How We Got On | Portland Playhouse

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PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE PRESENTS

HOW WE GOT ON

By Idris Goodwin Directed by Jen Rowe

SEPTEMBER 30–OCTOBER 25

We envision a world awakened by the wonder of theatre.

CAST Joe Gibson

Hank

Chip Sherman

Julian

Ashley Nicole Williams

Luann

Ithica Tell

Selector

Director

Mic Crenshaw

Music Director

Meredith Matthews

Stage Manager

Sarah Gehring

Dramaturge

Daniel Meeker

Scenic Designer

Jennifer Lin

Lighting Designer

Ashton Hull

Costume Designer

Em Gustason

Sound Designer

Will Bailey

Properties Designer

Phil Shaw

Technical Director

Owen Walz

SEASON PRODUCERS: Harold Goldstein & Carol Streeter

CREATIVE TEAM Jen Rowe

Portland Playhouse is dedicated to producing quality, intimate, performances in which the interaction between artists and audience is paramount. We hold theatre to be a space in which people of all social, economic, racial, sexual, and political backgrounds can come together to celebrate the complexity of our shared human experience.

Phillip Terranova Ronni Lacroute DESIGNER SPONSORS: Karen & Dave Johnson MKM Design zerohomes.com

Scenic Artist & Master Electrician

RUN TIME: 90 minutes Produced by special arrangement with Playscripts, Inc. (www.playscripts.com) How We Got On premiered at the Humana Festival of New American Plays in March 2012. The development of How We Got On was supported by New Leaf Theatre's Treehouse Reading Series 2011, and the Eugene O'Neill Theatre Center.

The photographic, video and/or audio recording of this performance by any means whatsoever is prohibited.

This project is supported in part by a grant from the Oregon Cultural Trust.

Portland Playhouse receives support from the Oregon Arts Commission, a state agency funded by the State of Oregon and the National Endowment for the Arts.

PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE HOW WE GOT ON | P1

DIRECTOR’S NOTES Within hip-hop culture, as in life, you make a name for yourself by using your voice. But first…you gotta find it. Then, you gotta rhyme it.

I am privileged to be part of injecting Portland with Idris Goodwin’s voice and immensely thankful to Brian Weaver for inviting me into this experience.

Tonight you are in good hands. How We Got On weaves together a teenager’s poetic dream with a cultural movement.

It’s inspiring and refreshing to be told a story that reminds us to breathe in joy when we speak our truths; especially when we are struggling to be heard.

I would also love for you to be aware of a local organization: SpitWrite.

Hip-hop is inherently theatrical and I am a lover of spectacle. I’m also a sucker for any story involving a struggle and large ambition. Idris is such a skilled writer—you really are in for a treat.

He moves quickly, uses sharp humor, loves his characters; endows them with both resiliency and vulnerability—but most importantly brings us a fresh perspective.

YO!

Here is their gorgeously written mission statement: “We are Portlanders who took on this heART mission in partnership with Urban Word, based in New York City, to bring this unprecedented literary experience to The Rose City. This is part of a youth-empowerment movement that is rapidly spreading across the United States, most recently into Portland, Seattle and Atlanta.

As professional artists and writers, we each have a passion for working with urban youth. And we are excited to help

identify students who have the potential to thrive as both poets and leaders, and then give them training and a platform to take their talents to the next level.

Instead of buying into the negative media-influenced portrayals of our youth, we are honored to create space for our Portland area young people so they can contribute to our region is evolving cultural milieu.”

Support, learn about, and work with them—www.spitwrite.com.

Kick back. This is a love letter to hiphop. We’re here to remember, learn about, and fall in love with a movement.

Enjoy, Jen Rowe

MTV RAPS

BY SARAH GEHRING, DRAMATURGE

“I’m everlasting, I can go on for days and days with rhyme displays that engrave deep as x-rays I can take a phrase that’s rarely heard Flip it - now it’s a daily word” –RAKIM, “FOLLOW THE LEADER”

“But they know. Even if they don’t like rap, they love rap. Or at least they will.

