While the company has changed greatly since it was founded, the mission of Portland Theatre Works remains the same: to provide playwrights with the time, space, tools, and artistic support required to fully develop their plays and refine their craft.
Past Workshops & Readings
Shane Bogus
By Hunt Holman
May 13, 2013 (FreshWorks)
Terry thought it would be a good idea if her husband showed her little sister how to use the computer, so she could get a job and move out of their mother's apartment. But her husband had sex with her little sister instead. Yuck! Now her older brother wants to move their mother into a home, which Terry thinks is a great idea because she wants to move in, since the apartment's in a better school district. But their other brother lives there too, because he won't go back to seminary. And whose idea was it for husband and little sister to have sex anyway? Oh Lord, it's a terrible mess.
The cast included Brian Allard, Lorraine Bahr, Keith Cable, Garland Lyons, Cecily Overman, and Jennifer Rowe.
Rimbaud's Daughter in Louisiana (or the Drunken Pirogue)
By Steve Patterson
April 15, 2013 (FreshWorks)
A young Frenchwoman, firmly convinced that she's the daughter of infamous poet Arthur Rimbaud, travels down the Mississippi River in search of the elusive artist. Just your typical surrealist picaresque about the search for family, frontier eccentricity and occasional violence, excessive derangement of the senses, straight-up craziness, and, of course, symbolist poetry.
The cast included Lara Baker, Cassie Skauge, and Jonah Weston.
Masque of the Mountebank
By William S. Gregory
March 18, 2013 (FreshWorks)
Masque of the Mountebank is a playful riot of love and language with a spattering of heartbreak and confusion. Set in 18th Century Paris and Venice the plot, narrated by the infamous Casanova, explodes when an ambitious quack doctor is hired to impersonate himself. Mistresses, Monarchs, and Mountebanks whirl together in a comedy which touches both agony and ardor.
The cast included Keith Cable, Sarah Dresser, Sarah McCauley, Michael O'Connell, Rick Sanders, Judy Straalsund.
Blood on the Books
By Nick Zagone
December 17, 2012 (FreshWorks)
It's been long year at the worlds largest bookstore. Kindles, Ipads and e-readers are having a profound effect at Powell's books and when push come to shove changes must come. It's the biggest moment in the printed word since the printing press! And we haven't even said anything yet about the vampires. Yes, there will be vampires.
The cast included Keith Cable, Tony Cull, Cassie Skauge, and Will Steele.
Ghosts in the Canvas
By George Taylor
October 15, 2012 (FreshWorks)
Following the death of their father, four sisters gather to decide what to do with one of the family's most cherished possessions: a painting of the girls as children done long ago by a now-world-famous artist. Three sisters want to follow their father's wishes and donate the work to the city's art museum where it will forever be on display to the public. The fourth - the eldest - wants it hidden away where it will never be seen again, for reasons she can't really explain. Her sisters want to know why, and so does the artist, a family friend named John Singer Sargent. Ghosts in the Canvas is an interpretation of Sargent's 1882 painting, The Daughters of Edward Darley Boit. Dismissed by early critics, the painting is now one of the most beloved works by any American painter. Ghosts is a story of the power secrets can hold over a family, and the power of art to affect lives. The daughters, their parents, the artist, and even Sargent's notorious Madame X, all play a part in unraveling the personal mystery behind the painting and seek to explain its fascination for us more than a century later.
The cast included Tony Cull, Keith Cable, Lissie Huff, Dana Millican, and Karen Trumbo.
Calumnies
By Ellen Margolis
April 9, 2012 (FreshWorks)
Kentucky, 1825: Old-world society meets wild western free-for-all. The only thing rougher than the politics are the love affairs. A tale of sex, manipulation, and revenge, based on the most notorious murder of the time.
The cast included Jerry Bell, Tony Cull, Tim Hill, Sarah McGregor, and Renee White.
Fertile Ground 2012 Readings
Portland Theatre Works revisits Steve Patterson's Next of Kin and Andrew Wardenaar's Live from Douglas. After successful workshops of both plays (in 2010 and 2009) we wanted to give each playwright a chance to hear their post-workshop revisions in front of an audience, as well as reconnect with these great plays.
Next of Kin
By Steve Patterson
January 27, 2012
Mike is a Marine Casualty Assistance Officer who informs parents and spouses their loved one has been killed. Mike's brother Rich is a Marine recruiter trying to fill his quotas. Their sister Angie was left at home to care for their father, a Vietnam Vet and former Marine, who now lies in a coma having attempted to kill himself. Reuniting over their father's deathbed, they are forced to face the complex relationships they have with each other as they pick up the pieces their father left behind.
The cast included Tony Cull, Lindsay Matteson, and Paul Susi.
Live from Douglas
By Andrew Wardenaar
January 28, 2012
Hell hath no panic like a Douglas revealed, although until now that wasn't a problem. Douglas is a happy, hidden town. Everyone is named Doug, likes tea, and gardening, and the quiet life. The world doesn't bother them and they don't bother the world. Until a renegade Doug invites radio reporter Harriet Mirion to do a piece on Douglas. Will the feature she's planning ruin their little utopia?
The cast included Greg Alexander, Deirdre Atkinson, Tony Cull, Garland Lyons, and Paul Susi.
