Columbia Center for the Arts Celebrates 20 Years of Performances

Oct 28

Written By Columbia Community Connection

From Columbia Center for the Arts:

By Tim Harkins

Hood River, Ore. Oct. 28, 2025 — Columbia Center for the Arts will celebrate two decades of live theater with its 20th Anniversary Theatre Revue, a one-night performance at 7 p.m., Friday, Nov. 7, at Columbia Center for the Arts, 215 Cascade Ave., Hood River.

The event marks 20 years of local productions in the center’s downtown home and honors both the legacy of the original CAST Theatre troupe and the continuing vitality of Columbia Arts as a regional center for creativity.

The 20th Anniversary season began earlier this year with Love in 4/4 Time, a new play by longtime local playwright Gary Young and directed by John Bryan, along with the return of the Center’s Best of the Gorge exhibition. Both reflected the organization’s commitment to presenting meaningful, locally connected work and celebrating the region’s visual and performing artists.

The celebration continues Nov. 7 with the 20th Anniversary Theatre Revue, featuring scenes and songs from The Full Monty, Next to Normal, Steel Magnolias, Twelfth Night, Urinetown, Jesus Christ Superstar, and Love in 4/4 Time, among others.

Founded in 1977 by Judie Hanel, Creative Attention Seeking Thespians (C.A.S.T.) performed for nearly three decades in borrowed and makeshift spaces before helping to establish the Columbia Center for the Arts. In 2003, four community donors stepped forward to secure the historic American Legion Hall in downtown Hood River as a new Center for the Arts and home for CAST Theatre and Columbia Art Gallery.

Community members contributed $1.6 million in just two years to purchase and renovate the building. When the Columbia Center for the Arts opened in 2005, it created a permanent home for theater, visual arts, and arts education in the heart of Hood River.

“Theater creates community, and I have been surrounded by that support since I was very young,” said Founder Judie Hanel. “It’s a safe, collaborative space for people of all ages and skill levels. I love the theater community, not only the actors who become friends for life, but also the backstage crew who are there every night. It takes so many people to make the magic happen. We are truly blessed by the Gorge community and their support of live theater.”

Since opening, Columbia Center for the Arts has hosted hundreds of performances, gallery exhibitions, and classes, welcoming artists and audiences from across the Gorge and beyond. Its mission remains rooted in the ideals that inspired its founders: to nurture creativity, foster connection, and ensure that the arts continue to thrive in the region.

“Columbia Arts was built by the people of this community — artists, volunteers, and supporters who believed in the power of creativity to bring people together,” said Executive Director Tim Harkins. “As we celebrate 20 years in this building, we’re celebrating everyone who has been part of its story, past, present, and future.”

Tickets for the 20th Anniversary Theatre Revue are $20 and available at www.columbiaarts.org.

EVENT DETAILS FOR LISTINGS
Event: Columbia Arts’ 20th Anniversary Theatre Revue
Date: Friday, November 7, 2025
Time: 7:00 p.m. Doors at 6 p.m.
Location: Columbia Center for the Arts, 215 Cascade Avenue, Hood River, OR
Tickets: $20 | www.columbiaarts.org
Description: Celebrate twenty years of live theatre at Columbia Center for the Arts with a one-night-only performance featuring favorite scenes, songs, and talent from two decades of productions by Columbia Arts. Local actors and musicians reunite to honor the community, creativity, and stories that have shaped the center since its founding.

About Columbia Center for the Arts
Columbia Center for the Arts (CCA) is a nonprofit in Hood River, Oregon, dedicated to promoting an equitable, accessible, and arts-rich environment in the Columbia Gorge. Guided by a vision of a thriving creative community, CCA connects artists, performers, and audiences through diverse opportunities in visual, performing, and educational arts.