Everybody will.” - Hank, from Idris Goodwin’s How We Got On In 1988, hip-hop was becoming inseparable from rap, its beats more eclectic, its lyrics more political and personal, and its personalities more aggressively confident. The genre was thriving, but it had yet to reach the P2 | PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE HOW WE GOT ON

mainstream dominance it would achieve in coming decades. The music and the culture were booming in the big cities, but mere echoes through the suburbs and beyond, only audible to those who were listening for them. There was a new frontier in music that was proving a barrier for hip-hop artists: television.

Music video. And in 1988, there was only one channel bringing music videos to a national audience: MTV. Music Television (MTV) launched in 1981, and did not play its first hip-hop video until 1984. The channel claimed to have been designed as a “rock music” platform, but had quickly deviated from that stance when it came to white pop artists. The King of Pop himself, Michael Jackson, did not get airplay until 1983, and even that did not come without a fight from his record label.

A year later, Run DMC’s “Rock Box” video premiered.

August 6th, 1988: the first episode of Yo! MTV Raps aired, bringing the golden age of hip-hop to TV sets across the country. In just 38 minutes, the program captured some of the vibrancy and variety of hip-hop music, and now, hiphop music videos.

The most popular acts on the show, Run DMC and Beastie Boys, were already leading the pack in terms of commercial success. 1986 had been a good year for both groups, with Beastie Boys (the only white artists on the program) having reached the top of the billboard charts with their album License to Ill, and Run DMC having achieved massive crossover success with their riff on Aerosmith’s “Walk This Way”. Run DMC made their debut with the new video to their song

“Mary Mary”, and Beastie Boys with “No Sleep Till Brooklyn”.

“No Sleep Till Brooklyn” starts with the event of the band coming to play at a rock venue. When they show the manager that their “instruments” are records and drum machines, the manager kicks them out for not being “rock and roll”. Of course, they sneak back in to play their show, which, despite the manager’s protestations, is actually laden with rock guitar.

“Mary Mary” is the story of a middle-aged conservative white woman trying to disrupt a Run DMC concert, claiming that “rock and roll” is a moral outrage.

By the end of the video she is onstage dancing, swept up in the

Rounding out the line-up were Doug E Fresh and the Fresh Crew with “Keep Rising To The Top”, a tune and video which represented a mix of old school and new school vibes, LL Cool J’s “Going Back To Cali”, which would later be nominated for the first Grammy for Rap Performance (which would be won by “Parents Just Don’t Understand”), and “Follow the Leader” by Eric B. and Rakim.

“Follow the Leader”, more so than any of its compatriots, gave the world a glimpse into the future of a genre that was just about to explode.

Rakim, still today considered to be one of the greatest MC’s of all time, brought to the track a laidback boastfulness which he had

“But they know. Even if they don’t like rap, they love rap. Or at least they will. Everybody will.”

–HANK, FROM IDRIS GOODWIN’S HOW WE GOT ON fun show. Run DMC and Beastie Boys managed to claim what little public attention there was for hiphop by somehow aligning both of their acts with popular rock.

Another facet of the popular spectrum were DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince. Along with JJ Fad, they represented a younger, non-threatening side to hip-hop, in their videos for “Parents Just Don’t Understand” and “Supersonic” respectively.

“Parents Just Don’t Understand” features The Fresh Prince (aka Will Smith) rapping about things most high schoolers could relate to (going clothes shopping with the parents) or wish they could (taking a Porsche for a joy ride), while playing out the funny scenes on screen. In “Supersonic”, the three-girl crew JJ Fad raps over dance beats, performing cool, easily emulated choreography, and wearing the kind of oversized jackets and leggings that were the height of late 80’s fashion.

the rhymes and flow to back up.