De(Il)lusion
By Mark James Montgomery
December 12, 2011 (FreshWorks)
De(Il)lusion is a tragi-comedy about a screenwriter in Hollywood. Cal Wells has been struggling with the vagaries of the industry for years. Down and out, he's called to the offices of legendary producer Robert Van Horn, who wishes to option his script. What ensues is a contest between two characters who may or may not have a grip on reality. In their clash of wills, demands for compromises are made and hard truths and dark secrets emerge. By turns comedic, dramatic and absurd, this is a story about the about the illusions and delusions we map out for ourselves in order to survive.
The cast included Keith Cable, Eleanor Cohn-Eichner, Michael Fisher-Welsh, and Mariessa Portelance.
The Last Chance Saloon
By Larke Schuldberg
November 21, 2011 (FreshWorks)
The Last Chance Saloon is about people living on the edge. Charlie has run the bar since her uncle died, playing host to an assortment of local drunks, celebrities and her best friend from forever, Sloane. But a Conico Travel plaza is going in up the road, making the name of her bar a lie, not the mention the love of her life is back in town, ready to make amends or break her heart all over again. When the mother of a high school rival dies, bringing that woman back into her life, Charlie realizes she needs to finally make a choice about her future instead of letting time sweep her along.
The cast included Kevin Carroll, Liz Hayden, Rebecca Frost Mayer, Ron Sherwood, and Liz Young.
Just Us
By Scott Wheeler
October 17, 2011 (FreshWorks)
The cast included Andres Barnes, Ken Dembo, Kevin Jones, and Victor Mack.
The Nursing Virgin
By Hunt Holman
June 23-25, 2011
Kurt and Laura want to get married, maybe, but first they have to agree on how and where. And get pregnant. And defeat Satan. With the aid of a Catholic priest, whose parish is being sold in a bankruptcy proceeding. And the creepy assistant pastor with his life-size statue of Pope John Paul II, who, despite his amazingly lifelike demeanor, does not actually speak. Yet.
The cast included Robin Bowles, Keith Cable, Garland Lyons, Jason Maniccia, and Liz Young. The director was Andrew Golla.
This LabWorks workshop of The Nursing Virgin was funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council and Work for Art.
Greyhound
By Mark James Montgomery
May 16, 2011 (FreshWorks)
Three people meet in a bus station. What follows is an examination of human lonlieness and connection, loss and guilt. In the end can they transcend their past?
The cast included Dallas Bryant, Tim Hill, and Shauna Marx.
The Sweatermakers
By Andrew Wardenaar
February 21, 2011 (FreshWorks)
Henry and Brin, brother and sister, spend their days crafting sweaters for the recently bereaved. When Brin receives an order for a fancy cashmere, she knows that somebody has lost a very dear loved one, and she cannot stop herself from wanting to know more. As Brin seeks a connection to the mysterious Shaun, the man to whom she is sure the cashmere was sent, her brother tries desperately to keep her satisfied with the simple, strange life that they have led thus far.
The cast included Tony Cull, Danielle Larson, Sarah Lucht, and Nick Schultz.
The Nursing Virgin
By Hunt Holman
January 25 and 26, 2011
Kurt and Laura want to get married, maybe, but first they have to agree on how and where. And get pregnant. And defeat Satan. With the aid of a Catholic priest, whose parish is being sold in a bankruptcy proceeding. And the creepy assistant pastor with his life-size statue of Pope John Paul II, who, despite his amazingly lifelike demeanor, does not actually speak. Yet.
The cast included Robin Bowles, Keith Cable, Dennis Kelly, Garland Lyons, and Briana Ratterman.
This reading was produced in preparation for the June 2011 LabWorks workshop of The Nursing Virgin.
The Strange Case of the Miser at Christmas
By George Taylor
November 29, 2010 (FreshWorks)
It's Christmas Eve 1882. A miserly businessman named Scrooge calls at 221B Baker Street with a problem. A series of ghost-filled dreams has made him terrified to go to sleep. He fears the last dream, which is to take place this night, may signal his last night on earth. Surely the "world's greatest detective" can discover what, or who, is behind the dreams. Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Watson have to use a controversial form of investigation to solve The Strange Case of the Miser at Christmas.
The cast included Greg Alexander, Tobias Anderson, Dave Bodin, Eleanor Cohn-Eichner, Connor French, Alan Hakim, David Holloway, Dennis Kelly, Natalie Lyons, Suzanne Owens-Duval, Maureen Porter, and Nathan Urbach.
Saint in a Cage
By William S. Gregory
October 18, 2010 (FreshWorks)
What would you do with a saint in a cage? Let her go? Keep her there? Ask her the meaning of life? When Philip of Burgundy accidentally gets custody of Joan of Arc he has a once in a life-time chance. The English want her dead, Joan wants to be free, and Philip...what does he want from his "Saint in a Cage?" Saint in a Cage is a three person verse comedy which explores with playful elegance questions of Faith, Hope, and how close you really want to get to a barbecue.
The cast included Keith Cable, Sam Mowry, and Sarah Rea.
The Vegetarian
By Hunt Holman
September 20, 2010 (FreshWorks)
Revive a flagging career in three easy steps: 1) shoot stepson, 2) steal money, 3) shoot stepson again. If that doesn't work, stop having sex. Probably wouldn't kill you to lay off the meat, either.
