Beyond the Production: "The Color Purple"
Further Resources
Helpful overviews & study material
- Alice Walker - The Color Purple (Readers' Guides to Essential Criticism), Dr Rachel Lister, Palgrave Macmillan, 2010
- Alice Walker's The Color Purple (Bloom's Modern Critical Interpretations), ed. Prof. Harold Bloom, New edition 2008
- A Study Guide for Alice Walker's The Color Purple (Novels for Students) by The Gale Group
- Studies in Alice Walker's 'The Color Purple', Shymasree Basu, Booksway, 2014
- From Walker to Spielberg: Transformations of 'The Color Purple, Joan Digby ed. Peter Reynolds, London: Routledge, 1993
- Go Ask Alice: Alice Walker Talks About The Color Purple 10 Years Later, Kate Fitzsimmons, San Francisco Review of Books, 1996
- Coffee Will Make You Black by April Sinclair deals with the Civil Rights movement and growing up as an African-American girl in 1960s Chicago
- Maya Angelou’s autobiography I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings makes an interesting true life comparison to Celie’s experiences
- For a masculine view of the African-American identity, read Alex Hayley’s Roots, which recounts Hayley’s successful quest to trace his family roots back to Africa
Behind the Scenes: Costumes, Set & Wigs
Costume Designer Kara Harmon's early designs for Celie.
Miss Celie's pants!
Carpenter Christian Cheker installs some of the last of 200 planks onto the louvered panels that make up the back wall of the set.
Wig supervisor Jessica Miller prepares wigs for "The Color Purple".
Cutter/Draper Eva Steingrueber-Fagan and Costume Designer Kara Harmon discuss adding a buckle to a Shug Avery costume.
More about The Color Purple:
Reviews of "The Color Purple"
"You're rattled joyously to your marrow — and elevated to an uncharted level of hope. This is much more than a showstopping number. It's a moment of shared grace." - The Oregonian
From Page to Stage: "The Color Purple"
Explore Alice Walker's The Color Purple and the transformation from page to stage.
"The Color Purple" in Rehearsal
Check out photos of The Color Purple cast rehearsing the first number of Act II, "African Homeland."
A Snapshot Look at Alice Walker's "The Color Purple"
From a bestselling novel to the Tony Award-winning musical adaptation, explore Alice Walker's The Color Purple.
"The Color Purple" Cast and Creative Team
Meet the incredible cast and creative team behind The Color Purple.
Current & Upcoming
Improvisation Classes for Beginners
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April First Thursday featuring Rose Tinted
Join us for April First Thursday featuring Portland-based live hip-hop band, Rose Tinted, who blend live interpretations of classic hip hop samples with live drums, bass, and turntables.
Join the Party! The fundraising party of the year!
Theater Lovers Bash is coming April 11, 2025! Featuring David Saffert and Jillian Snow back by popular demand in a special one-night-only performance as Liberace and Liza!
Pre-show Panel Discussion with Black Men's Wellness
Join us for a pre-show panel discussion as part of BIPOC Affinity Night for The Brothers Size, featuring Black Men’s Wellness.
Adult Class: Before & After - The Brothers Size
Join Literary Manager and Dramaturg Kamilah Bush for an opportunity to explore the work of playwright Tarrell Alvin McCraney and his relationship to the southern aesthetic, masculinity and African cosmology, and how these elements come alive in PCS production of The Brothers Size.
May First Thursday featuring Tahirah Memory
Join us for May First Thursday featuring live music by Portland-based soul singer and songwriter Tahirah Memory, playing a mix of original songs and covers in a fun combo of jazz and R&B styles.
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