The video featured Rakim as an old-fashioned mob boss, dominating over his competition, he and his boys wearing sharp suits and thick gold chains, rings, and watches. This was the first time the mainstream public was seeing how serious, and seriously impressive, hip-hop and rap could be.

Yo! MTV Raps would go on for 7 years, and ended as hip-hop and rap videos became a regular part of the MTV line-up. By 1999, hip-hop would become the top selling musical genre worldwide.

What’s more, the televising of hiphop allowed its many styles and complexities to spread, from the east coast to the west coast, and everywhere in between, even to the midwest suburbs, as Idris Goodwin explores in How We Got On.

CAST & CREATIVE TEAM Joe Gibson (Hank)

Joe Gibson is excited to be working with Portland Playhouse and this talented cast. In the past year, Joe has kept busy touring his solo show with Portland Playhouse, working with the Red Door Project on the August Wilson Monologue Competition, and of course acting. Some of his past projects include, Cymbeline, NBC’s Grimm, American Night, Masque of the Red Death, Phaedra’s Love, Macbeth, and The Lion in Winter.

Chip Sherman (Julian)

Chip is so elated to be in his first production at The Playhouse!

Especially with such an amazing cast and creative team behind this brilliant play on culture. Past favorite Portland credits: Olivia in Twelfth Night (Post5), Addison/etc. in Let a Hundred Flowers Bloom (defunkt), and Miguel in The Last Days (Post5).

Chip is a proud company member at Post5 Theatre. He would like to thank his mom for her amazing support and courage throughout the years, and you for your support of progressive live theatre!!

Ashley Nicole Williams (Luann)

Ashley is very excited to return to Portland Playhouse in How We Got On. This gives Ashley a chance to relive her rapping days on the radio.

She has most recently performed with Profile Theatre in In The Next Room, or the vibrator play. She has worked with Artists Repertory Theatre in Seven Guitars as Ruby, Portland Playhouse in A Christmas Carol as Mrs. Cratchit, Jitney as Rena and The Portland Opera in Show Boat.

Ithica Tell (Selector)

Ithica is pleased as punch to be performing with Portland Playhouse!

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A 15-year veteran Portland performer, and graduate of Southern Oregon University, Ithica is a proud member of Post5 Theatre and has been blessed with the opportunity to perform with many of the major companies in town. She is delighted for another opportunity to do one of her favorite things, Act. Thanks to Mom for always bragging, and to Isha, for infecting me with “The Bug.”

Jen Rowe (Director)

Jennifer has Produced and Directed: Waiting, The Jewish Wife/The Informer, The Unseen (Drammy Award), Mercury Fur, The Interview and Unda with The Quick and Dirty Art Project which she founded in 2010. At Portland Playhouse, she directed Phaedra’s Love and the 2012–2013 apprentice solo showcase. As an Actor, she has appeared in Mr. Burns: A Post-Electric Play, A Christmas Carol (Drammy Award), After the Revolution, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Twelfth Night (Portland Playhouse), Speech and Debate, Distracted (ART), JAW festival (5 years, PCS), Middletown (Third Rail), Labyrinth of Desire (Miracle), The Sweatermakers (Playwrights West), Romeo and Juliet (Willamette Shakespeare), Oh the Humanity, Vinegar Thom (OSAR/TPL), 4.48 Psychosis (PSU) and spent a year touring the show 1 ½ to schools in Oregon and Washington (OCT). She is immensely grateful for this opportunity to bring How We Got On to life in Portland.

Mic Crenshaw

(Music Director) Chicago-born poet and emcee Michael (Mic) Crenshaw fell in love with music at a young age while living in Minneapolis.

His teenage years were challenging as he actively confronted white supremacist gangs that were a growing part of the hard-core music scene. He eventually chose to escape the violence and moved to Portland, where he quickly became one of the most respected artists in the Northwest, and his community efforts have had both local and international impact.