The cast included Michael Biesanz, Matthew Dieckman, Lara Kobrin, KB Mercer, Briana Ratterman, Matt Sa, and Miles Thoming-Gale.
Next of Kin
By Steve Patterson
August 19-21, 2010
Mike is a Marine Casualty Assistance Officer who informs parents and spouses their loved one has been killed. Mike's brother Rich is a Marine recruiter trying to fill his quotas. Their sister Angie was left at home to care for their father, a Vietnam Vet and former Marine, who now lies in a coma having attempted to kill himself. Reuniting over their father's deathbed, they are forced to face the complex relationships they have with each other as they pick up the pieces their father left behind.
The cast included Tony Cull, Lindsay Matteson, and Casey McFeron. The director was Andrew Golla.
This LabWorks workshop of Next of Kin was funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council and Work for Art.
The Story of US
By Molly Best Tinsley
May 24, 2010 (FreshWorks)
Sudanese refugee Mariam works to forget the past and concentrate on her present as a nurse's aid in a rehabilitation center, and mother to her son Joey. Her silence about her past strains her relationship with her son Joey, who searches for his lost father in internet chat rooms. Unsure what to think or who to believe, Joey becomes entangled with terrorists. Professor Madelon McCracken, historian, has lost her foot to diabetes and is doing time in the residential rehab center where Mariam works. They develop an unlikely friendship. When a Saudi prince is ensconced in the room next to Madelon's, Joey, plots to blow him up. Mariam averts disaster at great price as Madelon is dragged down from her safe academic vantage into the turbulence of history.
The cast included Tyler Andrew Jones, Suzanne Owens-Duval, Ithica Tell, and Melissa Whitney.
Way Past Lovely
By Michael Premsrirat
March 15, 2010 (FreshWorks)
Lani, a girl with an eyepatch and damaged soul crash-lands in a junkyard and is rescued by Little Guy, a man who scavenges in the scrapheap for things to fix, and Big Guy, a man who wants to break it all. Little Guy will try to fix her but he runs the risk of breaking her even more. Big Guy is waiting for the failure. And Lani, looking at herself with only one eye ... will she ever see herself complete?
The cast included Matt Haynes, Cassie Skauge, and Paul Susi.
Albion
By Edward Mast
Feburary 15, 2010 (FreshWorks)
Leyla has been quietly, stubbornly defying family and government in a place that is almost, but not quite, Israel. When she discovers a stone covered in ancient scribbling, everyone wants it: friends, secret police, underground rebels. Suddenly Leyla is forced to flee for her life. She cannot throw the stone away and she cannot give it to anyone. She is forced to make real decisions that carry her life, her family, and her conquered nation in the balance.
The cast included Greg Alexander, Robin Bowles, Tina Connolly, Matt Haynes, Matt Loehrke, Suzanne Owens-Duval, Lindsay Matteson, and Melissa Whitney.
Galaxy Blink
By Francesca Sanders
January 25, 2010 (FreshWorks)
Ferdinand is the only person who stands between the few and the brave who protect the galaxy and the forces of absolute evil. So he never leaves his apartment, surrounded by papers, memos, and wire, desperately radioing and scribbling. He can't let the men down. Aurora, his fiancé, is left to make explanations to their dwindling friends, force Ferdinand to eat, and try to get him out of his head and into the real world. Enter John Robert, who knows all about Aurora as soon as he sets eyes on her, and is himself the hero that Ferdinand is waiting for. But with John Robert's dark past, can he help Aurora and Ferdinand, or will he drag them down with him?
The cast included Matthew Dieckman, Christy Drogosch, and Jason Maniccia.
The Garden of Monsters
By Mara Lathrop
October 19, 2009 (FreshWorks)
The Garden of Monsters traces a hundred year journey of a shred of hope. A Jewish-American GI is given the gift of the last shred of hope in all the world when he liberates a Dachau prisoner. A hundred years later, a theatre director rehearses a new play commemorating Dachau but forgets how to hope when she learns she has a fatal disease. In 1969, in a Renaissance garden, two impulsive sisters chose their fates and the destiny of hope. In present-day London, hopeful lovers cross paths with two mysterious clowns determined to make the world hope.
The cast included Brian Allard, Matt Loehrke, Lindsay Matteson, Suzanne Owens-Duval, Jamie Rea, and Rick Sanders.
The Nursing Virgin
By Hunt Holman
September 21, 2009 (FreshWorks)
Kurt and Laura want to get married, maybe, but first they have to agree on how and where. And get pregnant. And defeat Satan. With the aid of a Catholic priest, whose parish is being sold in a bankruptcy proceeding. And the creepy assistant pastor with his life-size statue of Pope John Paul II, who, despite his amazingly lifelike demeanor, does not actually speak. Yet.
The cast included Tina Connolly, Shelly Lipkin, Matt Loehrke, Ben Plont, and Nick Zagone.
Live, from Douglas
By Andrew Wardenaar
August 20-22, 2009
Hell hath no panic like a Douglas revealed, although until now that wasn't a problem. Douglas is a happy, hidden town. Everyone is named Doug, likes tea, and gardening, and the quiet life. The world doesn't bother them and they don't bother the world. Until a renegade Doug invites radio reporter Harriet Mirion to do a piece on Douglas. Will the feature she's planning ruin their little utopia?
