Mission
We change the world through the arts. We build community, create welcoming, safe spaces, and make the arts accessible so that everyone feels connected.
About Portland'5
We bring over 1,000 music, theatre, dance, and lecture performances to Portland each year because we know that art matters. Art brings joy, inspires the mind, and unites communities. Art changes lives.
As the 5th largest performing arts center in the U.S., we are national leaders in keeping art and culture thriving. Our five venues draw over one million patrons to downtown Portland’s Cultural District and generate an average of $60 million in regional spending every year. With the help of Metro and the Metropolitan Exposition Recreation Commission, we are able to connect with the public to offer the performances that are most valuable to our community.
The greater Portland area rests on traditional village sites of many Indigenous Peoples who made their homes and villages here to harvest and use the plentiful natural resources of the region. We take this opportunity to honor the Indigenous Peoples who cared for this land since time immemorial and their families who continue to remind us that living in a place creates responsibilities to the land, water, air, animals and people of that place.
Performing Arts Venues Workgroup
On October 31, 2024, Portland City Council and Metro Council adopted resolutions to establish a Performing Arts Venues Workgroup to evaluate management of Portland’5 arts facilities.
The Workgroup was tasked with evaluating the operations, maintenance, and long-term planning of City-owned Metro-operated Portland’5 Centers for the Arts venues: Antoinette Hatfield Hall (housing the Brunish, Newmark, and Winningstad Theatres), Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, and Keller Auditorium. The Workgroup was asked to examine operational challenges and opportunities, with a focus on aligning management and operations with regional economic and cultural goals, and to explore alternative operating models.
The Workgroup selection process included targeted recruitment to arts organizations and key stakeholders and an open application process. The 19 Workgroup members were selected by a committee and have a breadth of experience in relevant areas including arts & culture, venue management, business, finance, labor, development and government. They also represent small, medium and large arts organizations as well as local, regional and national perspectives.
The Workgroup met for five months and explored various topics: needs and wants of users of the theatres, the current operating model, the state of performing arts centers nationally, common operating models across North America, and possible operational changes for Portland’5.
The Workgroup’s Recommendations Report was submitted to the City of Portland Deputy City Administrator of Vibrant Communities and the Metro General Manager of Visitor Venues in June 2025.
Performing Arts Venues Workgroup Recommendations (pdf)
Appendices to Performing Arts Venues Workgroup Recommendations (pdf)
If you have any questions or comments, send us an email or call 503.248.4335.
Portland’5 mailing address: 1111 SW Broadway Ave., Portland, OR 97205-2913.