In addition to his highly-acclaimed work in spoken word and hip hop, Mic founded GlobalFam, a nonprofit project to create and maintain a computer center for disadvantaged youth in Burundi, Central Africa. Over

400 people have received free training, and it is now expanding, generating revenue and creating jobs. Mic also partnered with Education Without Borders (EWOB), which supports education, music and art initiatives in Portland and beyond and serves as an umbrella for the local Books For Prisoners chapter and GlobalFam itself.

GlobalFam has blossomed into a music label, production, promotion, artist management, and education company providing mainstream entertainment that supports Social Justice Activism.

Meredith Matthews (Stage Manager)

Last season at Portland Playhouse, Meredith had the pleasure of assistant stage managing The Other Place, How to End Poverty in 90 Minutes (with 99 people you may or may not know), and The Piano Lesson. She also stage managed Mr. Burns, a Post-Electric Play and A Christmas Carol. Meredith is a graduate of The Theatre School at DePaul University with a BFA in Stage Management.

Daniel Meeker (Scenic Design)

How We Got On is Daniel’s 17th design for The Playhouse. Previously he designed the lighting for The Other Place (Drammy nomination) and scenery and lighting for The Light in the Piazza, Detroit, Mother Teresa is Dead, The Huntsmen, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, and The Brother/Sister Plays, among others. Other recent credits include: scenery and lighting for Vanya and Sonia and Masha and Spike, Lizzie, The Last Five Years, BoNita and The Mountaintop and lighting for Twist Your Dickens at Portland Center Stage; scenery for The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee for The Pioneer Theater Company in Salt Lake City, UT; scenery for Ramona Quimby and Fancy Nancy for Oregon Children’s Theatre; lighting for Adaptation at Disjecta.

Daniel is also the principal lighting designer for the Pickathon Festival.

Upcoming projects include: Outside Mullingar for the Pioneer Theater Company and L’italiana in Algeria and Eugene Onegin for Portland Opera’s 2016 season. Daniel is a member of the faculty of Portland State University; he is a graduate of Ithaca College and the Yale School of Drama, and a member of United Scenic Artists.

ABOUT THE PLAYWRIGHT IDRIS GOODWIN is a playwright, rapper

and essayist. His plays include How We Got On, Remix 38 (Actors Theater of Louisville); And In This Corner: Cassius Clay (StageOne Family Theater), This Is Modern Art (Steppenwolf ), Blackademics (MPAACT, Crowded Fire).

Goodwin is one of the six playwrights featured in Hands Up an anthology commissioned by The New Black Fest. Hands Up has been presented across the country.

Upcoming productions include: Bars And Measures (B Street Theatre) The Realness (Merrimack Theatre) and The Raid (Jackalope Theater).

He is the recipient of Oregon Shakespeare’s American History Cycle Commission and InterAct Theater’s 20/20 Award. Goodwin has been a writer in residence at Berkeley Rep’s Ground Floor Program, The Lark Playwriting Center and New Harmony Project.

CAST & CREATIVE TEAM Jennifer Lin

(Lighting Design) Jennifer is a very happy to be working with Portland Playhouse. A freelance lighting designer and stage technician, and a company member of Third Rail Repertory Theatre, Jennifer has been working behind the scenes for theatre, opera, and dance since moving to Portland in 2005. She attended Portland State University from 2006– 2008, and received The Kennedy Center American College Theatre Festival’s Achievement Award for her lighting design for PSU’s production of Electra.

Ashton Hull

(Costume Design) Ashton is fascinated by the art(s) of storytelling. A hundred trips to Disneyland led her directly (paradoxically?) to the hallowed halls of Carnegie Mellon University and the study of creating complete worlds.

Graduating in 2007 with a BFA: next stop LA. Los Angeles took her into the worlds of television (Big Bang Theory, Two and a Half Men) and feature film production (My Sister’s Keeper).

