The Headwaters Theatre

I have rented The Headwaters Theatre for a full scale independent production as well as having my work produced by Mizu in one of her curated festivals. I have also attended several of her productions and performed on the same bill with her in a variety of venues. She is an outstanding artist, host, and producer, always professional, charming, and wonderful to work with. Her work is visionary and she is one of the most generous supporters and enthusiastic developers of performance I have ever met. The Headwaters is well maintained, fully equipped, flexible, and has made its mark as a premier space for cutting edge performance in Portland. I hope to return to this venerable venue and work with Mizu again soon!

My dance company PDX Dance Collective has rented The Headwaters for 3 of our shows, and has performed there as part of «The 1 Festival». It is our favorite theatre to perform in! It’s a great intimate theatre (seats 66) which is perfect for a small performing arts group. Mizu, the owner, is wonderful to work with and is always available to answer questions or help provide information if you need any special accommodations. There’s a lobby area with refreshments available for audience members — all run by Headwaters staff — which is super helpful (at other places we’ve rented we’ve had to manage refreshments as well). It is a little hard to find — be sure to provide directions for your show-​goers — but, overall, we truly feel at home there, and would rent the Headwaters again for our next performance!

This has been one of the most hospitable and professional theaters in my experience in Portland, and really around the world. So warm, so accommodating, and with so much humble support to challenge myself as an artist. And it’s also run by risk taking artists!!! I wish and hope for more places like this everywhere. In my Portland experience, Conduit and Performance Works NorthWest provided many years of similar and crucial support. Headwaters is now in this crucial performance lineage. I don’t know how we can survive without each other in these ways. I’m grateful. We need each other.

This is a wonderful, creative theater company that works hard for the community and offers so much. I have taken several workshops and attended many outstanding performances here all were outstanding. We are so lucky to have them in Portland. I love Mizu and the work she does for Portland artists of all abilities.

Great Theater! Portland needs more places like this! It is out of the way, and has been home to many performances and workshops that you would not find in a more mainstream theater. I have been to several performances there and have always had a great experience!

As a participant working at this theatre, and an audience member of its works, The Headwaters offers some of the most innovative, community driven performance art in Portland. The staff are some of the hardest working people in the business, who truly love and understand their loyal audience. Mizu is kind and smart, and any renters would be blessed to work in the space, as she takes care of it above and beyond any other rental performance space in town. Go see a show or attend a workshop here, and you’ll be so happy you did!

I have rented the Headwaters several times and I have always been very impressed with both the venue and the staff. My audiences have appreciated the unique character of the place as well as extensive parking and great sight-​lines in the theater. Everything I’ve ever asked to have taken care of has been dealt with promptly. I would rent there again in a heartbeat!

I’ve known and worked on various productions with Mizu since 2003. Recently, we’ve been running a filmmaker’s meet up at the Headwaters Theater every other month. It’s a perfect space to host this event and we are thankful to have her graciously offer us a spot on the calendar. Her vision and creative integrity is of the highest order. She is an asset to the Portland creative community and I would willingly work with her any day. As for the Headwaters Theater, I can’t think of a more delightful space to host intimate productions. Two thumbs way up!

One of the best independent theater spaces in Portland. The space is spacious, well lit, & very clean & professional. The work produced here is generally very high quality & pushes artistic boundaries, & the owner, Mizu, is generous & easy to work with. Highly recommended.

The Headwaters theater is a small black box theater with a modest reception area and café by railroad tracks.
If you want to rent a less than 100 seat theater as a presenter, or see some experimental performances as an audience participant, this is a good spot to explore.
They are also home to workshops at the space and in the St Johns area.
As others have mentioned, the theater fronts a broad gravel yard entering behind the building address. You can drive, bike or walk easily around the front of the building on NE Farragutt to the right facing it, traveling behind to the East to the area below by train tracks. You might bring a flashlight to avoid puddles when it is raining between car-​bike and theater.
I have seen quite a few very unique performances here. The comradery, community and discussions are unbeatable.
If you are a cultural explorer in the area, suggest to bookmark the site for upcoming events and then sample them as you desire. They are Portland central for performances and workshops in the modern dance butoh dance form.
Headwaters Theater has a rare schedule of performances and workshops, but if you learn about them through Unilocal,and it sounds interesting to you, go, see do!

The Headwaters Theatre seems to be located the No-​Fo-​O-​Fo bridge neighborhood… Over the bridge, North of Lombard, so far north that you’re almost in the Columbia slough. I guess that’s why it’s called the Headwaters! But it really only took 10 minutes to get there from the Rose Quarter. We were warned that the theater was a little tricky to find, especially in the dark. This was good advice, as the theater is located in the bottom of a building, which you can only approach from around the corner near some sketchy looking railroad tracks. Once inside, the place is actually quite nice, with comfortable seats and good sound and lighting. They seem to present a lot of experimental theater and dance; check their website for current listings!

I attended a show here (Threads) as part of the Fertile Ground festival (great show, btw). A small, black box theater, perfect for intimate theater and dance productions. It’s north, up near the end of N. Vancouver next to the railroad tracks. A little bit out of the way but worth the drive. Great sound system too. Get out there and see some shows. Beats the hell out of DVDs!