Portland Center Stage, the city’s largest theater company, launched a $9 million emergency campaign to collect funds by June 2026 to avoid closure.

According to a press release on Thursday, May 8, the company is fundraising to “stabilize the organization and plan for the future.”

Megan Soto Laney, communications advisor for PCS, said the recent federal cuts to the National Endowment for the Arts had little impact on the theater company’s funding and were not a catalyst for the current situation.

“It’s an accumulation of economic factors including, yes post-COVID audience behavioral changes — in person audiences have been slow to come back, though, we believe they will — as well as rising costs on top of rebuilding from the deficit of being closed for several months during COVID,” Soto Laney said in an email when asked why PCS is launching the fund now.

The most urgent benchmark is $2.5 million by August 30.

A one-year campaign timeline is structured around the following benchmarks, which are centered on current and upcoming season programming and future operations:

• $2.5 million to launch the 2025-26 season by August 31 or the theater will cease operations;
• $2.5 million to eliminate the accumulated deficit and build an operating cash reserve by December 2025.
• $4 million of the continued support we receive in our annual operating gifts from individuals, foundations and corporations that PCS relies on every season, by June 2026.

Without this community support, the theater will have to close its curtain and shut its doors.

A top influential theater in the country, PCS has been in Portland for 35 years, serving about 4 million patrons; more than 150,000 students and educators; provided free community programs to more than 100,000 individuals; collaborated with more than 1,000 nonprofits; and provided work for thousands of artists, artisans and technicians, according to a news release.

“While keeping the transcendent work on stage, serving thousands of kids through our education programs, and offering a gorgeous lineup of free music and dance with our community programs, we are doing everything within our power, to keep PCS alive and thriving,” Marissa Wolf, artistic director of PCS, said in a statement.

“We’re cutting costs. We’re restructuring. We’re investing in smarter strategies and expanding partnerships. But we cannot do it alone. We need our community now more than ever. We know PCS matters to Portland, and we want to be around for generations to come!”

In 2021, PCS undertook a governance restructure, building a new leadership and board team, which the organization described as a “vital shift,” but it also shifted its donor engagement, according to a news release. In the 2022-24 seasons, it welcomed more than 4,000 new donors at varying levels of engagement.

Moving forward

PCS is implementing a five-year strategic plan, as follows:

• Generating an annual net surplus of $300,000 to $500,000 to eliminate the deficit and build reserves.
• Opening its doors to local performing arts organizations and business partnerships to boost earned revenue.
• Collaborating with local businesses to strengthen mutual impact in the Pearl District.
• Launching the Save Portland Center Stage campaign to secure its future.

Ways to give

• Make a tax-deductible donation at pcs.org/savePCS.
• Buy tickets to one of our incredible shows at pcs.org.
• Share your story on social media with #SavePCS.