JAW New Play Festival

A summer tradition for over two decades, JAW is a vibrant, community-powered celebration of new work, featuring staged readings, workshops, and performances from local musicians, dancers, and creators.

All JAW events are FREE and open to anyone!

The 2026 JAW line up lights up the Ellyn Bye Studio Theater featuring a gorgeous new musical, and brilliant new plays, in addition to five short-plays by talented local teens. Brought to life by beloved Portland actors and talent from across the country, these script-in-hand readings are works in progress of a new canon of 21st century plays. Join us to be part of a weekend of fabulous, wild new work!

RSVP recommended. Everyone is welcome on a first-come, first-served basis.

Schedule subject to change.

In addition to the JAW Play Readings, the festival will feature the following Press Play performances surrounding the readings.

Stay Tuned For More Details.

Join some of our JAW artists for special learning opportunities. Our Community Artist Labs provide opportunities for anyone interested in learning more about the living stage and other storytelling art forms. 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  by Wednesday, July 22 and list which labs you would like to attend. All lottery entrants will be emailed results by Friday, July 24.

The JAW New Play Festival is Portland Center Stage’s week-long assembling of artists and audiences to create new plays! Each July, artistic teams, including playwrights, directors, and actors, come together to rehearse — and a lot of times rewrite! — a new play. The final piece of the process happens during the weekend, when we share “music stand readings” with audiences so the playwrights can hear their work, often for the very first time!

Why We JAW

• Develop energizing work
• We are committed to developing dope plays!
• Champion exciting voices
• We are invested in playwright-driven artistic growth, giving opportunities to fresh, engaging, powerful theatrical voices.
• Connect with our communities
• We believe that audiences are active participants in the creation of new work. The audience is the final collaborator an artistic team needs to bring a play to life.

In addition to new play readings, Portland Center Stage presents Press Play events during the JAW festival weekend. To welcome people into the space, we offer pre-show performances and workshops, featuring dynamic local artists. These events include an ever-changing lineup of dance exhibitions of all genres, live music, visual art, choreographed movement showcases, interactive installations, and artist labs. All JAW events are free to the public and help introduce new audiences and community members to the breadth of talent in our city, and beyond.

JAW History

Since 1999, JAW has created a space for over 100 playwrights to develop plays. Most have gone on to receive professional productions across the country, including many world premieres at PCS.

Portland Center Stage is committed to making our facilities accessible to all of our patrons. Wheelchair seating, accommodation for service animals, sign interpretation, and sound amplifying devices, and large print programs are available for JAW. For more information about these services, please visit our accessibility page.