The cast included Greg Alexander, Deirdre Atkinson, Tony Cull, Matt Loehrke, and Matthew Sa. The director was Andrew Golla and the stage manager was Lindsay Matteson.
This LabWorks workshop of Live, from Douglas was funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council and Work for Art.
in School Suspension
By Brian Kettler
May 18, 2009 (FreshWorks)
What would happen if a high school decided to prepare for a shooting by simulating one? What if the goal of the simulation was to prepare the students emotionally as well as physically? How would this simulation work and what would the consequences be? Although the playwright takes an interesting approach to these questions. Basically, In School Suspension is The Breakfast Club with guns.
The cast included Brittany Burch, Mario Calcagno, David Harrell, and Rick Sanders.
Next Train To Moscow
By George Taylor
April 20, 2009 (FreshWorks)
George Taylor's comedy focuses on Lacey, a woman unhappily married, unfulfilled, and forty-five. Lacey has decided that her life is too much like that of a Chekhov character--one or both of the Mashas. And so she's taken to dressing in black, mourning her life until she can think what to do with it. Weird parallels to The Three Sisters and The Cherry Orchard keep cropping up. Smack in the middle of mid-life, Lacey and friends find themselves at the crossroads of Fate and Free Will, trying to deal with existential sameness in the Age of Starbucks.
The cast included Brian Allard, Tina Connolly, Nathan Daniels, Hunt Holman, Maureen Porter, and Rick Sanders.
Suicide Table
By Doug Baldwin
March 16, 2009 (FreshWorks)
Suicide Table is a mystery set in New York City and Reno, NV. The year is 2003. Former New York City firefighter and 9-11 survivor Rick Lazzardo has traveled to Reno with the intention of selling a cache of stolen valuables then using the proceeds in a blackjack card-counting scheme. Also along is another former firefighter, Rick's best friend Irish. Proclaimed by the media during the 9-11 rescue operation as "the luckiest man in NYC," Irish serves as Rick's "rabbit's foot" at the gambling tables. Soon, however, luck - both good and bad - intervenes: Irish embarks on an unstoppable winning streak of his own, and they are forced to deal with the dark history behind the stolen goods.
The cast included Bruce Burkhartsmeier, Tina Connelly, Jason Maniccia, Todd Van Voris, and Nick Zagone.
Stone Love
By William S. Gregory
January 26, 2009 (FreshWorks)
Stone Love is a sparkling new verse comedy about sex, heaven, and after dinner damnation. When Don Juan invites the Statue of the man he murdered to dinner (like you do!) the stage is set for a dazzling, seductive comedy which touches themes close to us all: how to live, how to love, and what to serve ambulatory funerary monuments. With romantic rakes, lovelorn ladies, scheming servants, disguised damsels, and surprising statuary, Stone Love is a charming feast of whirling plots and pyrotechnic language.
The cast included Brian Allard, Curt Hanson, Mark Homayoum, Suzanne Owens-Duval, Sarah Rea, and Emily Sahler Beleele.
Mr. Angelo
By Daniel Tarker
November 10, 2008 (FreshWorks)
Isabelle Stephens is a sharp witted Presbyterian pastor who raised her younger brother Clay after their parents' tragic death. Clay is arrested for statutory rape after he gets the girl next door pregnant and faces the maximum penalty in the hands of a District Attorney Angelo. Isabelle is forced to negotiate for leniency for her brother with the manipulative and corrupt attorney Angelo. Daniel Tarker retells one of Shakespeare's darkest comedies, Measure for Measure, placing it in our current world of politics, sex, and abuse of power.
The cast included Tina Connolly, Scott Fullerton, Daria Lisandrelli, Lindsay Matteson, Cecily Overman, and Darius Pierce.
Next of Kin
By Steve Patterson
October 20, 2008 (FreshWorks)
Mike is a Marine Casualty Assistance Officer who informs parents and spouses their loved one has been killed. Mike's brother Rich is a Marine recruiter trying to fill his quotas. Their sister Angie was left at home to care for their father, a Vietnam Vet and former Marine, who now lies in a coma having attempted to kill himself. Reuniting over their father's deathbed, they are forced to face the complex relationships they have with each other as they pick up the pieces their father left behind.
The cast included Garland Lyons, Lindsay Matteson, and Nick Zagone.
Boy
By Matthew B. Zrebski
September 15, 2008 (FreshWorks)
In Boy a devoted social worker, Trish, is about to realize the success of her lifetime: the opening and dedication of a safehouse with resources to turn the lives around for scores of sexually abused teenagers. But while celebrating with her most prominent donor, she discovers him engaged in a liaison with his barely legal adopted son. Trish faces the prospect of either losing the power to save teenagers on the brink of destruction, or losing the respect of herself and those she loves most as these worlds of lies and salvation inevitably collide.
The cast included Joe Bolenbaugh, Matt Callahan, Timothy M. Hill, Melissa Kaiser, Melanie Meijer, and Cecily Overman.
