshing new life in this piercing, stripped-down adaptation that creates a taut, contemporary thrill ride. Three women tackle all the roles, with captivating shape-note singing lending a haunting soundtrack to the rise and fall of Scotland’s most notorious royal assassin. Perennially relevant and breathtaking, Macbeth is a drama that demands to be seen — whether it’s your first or five hundredth time.

•  “Irreducible, transcendent” – The New York Times
  

REDWOOD

By Brittany K. Allen
Directed by Chip Miller

Oct. 26 – Nov. 17, 2019 | On the U.S. Bank Main Stage
Opening Night/Press Night: Nov. 1, 2019

When Steve Durbin sets out to chart his (Black) family’s ancestry online, his revelations unwittingly throw his entire family into turmoil. Chiefly: his niece, Meg, is forced to consider her relationship with Drew (her white boyfriend) in an unsettling new light. Guided by a hip-hop dance class chorus, this singular American family must find a way to live in a present that’s overpopulated with ghosts.

• World Premiere!
  

MISS BENNET: CHRISTMAS AT PEMBERLEY

By Lauren Gunderson & Margot Melcon

Nov. 30 – Dec. 29, 2019 | On the U.S. Bank Main Stage
Opening Night/Press Night: Dec. 6, 2019

Delicious as a mug of frothy eggnog, meet your new favorite holiday classic!

Middle sister Mary finally takes center stage in this charming and clever sequel to Jane Austen’s Pride and Prejudice. While happy in the company of books and her piano, Mary has grown tired of her role as the dutiful daughter. When the Bennet sisters gather at the home of Lizzy and Darcy for the holidays, an unexpected guest sparks Mary’s hopes for independence, an intellectual match, and perhaps even love. Blending modern wit and period style, this enchanting romantic comedy promises to delight Austen aficionados and newcomers alike.

• “Highly entertaining and warm-spirited.” – Chicago Tribune
•  “A perfectly constructed love story … fizzy comedy, sweet spirit … destined to populate future holiday seasons.” – San Francisco Chronicle

HEDWIG AND THE ANGRY INCH

By John Cameron Mitchell


Music & lyrics by Stephen Trask

Dec. 28, 2019 – Feb. 23, 2020 | In the Ellyn Bye Studio
Opening Night/Press Night: Jan. 3, 2020

Brilliantly innovative, heartbreaking, and wickedly funny, this genre-bending, fourth-wall-smashing musical sensation tells the story of one of the most unique characters to ever hit the stage. Hedwig, a German emigrant, is out to set the record straight about her life, her loves, and the operation that left her with that “angry inch.” Part rock concert, part cabaret, part stand-up comedy routine, this one-of-a-kind musical proves time and again that an indomitable spirit can’t ever be tied down.

• “The most exciting rock score written for the theatre since, oh, ever!” – Time Magazine
• Winner of four Tony Awards, including Best Revival of a Musical
• Special New Year’s Eve performance!

SCHOOL GIRLS; OR, THE AFRICAN MEAN GIRLS PLAY

By Jocelyn Bioh

Jan. 18 – Feb. 16, 2020 | On the U.S. Bank Main Stage
Opening Night/Press Night: Jan. 24, 2020

Paulina, the reigning Queen Bee at Ghana’s most exclusive boarding school, has her sights set on the Miss Universe pageant. But the arrival of Ericka (a new student with undeniable talent, beauty, and light skin) captures the attention of the pageant recruiter — and nearly topples the social order of Paulina’s hive-minded friends. Jocelyn Bioh’s biting comedy explores the challenges facing teenage girls across the globe and cautions that while beauty may be only skin deep, its pursuit can cut much deeper.