In 2009 she returned to her rich and verdant Northwest roots and began freelance collaborations with local Portland theaters. Today her freelance work continues to grow, and Ashton also manages the Costume Shop for the Lewis and Clark College Theatre Department.

Em Gustason

(Sound Design) Em is delighted to be working with Portland Playhouse on this beautiful show. He recently won the award for

outstanding sound design for The Sweatermakers at Playwrights West, and has enjoyed working on many wonderful productions around town with OCT, CoHo, Third Rail, and Portland Center Stage. He holds a BA in Technical Theatre and Audio Recording from The Evergreen State College.

Will Bailey

(Properties Designer) Will is excited to be returning to Portland Playhouse after his props work on After The Revolution and The Piano Lesson. Other Props credits include Playboy of the Western World, Blithe Spirit, The Invisible Hand, and The Price at Artists Repertory Theatre.

Brian Weaver

(Artistic Director/Founder) Brian has directed at Portland Playhouse: The Other Place, The Light in the Piazza, Detroit, Bloody Bloody Andrew Jackson, Angels in America, Gem of the Ocean, Dying City, The Missing Pieces, Radio Golf, bobrauschenbergamerica, Fiction, and After Ashley; and acted in Bingo with the Indians and Mauritius.

(Portland Playhouse); Regional credits include American Buffalo (Third Rail Repertory); Scapin and Titus Andronicus (Intiman Theatre); Ice Glen and Romeo and Juliet (Shakespeare & Company); and Where has Tommy Flowers Gone? and The Illusion (Berkshire Theatre Festival).

Brian is a founding member of New World Theatre. He directed the U.S. premiere of the Spanish translation of José Rivera’s play Marisol.

An accomplished hip-hop poet, his albums include Break Beat Poems and Rhyming While Black.

Goodwin was featured on HBO, Sesame Street and Discovery Channel. He is the author of the pushcart nominated essay collection These Are The Breaks (Write Bloody, 2011).

Idris is the cohost and contributor to Critical Karaoke, a radio show and podcast about music and culture. Idris teaches performance writing and hiphop aesthetics at Colorado College.

PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE STAFF BRIAN WEAVER

ARTISTIC DIRECTOR

MICHAEL WEAVER

MANAGING DIRECTOR

ELENA HEIN

DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

NIKKI WEAVER

EDUCATION DIRECTOR

KARL HANOVER

AUDIENCE SERVICES MANAGER

THYRA HARTSHORN

PRODUCTION MANAGER

OWEN WALZ

DESIGN & TECHNICAL ASSOCIATE

APPRENTICE COMPANY Elizabeth Bartz Collette Campbell Quinlan Fitzgerald Alli Green Andrea Whittle Mamie Wilhelm

BOARD OF DIRECTORS Harold Goldstein, Chair Angela Freeman, Vice-Chair Michelle Mark, Secretary Curt Janz, Treasurer Karol Collymore Michael Cowan Joan Hartzell Kimberly Howard Marge Kafoury Bing Sheldon Mary Swartz Andy Riccetti-Eberly Mark Williams Brian Weaver PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE HOW WE GOT ON | P5

THANK YOU

Portland Playhouse gratefully acknowledges our supporters. Their generosity allows us to activate surprise, delight and challenge in our lives. We envision a world awakened by the wonder of theatre.

This list represents contributions and pledges received from August 1, 2014 through July 31, 2015. We make every attempt to acknowledge your name accurately.

If you find a mistake, want to make a change, or think your name should be listed and want to inquire further, please don’t hesitate to call us at 971-533-8743.

We are more than happy to make changes for the next playbill.