Trying Not to Stare
By Ellen Margolis
June 10-11, 2008
Shana has almost gotten used to her scarred face--almost. Derek is starting to wonder if being gorgeous is all he's got. Mitra is driving herself crazy trying to do everything she thinks a woman is supposed to do. Casey's looking for a jolt, Rob's looking for a clue, and everybody's looking to everybody else for some answers. A play about trying to move forward when the people you love are impossibly damaged, impossibly beautiful, or just impossible.
The cast included Hamilton Barrett, Emily Douglas, Casey McFeron, Amy Newman, Buffie Rogers, Paul Susi, and Liz Young. The director was Andrew Golla.
This LabWorks workshop of Trying Not To Stare was funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council and Work for Art.
The Albatross
By Dennis Schebetta
May 19, 2008 (FreshWorks)
David is an award-winning poet and teacher at a small private university. He has a great academic job and a golfing buddy in his colleague Mark, a recent divorcee. But underneath his polished lectures about "life as an artist", he hides a secret pain, the suicide of his wife five years ago, a pain numbed through alcohol. He is violently shaken out of this numbness by Sofia, one of his eccentric students. A reactionary response to one of her poems begins a chain of events that will eventually cause David to drown under the watery weight of the past. He becomes a mentor to Sofia, recognizing her amazing talent yet also wary of it. There's something else about her that he won't talk about it, can't talk about, and it's this denial that will eventually cause his downfall.
The cast included Ami Jhaveri, Garland Lyons, and Darius Pierce.
Live, from Douglas
By Andrew Wardenaar
April 21, 2008 (FreshWorks)
Hell hath no panic like a Douglas revealed, although until now that wasn't a problem. Douglas is a happy, hidden town. Everyone is named Doug, likes tea, and gardening, and the quiet life. The world doesn't bother them and they don't bother the world. Until a renegade Doug invites radio reporter Harrient Mirion to do a piece on Douglas. Will the feature she's planning ruin their little utopia?
The cast included Deidre Atkinson, Anders Liljeholm, Darius Pierce, and Ben Plont.
Pylon
By Craig Jessen
March 17, 2008 (FreshWorks)
In Pylon, Jake, Connor, and Mike look back six years and wrestle with how the most important thing they had their friendship was turned upside-down because of one perfectly ordinary, extraordinary girl. As they piece together what really happened during their last six months of high school, the only thing they agree on is how it started: one night, they stole a traffic cone.
The cast included Adrian de Forest, Scott Fullerton, April Lowe, and Doug Reynolds.
Chuck From Finance, or The Happy Penguin
By Hunt Holman
February 11, 2008 (FreshWorks)
On his first day at work Jim notices his superior, Troy, being massively, viciously beaten by Chuck from Finance. Not to worry, these things happen. A lot. And there are stranger things that happen, too. After all, you have to spice up a ho-hum job with something, right? Come watch Jim, Troy, Tracy, Cheryl, and Chuck struggling for a taste of the good life (and other less delectable things).
The cast included Brian Allard, Tina Connelly, Ben Plont, Jamie Rea, and Todd Sabel.
Celeste and Starla Save Todd and Win Back The Day
By Francesca Sanders
December 10, 2007 (FreshWorks)
Where's a good mystery when you need one? Celeste and Starla, the-international-fashion-model starfish, are unable to fulfill their Nancy Drew fantasies until Kim Kelsey Kirkpatrick hire them to find his son Todd (who looks remarkably like a rag doll) now that he's been missing for 13 years.
The cast included Brian Allard, Julie Jeske, and John San Nicolas.
The Wondyrechaun
By Elena Hartwell
November 19, 2007 (FreshWorks)
In The Wondyrechaun Jessica, a marine biologist, returns to the small fishing village of her youth to reconcile her past with her present. As she tries to repair the damage done to the oceans by the fishing industry, she also must face damaged relationships from her past.
The cast included Tina Connolly, Anders Liljeholm, Kristin Martz, Chris Murray, Rebecca Nachison, and Keith Scales.
Turning the Beam
By Joshua Rollins
October 15, 2007 (FreshWorks)
Jack, a doctor washed up on the shores of alcoholism, faces accusations of murder. He's suspected of withholding medical care from one of his patients, a prisoner in the Illinois penitentiary system. Prisoner rights advocates and the press beat down his door. His soused best friend is his only moral support. His bitter marriage is pushed to the limits. Did Jack act for the good of his patient or did he pass judgment on this man´s crimes and serve in God´s stead?
Another Manhattan
By Claudia Barnett
September 17, 2007 (FreshWorks)
Another Manhattan is the story of Liz, a cook who worked on the 107th story of a Manhattan skyscraper until a fiery explosion transported her to 17th-century New Amsterdam. Rescued by a mute hunter named Daniel and nursed by his mother Anika, she embarks on a personal quest to retrieve her baby daughter and a political crusade to save her new world--which is in some ways very much like her old world.
The cast included Jenny Finke, Tina Connolly, Scott Fullerton, Fayra Teeters, and Ithica Tell.
