From Myth to Musical: Crafting Stories that Sing
Are you writing a musical or interested in trying your hand at one? In this workshop we will spend time familiarizing ourselves with the structure of musicals, learning what material lends itself to musicalization, and participate in a lyric writing exercise.
NOTE:
Admission is FREE, but in order to maintain a high level of quality, attendance for each lab is limited and determined by random lottery.
To enter, please email education@pcs.org by Wednesday, July 22 and list which labs you would like to attend. All lottery entrants will be emailed results by Friday, July 24.
JAW New Play Festival FREE! July 24-26, 2026
A week-long assembling of artists and audiences to create new plays! Artistic teams, including playwrights, directors and actors, come together to rehearse — and a lot of times rewrite! — a play. The final piece of the process happens during the weekend, when we share “music stands readings” with audiences so the playwrights can hear their work, often for the very first time!
Holly Harmon is a playwright, composer, lyricist, director and teacher who loves a secluded forest and the center of Times Square in equal measure. Her musicals include Pop! Goes The Bubble (GSL Fringe 2017), Empty Chairs (Dramatists Guild/ASCAP Songwriters Showcase, NYC 2018; Fertile Ground 2019; reading at Broadway Rose 2019; virtual reading with The Dramatists Guild 2021), Tale Of A Girl (Part of Go Play Outside, Applause Books, 2022), Happily Never After: A Trio Of Musical Fairytale Monologues (Fertile Ground 2026), and her latest written with Lolly Ward, Cessair: The Birth Of Ireland (Fertile Ground 2024; reading at ART 2025; JAW 2026), among others. She is a member of LineStorm Playwrights, Maestra Music, ASCAP and The Dramatists Guild. One day she plans to fashion herself a gown made entirely of moss. To my children: you are my greatest works of art.
Lolly Ward is thrilled to be collaborating with composer-lyricist Holly Harmon and sharing their mythical musical in JAW this year. Her plays investigate family, chess, physics, income inequality, inheritance, and performance art. Her short plays have been published in multiple Best of anthologies. As a member of The Actors’ Gang in Los Angeles, she originated roles in Sarah Ruhl’s Orlando, toured nationally and internationally, and acted in the stage and film versions of Tim Robbins’ Embedded at the Public Theater. She has served as a dramaturg and judge for the Mach 33 festival of new science-driven plays and won the Max K. Lerner Playwriting Fellowship. Lolly is the cofounder and director of LineStorm Playwrights, with whom she edited a collection of plays for Applause Books titled Go Play Outside. Read more at linestormplaywrights.com and on the New Play Exchange.
Current & Upcoming
Improvisation Classes for Beginners
Whether you're looking to get more confident in social situations, think quicker on your feet, or get in touch with your imaginative side, these "one-off" improv classes will set you on the path to success!
July First Thursday: Game Night (Heated Rivalry Edition)
Happy Pride, Portland! Join us for our Heated Rivalry themed game night at First Thursday where our main event will be an Air Hockey Tournament hosted by Portland United Hockey League. The RSVP link attached is specifically to enter our Air Hockey Tournament. There are only 48 slots for that event, but the rest of the evening and the games involved have no cap! Enjoy complimentary beer from Deschutes Brewery, free Aura Readings from Your Cosmic Crown (6PM-8PM) & free games like: Connect 4, Jenga, UNO & Dunk Bros (from Mario Party 6). There will also be several prizes for the air hockey champ, including a Heated Rivalry: Season One Collector's Edition on 4K & Blu-ray!
Candlelight: The Best of Hans Zimmer
⭐ Candlelight concerts bring the magic of a live, multi-sensory musical experience to awe-inspiring locations like never seen before in Portland. Get your tickets now to discover the music of Hans Zimmer at The Armory - Portland under the gentle glow of candlelight.
Candlelight: Tribute to Fleetwood Mac
⭐ Candlelight concerts bring the magic of a live, multi-sensory musical experience to awe-inspiring locations like never seen before in Portland. Get your tickets now to discover the music of Fleetwood Mac at The Armory - Portland under the gentle glow of candlelight.
Working Thru It #4
Make sure to RSVP to the 4th edition of Working Thru It, a Workshop + Social presented by PCS + Thru & Thru. For July's edition, we have a panel discussion hosted by Ameer Safadi of 7Degrees. This conversation will center on creative networking, featuring some of Portland's greatest music minds.
JAW Play Reading: Cessair: The Birth of Ireland
A new musical with music and lyrics by Holly Harmon, and book and lyrics by Lolly Ward.
Portland Center Stage is committed to identifying & interrupting instances of racism & all forms of oppression, through the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, & accessibility (IDEA).
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