Halloween 

The ghosts and ghouls have already descended on Portland, inhabiting haunted houses, possessed dance performances, and creepy corn mazes. Take a look at our Halloween Guide to finalize some blood-curdling plans for the weekend. 

Need something that won't scare the kids (too much)? Consider our Family-Friendly Halloween Happenings.

Special Events 

The Siren Nation Music and Arts Festival
Saturday–Sunday, Funhouse Lounge & McMenamin’s Kennedy School
The annual festival celebrating the women of the Northwest arts scene is back for more. It kicks off Saturday night with a women in comedy showcase featuring Susan Rice, Amy Miller, Kirsten Kuppendbender, and Joann Schinderle, and closes on Wednesday, November 12 with a record release concert by former Portland singer-songwriter Mirah. In between is a slew of of talented ladies from comedians and musicians to visual artists and designers. 

Concerts

The Black Keys
Friday, Rose Quarter 
Ever since 2010’s Brothers won three Grammys, these Akron garage revivalists have been a bona fide arena act. This year’s Turn Blue, another collaboration with producer Danger Mouse, netted the band its first chart-topping album. 

Denver
Sunday, Mississippi Studios
They call themselves Portland's own "Ramshackle All-Star Country Band," offering up barrels of twangy, whiskey-soaked southern rock. With three songwriters trading verses, they're old guests of Mississppi Studios, and this is billed as their last show for some time. Check this clip from a 2013 show.   

Ticket Alert Patti Smith loves Portland so much she's returning for a second show at the Crystal Ballroom on January 20. Tickets go on sale Friday, Oct 31 at 10 am.

Classical 

Jeffrey Kahane 
Saturday, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
The Portland piano favorite plays Concerto in F, Gershwin’s follow-up to Rhapsody in Blue.

Theater

Closing Dreamgirls
Thursday–Sunday, Portland Center Stage  
This Tony-winning Broadway musical is (unofficially) based on the story of Diana Ross, the Supremes, and their manager Berry Gordy's quest to bring Motown to the mainstream. You might also know it as a little movie starring Beyonce Knowles and Jennifer Hudson. Just for fun, we sized Dreamgirls up against Pixie Dust Production's La Cage Aux Folles and the touring Broadway production of Kinky Boots for a Divas vs. Drag Queens Smackdown.

Closing Dial "M" For Murder
Thursday–Saturday, Venetian Theatre  
For its second annual Halloween-themed show, Bag&Baggage Productions takes on Frederick Knott’s crime thriller, made famous by Alfred Hitchcock’s 1954 screen adaptation starring Grace Kelly. 

'Night Mother
Thursday–Sunday, CoHo Theatre
Marsha Norman’s 1983 Pulitzer winner follows a desperate mother pleading with her divorced, epileptic, and terminally unemployed daughter after the latter announces plans to end her own life at the end of the evening. 

Books & Talks

Winged 
Thursday, Literary Arts 
Did you know humans and honeybees have a storied and tortured history. Well, you're not alone, and that's exactly why Portland writer Melissa Reeser Poulin set out to spread awareness through Winged, a collection of stories—poetry, fiction, essay—about the essential but troubled relationship between mankind and the pollinators. 

Back Fence PDX: Gone But Not
Saturday, Disjecta Contemporary Arts Center
The Portland story-telling mavens at Back Fence PDX have a post-Halloween show coming up that's sure to be chock-full of blood-curdling campfire stories... or something like that. The XRay.fm-sponsored All Souls/Day of the Dead Storytelling Show benefits the Dougy Center, Portland's support center for grieving children and families. Guests include Emmy-Nominated writer from the Ellen Degeneres Show/Moth Radio Hour performer Brian Finkelstein, actor Vin Shambry, Oregon Book Award–winner Matthew Dickman, and author Karen Finneyfrock.  

Charles D’Ambrosio: Loitering
Sunday, Disjecta Contemporary Arts Center
Whether about whaling or Christian “hell houses,” these essays by the New Yorker contributor and two-time PEN finalist showcase realistic slices of life that read like a glimpse into the mind of an introvert. The launch will include a Q&A with editor Tony Perez and performances by Neal Morgan and Geoff Soule. 

Family

Ivy and Bean 
Thursday–Sunday, Newmark Theatre
This stage adaptation of a best-selling children’s book series follows the rambunctious Bean and the reserved Ivy, two 8-year-olds who form an unlikely friendship through various acts of mischief.