A PNW Theater Company
Columbia Theater Arts Foundation is the product of a dream for a community-focused theater organization in Clark County.
Our area has historically lacked opportunities for both amateur and semi-professional performers of all ages to participate in theater arts without necessarily making it their full-time careers.
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At the same time, we've also seen the cost of attendance make it difficult for large families and disadvantaged members of our community to experience the arts.
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What could be done?
A Guiding Mission
In the fall of 2024, a small handful of local performers came together to explore how a new arts organization could present a solution to these problems. We all agreed both performers and audiences needed a better solution for community focused musical theater in Clark County.
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We knew from the start that in order to justify this new venture, a few things would need to be true.
It must be financially accessible to audience members and performers — No set ticket prices. No production fees to participate in shows. We wanted whatever we created to remove financial barriers that prevent people from experiencing the arts.​​
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It must be all ages, all year round. There are hundreds of talented artists in our community who rarely find opportunities to use their skills — especially as adults. We aimed to fix that by creating a program that welcomes performers of all ages.
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It must be excellent. It doesn't have to be Broadway, but we believe in doing whatever we do with excellence as our goal. We knew that with the untapped talent and skills within Clark County, we can put on high-production value performances that bless members of our community.
Start your Engines!
Columbia Theater Arts Foundation first came into the eyes of the public for the first time December 2024 with our Big Band Christmas Concert, which nearly sold out and affirmed the vision for pay-what-you-will ticketing, opportunities for all, and high quality community productions.
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By January of 2025, we had a board of 7 members and an executive team of 3 — A Business Director, an Artistic Director, and an Operations Director.
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Since then, we've been hard art work getting ready to mount our first production season. This has involved a lot of talent recruitment, business development, and, of course, fundraising. Our first Sweets and Songs Sponsor Night went beautifully and deliciously into the books May of 2025 (you can watch it here).
Growing Pains and Gains
The board agreed after our spring fundraiser that it was time to fully commit to and announce a fall mainstage production. Those goals were met and with very limited time left to prepare, we jumped in with both feet to our first full musical! "The Sound of Music" took to the stage October of 2025 and we could not have asked for a better opening production. Every performance sold out and received rave reviews from all over the PNW. We could not have done it alone, and we are already planning what to put on the books for our 2026 season.
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As we continue to grow, we continue to see the value of having many hands to make light work when pulling together a theater company. We are grateful for every audience, cast, and team member who have put in time and tears to make this possible and we especially thank our sponsors who have helped bring this company to life!
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The stage is yours!
