Brown Branch Presents: Big Band Holiday Jazz Showcase
Celebrate the season with a special Big Band Holiday Showcase featuring an all-star lineup of Portland jazz musicians and special guests. Brown Branch, the improvisational jazz outfit led by Domo Branch and Charlie Brown III, present a 15-piece orchestra that pays tribute to the great trumpeter, flugelhorn player, composer, and bandleader Thad Jones (1923-1986), and his longtime bandmate and drummer Mel Lewis (1929-1990), who helped shape the sound of modern big-band jazz.
This special Big Band Holiday Showcase will feature Noah Simpson, Justin Copeland, Devin Philips, Steve Montecucco, Adriana Wagner, Cyrus Nabipoor, James Powers, Kyle Molitor, Max Roark, Hailey Niswanger, Christian Ramirez, Andy Rayborn, Nicole McCabe, and band leaders Domo Branch and Charlie Brown III. The show will also feature special guest performances by vocalists and musicians from all genres.
Domo Branch, drumming prodigy from Portland, Oregon, is an artist, composer, drummer, and producer attending the Manhattan School of Music studying multiple genres. He works to be versatile. He is the co-founder of Sound Poets Productions, leads his own band, and is co-leader of the band Brown Branch. He has performed with amazing talents, such as the Sean Jones Quartet, Taylor Eigsti Trio, Dianne Reeves and Sean Jones Big Band, Mike Phillips, and Wynton Marsalis. He has performed in places such as Carnegie Hall, Konzerthaus Berlin, Monterey Jazz Festival, Caramoor Jazz Festival, Rose Hall Jazz at Lincoln Center, New York’s Jazz Standard, and more. He has also given motivational and public speeches to musicians.
Charlie Brown III is the multi-faceted keyboardist of Greaterkind and featured musician, producer, and musical director for artists like Aminé, Blossom, NuBop, and more.
Current & Upcoming
Improvisation Classes for Beginners
Whether you're looking to get more confident in social situations, think quicker on your feet, or get in touch with your imaginative side, these "one-off" improv classes will set you on the path to success!
Black Trans Women at the Center: Virtual New Play Festival
Experience the next wave of new plays at the fifth annual Black Trans Women at the Center: Virtual New Play Festival! Witness the electrifying creativity and raw talent of Black trans women as they take center stage in a captivating digital staged streaming showcase of new plays.
Adult Class : TWELFTH NIGHT, Before & After
Join veteran actor Joe Costa for a unique opportunity to take a “deep dive” into both Shakespeare’s text of Twelfth Night, and the PCS Production. Participants will read the play out loud as a group, with “intermissions” provided for lively discussion of themes and content. Interested participants will have a chance to act in selected scenes, guided by the instructor.
Improv Comedy: Love, Shakespeare
Witness the Magic of unscripted Elizabethan comedy! Step into the offbeat world of Love, Shakespeare, where seasoned Portland comedians attempt something audacious: performing a fully improvised Elizabethan play based on your suggestions!
Albina Music Trust presents A Brown Branch Christmas
Celebrate this holiday season with A Brown Branch Christmas at Portland Center Stage. Now in its fourth season, this two-night big band celebration features directors Domo Branch and Charlie Brown III guiding a heavy 15-piece lineup of regional and national musicians.
Winter Teen Academy: Scene Work
Calling all teens! Are you looking to expand your acting skills and be the best scene partner you can be for your fellow actors? In this class, we will dig deep into scene study, character motivation, and active listening, while learning the necessary questions to ask in every rehearsal situation. You'll develop fuller characters and deeper relationships on stage by partnering in scene work — and have lots of fun too!
Portland Center Stage is committed to identifying & interrupting instances of racism & all forms of oppression, through the principles of inclusion, diversity, equity, & accessibility (IDEA).
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