CORPORTATE, FOUNDATION, AND GOVERNMENT SUPPORT BELL TOWER–$25,000+ James F. And Marion L. Miller Foundation Meyer Memorial Trust Playhouse on Prescott LLC

$10,000–$24,999 Juan Young Trust National Endowment For The Arts Newman's Own Foundation Oregon Cultural Trust PGE Foundation Raymond Family Foundation The Boeing Company The Collins Foundation Willamette Week Give Guide Wrather Family Foundation

The Looker Foundation Lincoln Restaurant Multnomah County Cultural Coalition NW Natural Sharon M. Fekety Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation Oregon Community Foundation

UNDER $1,000 Adidas America, Inc. Black United Fund Of Oregon Cupcake Jones Fifty Licks LLC Hewlett Packard Fred Meyer Lincoln High School Stash Tea Urban Pacific Real Estate LLC

INDIVIDUAL SUPPORT PRODUCERS $50,000+

ROOF RAISER $7,500–$9,999

Harold Goldstein & Carol Streeter

Herbert A. Templeton Foundation

$25,000–$49,999

SEAT RISER $5,000–$7,499 Regional Arts & Culture Council AT&T Foundation The Kinsman Foundation

SUPPORTING BEAM $2,500–$4,999 Autzen Foundation GRANTMAKERS of Oregon and Southwest Washington Multnomah County OCF Joseph E Weston Foundation Oregon Arts Commission RBC Wealth Management The Standard

STEPPING STONE $1,000–$2,499 Equity Foundation The Jackson Foundation

Ronni Lacroute Phillip Terranova

PLAYWRIGHTS $10,000–$24,999 Barry Bloom & Joanna Doris Bloom Ellyn Bye Jeff & Esther Clark Steve & Elsie Weaver

DIRECTORS $5,000–$9,999 Marge & Stephen Kafoury

DESIGNERS $2,500–$4,999 Ann Brayfield & Joe Emerson Elizabeth Carr & Kip Acheson Jess Dishman Erin & Kirk Hanawalt Katherine Immerman & Anthony Melaragno Karen & Dave Johnson Michelle Mark Sandy Polishuk

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Wendy & Richard Rahm Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation

ACTORS $1,000–$2,499 Kay & Roy Abramowitz Dale Bajema & Diana Coleman Barbara Bannister Mary & Don Blair Naomi Dagen Bloom & Ronald Bloom Brooks & Dorothy Cofield Michael Cowan In memory of Sandra Zickefoose Sharon M. Fekety Fund of The Oregon Community Foundation Judith Kafoury Susan Knight & Glenn Lamb Roberta Lampert & James Piper Bonnie & Pete Reagan Mary & Richard Rosenberg Charitable Foundation Bing & Carolyn Sheldon Linda & Chet Skibinski Winston Weaver Greg & Valerie Weaver

STAR $500–$999 Kirby & Amy Allen Jonathan Betlinski Linda & Karl Boekelheide Ellen Brodersen Joseph Callahan Nathan Cogan Family Fund of the Oregon Jewish Community Foundation Robert Conklin Diane Freaney Wendy Ware & Dan Gleason Kathleen Gleeson & Dave Young David Goldman & Merilee Karr Luke & Vicki Groser Paul Hart & Jan Jacobsen Tina & James Hein Diane Herrmann

Kimberly Howard Ramona Kearns Jeff Kilmer Mikki & Steve Lipsey Thomas & Nancy Lisicki Janet MacDonnell & Neil Falk Elaine Martin & Jay Hoover Craig Olson Brad & Trina Robertson Stephen & Kate Robinson Melissa Rockefeller & Minh Pham Stephen & Carol Scalpone Jane Schiffhauer Isabel Sheridan David Stout Mary & Ernie Swartz Jill & Michael Weier Carolyn & Dan Wieden Veronica Williams

CAMEO $250–$499 Sue Armitage & Bob Greene Elizabeth & George Barton Edward & Polley Bowen Alice Boyd Evelyn Brzezinski Duncan & Cindy Campbell of The Campbell Foundation MaryAnne Cassin & Ken Meyer Nancy Catlin Mary Devlin Ellen Donaldson Alison Ebbott & Bill Hasan Lori & Scott Eberly Norman Eder Ronnie-Gail Emden & Andy Wilson Leslye Epstein & Herman Taylor Angela Freeman & Matthew Moule Lynn Goldstein Corbett Gordon In Honor of Shandi Walnofer Muff Frederick & Cheryl Grossman Joan Hartzell