A Dialogue of Flower & Song
By Cindy Williams Gutiérrez
June 4, 2007 (FreshWorks)
A Dialogue of Flower & Song re-imagines a historic Mesoamerican literary event that took place in Huexotzinco (near modern-day Puebla) in 1450. The host of the original dialogue--Nahua sage and poet-king Tecayehuatzin--returns from the Land of the Fleshless to invite three female poets from pre-Conquest Mexico, New Spain, and the contemporary Mexican Diaspora to a "do-over." The women must debate the purpose of poetry and wrestle with what it means to "be impeccable with your word." The "winner" of the debate may be able to alter the course of history.
The cast included Andres Alcala, Olga Sanchez, Yolanda Suarez, and Amaya Villazan.
Terminal Velocity
By Daniel A. Tarker
May 21, 2007 (FreshWorks)
After a year struggling through the rollercoaster ride of emotions following her husband's death, Sarah Dunn suddenly finds herself thrust into a most bizarre love triangle with her former college sweetheart and the ghost of her deceased husband. A fast paced, bawdy comedy that mixes the profound and profane to examine how the frenetic pace and mounting obligations of contemporary society can leave us all living in a virtual purgatory.
The cast included Brian Allard, Paul Angelo, Hannah Ballou, Tina Connolly, Hunt Holman, Cecily Overman, and Ben Plont.
Trying Not to Stare
By Ellen Margolis
April 16, 2007 (FreshWorks)
Shana has almost gotten used to her scarred face--almost. Derek is starting to wonder if being gorgeous is all he's got. Mitra is driving herself crazy trying to do everything she thinks a woman is supposed to do. Casey's looking for a jolt, Rob's looking for a clue, and everybody's looking to everybody else for some answers. A play about trying to move forward when the people you love are impossibly damaged, impossibly beautiful, or just impossible.
The cast included Tina Connolly, Hunt Holman, Melissa Kaiser, Kelley Marchant, Paul Susi, and Melissa Whitney.
Broken Ground
By theresa hernandez
February 19, 2007 (FreshWorks)
How do we escape from ourselves? After 20 years of friendship, Kylee tears herself from Rebecca to pursue adulthood. Now, Rebecca and Kylee must discover who they are without each other; and how to reconcile who they were with who they have, and will, become.
The cast included Brian Allard, Tina Connolly, Torrey Cornwell, Cecily Overman, Paul Susi, and Jessica Wallenfels.
Canis lupus / Canis familiaris
By Gretchen Icenogle
November 13, 2006 (FreshWorks)
Diane is a prickly and charismatic maverick in the ever more competitive world of wolf research. Maggie, a grad student and the daughter of one of her biggest contributors, wishes to join Diane in her research, and she appears reluctant to take no for an answer. Maggie is aided in her quest by her academic advisor, Michael, Diane's former colleague and sometime lover. She's also looking for temporary escape from the ambivalent emotions that surround her recent engagement to Adam, a charming but unabashedly rough arborist. Once in Alaska Diane and Maggie begin to work, often clashing due to their very different approaches. Diane believes that narrative has a critical place in scientific study, which Maggie finds hopelessly sentimental. Will their delicate truce, and the wolves that they are studying, survive in this dangerous environment?
The cast included Brian Allard, Gretchen Corbett, Hunt Holman, and Melissa Whitney.
Jubiloso
By William S. Gregory
September 18, 2006 (FreshWorks)
In Jubiloso local Portland playwright William S. Gregory creates a drama of familial and artistic passions as he examines the lives of a conductor, his son, and the conductor's favorite cello soloist at a contemporary summer classical music festival. In the disturbances and debates between father/son, and mentor/protege, Gregory probes the dreams of the dream-makers, exploring the ambitions and constraints on those who practice art in contemporary America. The play, while a heartfelt investigation of ambition and family strife, is shot through with wit and the humor which comes from passionate engagement.
The cast for the reading included Sam A. Mowry, Atticus Wells Mowry, and Kam Sisco.
The Road to Xibalbá
By Joann Farías
August 21, 2006 (FreshWorks)
Chicano Anthropologist Jeff Ordóñez goes to Guatemala to study shamanism and discovers, to his amazement, that the gods actually do exist. This is much to the dismay of his fiancée, Angela, a nurse, who considers his voices and visions to be symptoms of mental illness. His shamanic training interrupted by the Guatemalan civil war, and he returns to the United States without finishing the rites that would have completed his apprenticeship as a shaman or an anthropologist. Twenty-five years later, his son, Joe, a psychologist and high school guidance counselor, takes a group of Latino high school students to Chichen Itza, where they fall into the Underworld, with only Joe to guide them. Will Joe call on the gods, perhaps at the cost of his sanity, or will he let them slip into gangs, pregnancy, and the military?
The cast for the reading included Albert Alcazar, Joey Boyd, Stephanie Danna, David Galindo, Ana García, Stephen Lisk, David Loftus, and Edward Lyons.
Wrestling with Charlotte
By Doug Baldwin
July 24, 2006 (FreshWorks)
An offbeat comedy about death, guilt, and theatre, Wrestling With Charlotte is made up of two related one-act plays. In Calling Mom playwright Greg battles with his director Thom over who to cast in the pivotal role of the mother in Greg's semi-autobiographical new play, How To Avoid Bob. The second one-act presents How To Avoid Bob, a farce pitting Greg against his dead, but macabrely vivacious, mother in the casket room of a funeral home.
The cast for the reading included Thom Bray, Jason Maniccia, Michele Mariana, Karla Mason, Jean Miller, Amber Mitchell, Leif Norby, and Ina Strauss.