• “A gleeful African makeover of an American genre.” – The New York Times
• A co-production with Artists Repertory Theatre

THE CURIOUS INCIDENT OF THE DOG IN THE NIGHT-TIME

Based on the novel by Mark Haddon

Adapted by Simon Stephens
Directed by Marissa Wolf

Feb. 29 – Apr. 5, 2020 | On the U.S. Bank Main Stage
Opening Night/Press Night: Mar. 6, 2020

This Broadway smash hit takes you inside the mind of 15-year-old Christopher, a boy with an extraordinary brain. He is exceptional at mathematics, incapable of lying, detests being touched, and distrusts strangers. Now, it is seven minutes after midnight and Christopher is under suspicion of killing his neighbor’s dog, Wellington, with a garden fork. Determined to find the true culprit, Christopher carefully records each fact of the crime. Ultimately, his detective work takes him on a deeply personal quest that upturns his world. 

• “Dazzling, pulse-pounding and remarkable.” – Time Out New York
• Winner of five Tony Awards, including Best Play

9 PARTS OF DESIRE

By Heather Raffo
Directed by Evren Odcikin

Mar. 7 – Apr. 19, 2020 | In the Ellyn Bye Studio
Opening Night/Press Night: Mar. 13, 2020

An intimate and complex portrait of the extraordinary (and ordinary) lives of nine Iraqi women, this remarkable solo work offers a meditation on what it means to be a woman in a country overshadowed by war. Based on her interviews with real women during the reign and fall of Saddam Hussein, Heather Raffo weaves nine utterly distinct voices into a tapestry of humanity,
love, and endurance in the face of oppression.

• “Illuminating and moving!” – Variety
  

HOWARDS END

Based on the novel by E.M. Forster

Adapted by Caroline Hewitt


Directed by Marissa Wolf

Apr. 18 – May 17, 2020 | On the U.S. Bank Main Stage
Opening Night/Press Night: April 24, 2020

Margaret and Helen Schlegel are savvy, intellectual women struggling to be heard over the stubborn dominance of England’s early 20th century social strictures. When their lives intersect with two very different men, the sisters’ relationship to each other, themselves, and the way they see the world, changes forever. Four actors play 20 characters learning how to connect with each other in a landscape of changing values and alliances.

• World Premiere!
  

CAMBODIAN ROCK BAND

By Lauren Yee

Featuring songs by Dengue Fever

May 30 – Jun. 28, 2020 | On the U.S. Bank Main Stage
Opening Night/Press Night: Jun. 5, 2020

Dubbed “fierce, gorgeous, and heartwarming” by the Los Angeles Times, this play (part comedy, part mystery, part rock concert) follows a young woman trying to piece together her family history 30 years after her father fled Cambodia. Featuring a cast that performs a mix of contemporary Dengue Fever hits and classic Cambodian oldies, Lauren Yee vividly brings to life the Cambodian rock scene of the ‘60s and ‘70s, a movement cut short by the Khmer Rouge’s brutal regime, which nearly erased the music (and musicians). A story about survivors, the resilient bond of family, and the enduring power of music.

• “Powerful and searing.” – BroadwayWorld
• “Joy, heartbreak and psychedelic surf rock.” – Los Angeles Times

PORTLAND CENTER STAGE AT THE ARMORY

Portland Center Stage at The Armory is the largest theater company in Portland and among the top 20 regional theaters in the country. Established in 1988 as a branch of the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, the company became independent in 1994, and is under the leadership of Artistic Director Marissa Wolf and Managing Director Cynthia Fuhrman. Around 150,000 visitors attend The Armory annually to enjoy a mix of classic, contemporary, and world premiere productions, along with a variety of high quality education and community programs. Ten productions are offered this season, in addition to more than 100 community events created in partnership with 150+ local organizations and individuals — to serve the diverse populations in the city. As part of its dedication to new play development, the company has produced 26 world premieres and presents an annual new works festival, JAW: A Playwrights Festival. Home to two theaters, The Armory (originally built in 1891) opened its doors in 2006 as the first building on the National Register of Historic Places, and the first performing arts venue in the country, to achieve a LEED Platinum rating.

SEASON SUPPORTERS

The 2019-2020 season is funded in part by Season Superstars Tim and Mary Boyle, Mary and Don Blair, and Lead Corporate Champion Umpqua Bank. Further support comes from Season Sponsors the Regional Arts and Culture Council, and Oregon Arts Commission, a state agency funded by the state of Oregon and the National Endowment for the Arts.