Maurice Horn & George Soule Bruce Murray & Valerie Ilsley Walter Jaffe & Paul King Phillip Margolin Patricia Perkins in memory of Russ S. Perkins Charlotte Rubin Pat Scheans Elizabeth Scully Richard Smith & Patricia Frobes Les & Elizabeth Stoessl David & Rosemarie Sweet Kim Thomas & John Morrison Julie & Ted Vigeland Laura & Andrew Watson Brian & Nikki Weaver Abel Weinrib & Carmen Weinrib-Egido Joyce White Mark Williams Lynn Youngbar

FRIEND $100–$249 Bonnie & Steven Altshuld Mary Andrews Jonathan & Deanne Ater Kimberly Bakken Thomas Balmer & Mary Louise McClintock Janet Bardossi Lisa Batey Kathleen Bauska John & Mary Bicknell Sarah & J Bills Dick & Renee Binns Gabe Bloom Rebecca Boenke Ron & Linda Borkan Patricia Bradley Dana Breashears Dania Caron Denise Carty & Roger Brown Tex Clark & Anna Campbell Kirsten Collins & Cody Hoesly Karol Collymore Liana Colombo Shamus Cooke Gretchen Corbett

Deborah Correa & Mark Wilson Laurie Cox & Robert Skall Linda S Craig Fran Daggett Marvin & Abby Dawson Louise Demetre William Deresiewicz & Aleeza Nussbaum The William Diebold & Deborah Freedberg Fund Patti Dobrowolski & Julie Boardman Howard Cutler & Pamela Echevero Vida Edera Zachary Edmonson Ken & Annie Edwards Alma Eib Steve & Sara Elgee Pamela Anne Fairchild & Ted Lamb Paul & Pat FergusonSteger Daniel & Melissa Fisher Gabrielle Foulkes Robert Gandolfi & Ron Bloodworth Karen Garber & John Desmarais Samuel Gaty William Giles Joshua Gilley Tracy Gratto Robyn Gregory & Tony Bornstein Gretta Grimala Andrew Gustely Delores Hall Paula & Robert Hamm Bruce & Kathleen Harder Georgia Harker James Harter Lynne Hartshorn Jan & Tom Harvey Jane Hatch Elizabeth Hawthorne & Lawrence Mohr Evan Hayashi Marjorie Hirsch Gretchen Holden Laurie Holland Garen Horgen Ruben & Andrea Iniguez Kevin Irving & Nicolo Fonte Curt Jantz Alan & Dianne Johnson

Elizabeth Joseph Maria Katzenbach Ruth Kauffman Frederick Kirchhoff & Ronald Simonis Krystal Klein Bill Kwitman & Monica Moriarty Theodore Labbe & Kelly Rodgers Rebecca Lacy Veronica Lawrence in memory of Penny O’Carroll Sally Leisure Richard Lewis & Margaret Larson Deborah Lockwood Jenny Logan Christine Mackert John & Renee Manson Steven Maser & Donna McElroy Shirley Mason Anne E McLaughlin Samuel Metz Jeannette & Bill Meyer Patricia Mizutani & Richard Rosenhaft Landry & Aino Molimbi Madeline Moore Nancy & Art Moss Adrienne Nelson Susan Newman & Phil Goldsmith Carlton Olson Christopher Ott Hugh Owens & Lauren Turner Jane Pansky Charlotte & Chris Perry Annie Popkin & David Parker Karen Pride Linda Purcell Mark Ramsby & Meg McGill Marj Reeves David Reingold Betty & Jacob Reiss Forrest & Sharon Rae Richen