Hollow
By R.B. Ripley
June 19, 2006 (FreshWorks)
In the mountains of rural North-central Pennsylvania, Thorley and her brother Cole struggle with a terrible secret. While she tries to repair their fractured relationship, an impoverished town is eagerly awaiting salvation by development. But, the land has been hollowed out by decades of mining and the apocalypse may be about to begin.
The cast for the reading included Enrique Arias, Torrey Cornwell, Debera Lund, Keith Scales, and Todd Van Voris.
Lost Wavelengths
By Steve Patterson
May 15, 2006 (FreshWorks)
DJ and self-styled musicologist Murray stalks the wilds of Middle America in search of the strange and wonderful songs of amateur musicians for his public radio program. From among a parade of odd, self-deluded and deranged outsiders, he hopes to lure "Enola Guy"--a mysterious, death-obsessed guitarist who never grants interviews or plays in public--into the open.
The cast for the reading included Torrey Cornwell, Deborah Lee, Juliet Marks, Tom Moorman, Ben Plont and Daniel Shaw.
Lost Wavelengths won the 2008 Oregon Book Awards Angus L. Bowmer Award for Drama.
Glacial Genes
By Molly Best Tinsley
April, 17, 2006 (FreshWorks)
As the weather worsens, reproductive chaos invades the scene from all directions. Do Melissa and her boyfriend share the same father? Should anybody be even thinking about babies if an Ice Age is looming? Is anybody truly qualified to reproduce? Would it be such a great loss if human beings just disappeared gracefully from the earth? In the end, the characters of Glacial Genes approach an enlarged vision of family-which may help them survive the freezing months, maybe years ahead.
The cast for the reading included Greg Alexander, Horatio Benneth, Torrey Cornwell, Trish Egan, Val Landrum, Anders Liljeholm, Amy Newman, and Rick Sanders.
Glacial Genes was a finalist for the 2011 Oregon Book Awards Angus L. Bowmer Award for Drama.
The Grotto
By Lawrence Johnson
March 20, 2006 (FreshWorks)
The Grotto is a full-length contemporary play written in a darkly humorous, dream-like style. It is inspired by a line from Von Strassburg's medieval novel, Tristan: "They fed in their grotto on nothing but love and desire."
The cast for the reading included Ben Buckley, Chris Murray, Amy Newman, and Ted Roisum.
Untitled New Play
By Hunt Holman
February 20, 2006 (FreshWorks)
Hunt Holman's play is set in a failing coffee franchise. The boss announces somebody's going to lose their job. A round of backstabbing ensues, before people start to figure out maybe getting fired isn't so bad...
The cast for the reading included Ben Buckley, Anders Liljeholm, Andy Lindberg, Kelley Marchant, and Meg Mulsoff.
Ophelia in Garland
By Francesca Sanders
January 16, 2006 (FreshWorks)
Sylvia has two kids and a husband. She drives car pools, irons shirts, and can't face her drab life a moment longer. Enter Ophelia, waxing Shakespearean. She's come all the way from Denmark to Garland, Texas on a special mission... to save Sylvia and by doing so, save herself. Join Dallas, Ruby, Owen and Sylvia on a trip you'll never forget in this clever farce.
The cast for the reading included Scott Coopwood, Torrey Cornwell, Cecily Overman, Brian Rooney, Olga Sanchez, and Rick Sanders.
Narrowcasting
By Francesca Sanders
June 27, 2005
One might be a serial killer, one might be the perfect guy.
While one small town girl has small time plans, another is out to change the world... in her own unique way.
Now if we could just figure out who is who.
How many ways do you know to mislead?
The Swamp and The City
By Ginny Foster
December 6, 2004
A play rife with conflicts (Human v. Nature, City v. Swamp, Mother v. Daughter, Defiance v. Compromise) and populated by eccentric, delightful characters, Ginny Foster's newest play looks at survival in an ever-changing environment.
I Become a Guitar
By Francesca Sanders
May 2nd and 3rd, 2004
In Tacoma, Washington- Kevin and Madrigal are adrift. While he dreams of baseball, she dreams of her ancestors in the village of Zihuatenejo.
How can their lives possibly intersect with Pablo's, a young man who tells us stories of South America?
Join Kevin and Madrigal's slow dance towards loosening their tethers as they journey to Honduras and back, Mexico and back, and most importantly- to love and back.
I Become a Guitar was a finalist for the 2008 Oregon Book Awards Angus L. Bowmer Award for Drama.
Trickster Tells This Tale
Conceived and Directed by Jamie Lynne Powell-Herbold
January 30 - Feburary 21, 2004
The result of a six-week workshop in experimental storytelling methods with a young ensemble of actors, this bold and searching production begins in the present where the tricksters have gathered for a final 'telling.' As they begin to playfully relate their escapades, it becomes clear that the audience is in for far more than a few rounds of campfire tales.
Godot Waits For Homeland Security
by Martin Kimeldorf
January 16, 17, 18, 2004
Set in a not-so-distant future this tale introduces us to AmbiMan and ProtoMan-middle aged men who have adapted as best they can to life in the modern age-an age in which everybody is a suspect and nobody has the rights that they're fighting for. Be sure not to ask any questions along the way.