Jeff Ring Joe Rodriguez Charles & Judy Rooks Rochelle Rosenberg Allison Rowden Rich & Joan Rubin Joanne Ruyle Jono Sanders Barbara & Juergen Schuetze Teresa Schultz Mary & KC Shaw Bert Shaw Carole Shellhart & Bob McGranahan Gail & Mark Sherman Hamilton & Francesa Sims Ann & Jon Sinclair Ann Sitomer Patricia Southard Martha Spence Karen Springer Gary Taliaferro Pan Thu Betsy Toll Misty Tompoles Kay Toran Michael Troyer Vanessa Usui & Kim Stafford Kaye Van Valkenburg & David Maier Gina Warren Amy Weaver Michael Weaver & Suzi Carter Tom Wells Emmett & Karen Wheatfall Priscilla Bernard Wieden & Dan Wieden Cynthia Williams Ann Wilson Mary Ann & John Wish Jan Woita Phyllis Wolfe Kathleen Worley Mary Beth Yosses & Fred Williams

FALL FESTIVAL OF SHAKESPEARE The Fall Festival of Shakespeare is a noncompetitive region-wide collaboration between Portland Playhouse and area middle and high schools. The Festival is a spectacular theatrical event, in part because student actors connect well to Shakespeare; they understand the passion, the large stakes, and the disaster. High school is not unlike an Elizabethan Tragedy.

NOVEMBER 9TH & 21ST

PGE SPOTLIGHT WHY DO YOU SUPPORT PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE? The PGE Foundation believes in arts education that promotes 21st century learning skills such as innovation, creativity, perseverance, grit and self-discipline, which aligns with Portland Playhouse’s vision of a world awakened by the wonder of theatre.

WHY DOES THE PGE FOUNDATION SUPPORT THEATRE AND THE ARTS EDUCATION? As a company, we value the community where our customers and employees live and work. Supporting arts and culture puts PGE front and center in developing a sense of place, helping to drive change, growth and transformation for the region.

HOW DOES PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE’S MISSION STATEMENT RESONATE WITH THE PGE FOUNDATION? Portland Playhouse’s mission, to hold a space in which all people come together to celebrate the complexity of the human experience, resonates with Portland General Electric’s

business case for diversity, equity and inclusion. PGE serves a diverse population of customers who all have unique perspectives and come from different backgrounds and experiences. Oregon is changing and so is PGE. A workforce that mirrors the changing demographics of our community helps us to better understand their needs and meet them where they are.

WHAT IS ONE MEMORY OF PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE THAT STICKS WITH YOU? PGE brought a group of employees from human resources, customer service, and public policy to experience How to End Poverty in 90 Minutes. It is a particularly relevant topic for PGE, as we work, through our various teams, to serve our communities.

WHAT ARE YOUR HOPES FOR PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE’S FUTURE? Keep being the catalyst for bringing people together around conversations of our shared humanity.

-Kimberly Howard Education Initiatives Corporate Social Responsibility Portland General Electric

PORTLAND PLAYHOUSE HOW WE GOT ON | P7

2014 DRAMMY AWARD-WINNER

BEST PRODUCTION OF A PLAY

BEST DIRECTOR OF A PLAY

BEST ENSEMBLE

“An immersive musical wonderland that embodies the holiday spirit.”

-PORTLAND MONTHLY

S I T R M H A C S A C A ROL

By Charles Dickens

DECEMBER 2 – DECEMBER 24 The enduring tale of Ebenezer Scrooge’s painful past, cruel present, and redemptive future spring to exuberant life for a third holiday run. Hopeful, musical and, above all, fun; this production won 3 Drammy awards including: BEST PRODUCTION OF 2014.

Adaptation and original lyrics by Rick Lombardo. Original music

by Anna Lackaff and Rick Lombardo. Music arrangements by Anna Lackaff. Directed by Cristi Miles.

DREW HARPER AS SCROOGE. PHOTO BY BRUD GILES.