Steeplerock
by John Remington
November 28, 29, 30, 2003
Out of gas, Lance finds himself stuck in a bar that seems to be the only feature of a small, remote town called Steeplerock. Lance has been running-from his demons and his wife, Deanne. When she arrives in Steeplerock they are forced to confront their marriage and reconsider their relationship.
The Mission
By Rachael Parenta
October 21, 22, 23, 2003
The story of a young woman's quest to find love, or maybe just a good lay. This farce introduces us to Louis: a twenty year old virgin who just can't stand her love-less life any longer. Her bizarre, yet supportive, family attempts to help her through this difficult time, but she must find the solution to her problem herself.
The Stutter Orphans
By Ginny Foster
Directed by Virginia Sutfin
September 26, 27, 28, 2003
In 1938 an American researcher began experimenting on orphaned children to discover whether or not stutterers could be created. Colleagues called it "The Monster Study" and the lives of those orphans were forever damaged. Join us as we explore a script that deals with human conscience and the limits of science.
Notes From the Underground
Adapted by the Actors
August 15, 16, 17, 2003
I am a sick man... I am a wicked man. An unattractive man. I think my liver is diseased. However, I don't know a thing about my sickness, and am not sure what it is that hurts me.
The Diamond Orchard
By Merilee D. Karr
Directed by Diane Englert
July 25, 26, 27, 2003
A finalist for the 1997 Book Award in Drama, the Oregonian called this play an "exciting. . . screwball farce full of goofy characters." Its author, Merilee D. Karr, calls it a "Post-Industrial Shakespearean Comedy." Join us as a diamond necklace travels great distance, passes through many hands, and creates some unlikely romances along the way.
The Holy Ghost
Music, Lyrics, and Book by Brigid Pierce
June 17, 18, 19, 2003
In this new musical, Brigid Pierce asks the question: what if a young girl, raped and impregnated, is convinced by her mother to cover up the truth by telling the world that her child in the son of God. This lie has an impact on the girl's life far beyond what she intended.
Late Nite Therapy
An Audience Interactive Experience
Created by Marguerite Scott
May 20, 21, 22, 2003
In the Play Workshop Theatre's second collaboration with Marguerite Scott the audience will get to experience the thrill of being a new patient in a mental ward--with hysterical results. Sure to leave you in stitches and looking for your marbles.
One Hour In Eden
By Rob Fishel
May 1 and 17, 2003
Fishel's musical explores an Eden with no explicit God, in which Adam and Eve grow and mature, and eventually out-grow the small world of Eden that contains them. The central conflict of Adam and Eve's growth is set to the backdrop of three angels whose duty it is to protect Eden. The angels disagree about the fate of Eden, and of Adam and Eve.
Written for five actors and small orchestra.
The previous workshop of this musical, then entitled As Yet Untitled Musical starred Vera Alcorn, Kevin Hodges, Mont Christopher Hubbard, Andrew Lardie, and Daniel Roehl.
Good Night and Ever Yours
By Eric Hoem
Directed by Richard W. Kotulski
April 24, 25, 26, 2003
In February 1821 John Keats, the Enlgish Romantic poet whom many consider as gifted as Shakespeare, died of tuberculosis in Rome at the age of 25.
Collage: "True" Stories From The Inside
A Late-Night One-Woman Show
By Marguerite Scott
Directed by Richard W. Kotulski
Fridays and Saturdays, January 31 - March 15, 2003
Marguerite Scott's one woman show is an exploration of what it means to be a middle aged woman in the modern age.
As Yet Untitled Musical
By Rob Fishel
February 20, 21, 22, 2003
The show begins in darkness, pierced by a single bass note, a foundation for everything that is to come. Sounds evolve, slowly joining into something like a passacaglia, presenting progressively richer harmonies and eventually introducing several human voices. The theme first presented in the instrumental parts is taken up by the singers in several different versions, beginning with the lowest and rising higher, first in unison, then in fifths, then in parallel triads, in beautiful harmony.
Written for five actors and small orchestra.
The previous workshop of this musical starred Vera Alcorn, Kevin Hodges, Mont Christopher Hubbard, Andrew Lardie, and Daniel Roehl.
"You May Already Be A Winner"
By Kathryn St. Thomas.
Directed by Richard Wakefield Kotulski
Friday, November 29th, 2002
The play delves into the relationship of a married couple. The husband seems to be descending down of spiral of insanity- and he is taking his wife with him. The husband is addicted to buying "presents" for himself out of catalogs, and he racks up mountains of credit card debt that threatens to rip the couple apart- not only financially, but from their marriage vows as well.
St. Thomas is the winner of The Pushcart Prize, The Helen Bullis Prize, The Anne Sexton Prize, and the Villa Montalvo Award. She has been published by the American Poetry Review, Poetry Northwest, Poetry, West Coast Poetry Review, The Bellingham Review, and Serape, among others. Although St. Thomas has written many poems, short stories, and a novel, "You May Already Be A Winner" is her first play. She holds a Master of Fine Arts from the University of Washington. St. Thomas, now retired, taught English and Composition at Mt. Hood Community College for thirty years.
The reading starred Ted Roisum as Jack Richardson and Jean Miller as Carol Richardson.