BOOKS & TALKS

Barbara Boxer
7 p.m. Friday, Powell's City of Books, FREE
The California Democrat—who’s retiring after 24 years in the US Senate (and 10 in the House)—has a new memoir, The Art of Tough: Fearlessly Facing Politics and Life.

Dear Sugar Live
7:30 p.m. Friday, Revolution Hall
Craving some honest love advice? Salvation comes in the form of the Dear Sugar podcast, in which Wild author Cheryl Strayed and Steve Almond answer your questions about life and death and everything in between. They’ll record a live episode tonight, taking questions from the audience and inviting on some special guests. 

Portland Zine Symposium
11 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturday, Ambridge Event Center; 11 a.m.–5 p.m. Sunday, Independent Publishing Resource Center
Reject the Hachettes and Condé Nasts of the world at this free, volunteer-run, DIY-loving fest. This year, the programming gets split in half: Saturday features workshops, panels, and tabling at Ambridge Event Center, while Sunday is a skill-share extravaganza at the Independent Publishing Resource Center (which, as announced this week, is being forced to move due to a 300-percent rent hike—check out our story for more).

Sherman Alexie
2 p.m. Saturday, Powell's Books at Cedar Hills Crossing
The celebrated author of The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian has written his first children’s picture book, Thunder Boy Jr., which chronicles the relationship between a father and son. 

Tin House Summer Workshop Reading Series
8 p.m. Sunday, Reed College
There’s a kind of magic when the hush descends at Reed College’s tree-flanked amphitheater as an author takes the podium at Tin House’s Summer Workshop reading series, which this year hosts 21 writers. You may find yourself sharing a bench with Pulitzer-winning poet Gregory Pardlo or essayist Jo Ann Beard (homework: read her powerful personal essay “The Fourth State of Matter” at once) while you listen to National Book Award finalist Rachel Kushner or Guardian columnist Kiese Laymon. Readings continue everyday through Sunday, July 17.

COMEDY

Amy Miller
7 p.m. Thursday, Alberta Street Pub
Shortly after leaving our fair city for Los Angeles, Amy Miller returns to Portland to record a comedy album in front of a live audience. The hilarious East Bay native balances biting wit with genuine compassion, and she’s got some rollicking jokes about her “white-trash family” (her words). San Francisco comic Lydia Popovich opens.

DANCE

Ten Tiny Dances
10 a.m.–1:30 p.m. Saturday, Beaverton City Park
Constraints are said to be good for creativity, a maxim embraced by this beloved performance series since 2002. Expect 10 different dance pieces popping up on five four-by-four-foot stages across downtown Beaverton. You’ve got three hours and 45 minutes to catch them all.

FILM

Hollywood Theatre’s 90th Anniversary
7 p.m. Friday and 2 and 7 p.m. Saturday–Sunday, Hollywood Theatre
Toast Portland’s stalwart movie house at a slew of special 70 mm screenings. Up this weekend: Lawrence of Arabia. For more, check out our Q&A with head programmer Dan Halsted.

MUSIC

Chamber Music Northwest Summer Festival
Various times and locations Thursday–Sunday
Five weeks. 50 concerts. In its 46th year, the chamber music extravaganza returns to the halls of Reed and Portland State with a celebration of Beethoven, including performances of all 16 of the composer’s string quartets. Also promising: an expanded offering of Wednesday-evening concerts featuring percussion and jazz, BodyVox dancing to Shakespeare-themed chamber music, and a one-man theater piece about Brahms. For more picks, check out our Q&A with Third Angle’s Ron Blessinger.

Deerhoof
8 p.m. Thursday, Revolution Hall
The San Fran rock band, praised by New York Times as “one of the most original rock bands to have come along in the last decade,” just released their 14th album, The Magic. Recorded in one week in an office in New Mexico, it’s a textured, eclectic mix.

Azealia Banks
8 p.m. Friday, Hawthorne Theatre
The undeniably controversial rapper just released another catchy track,“The Big Big Beat.” It's a banger that combines elements of dancehall and house music with, of course, a nod to Notorious B.I.G.’s brassy baritone vocals.

Rick Bain and the Genius Position
9 p.m. Friday, Doug Fir Lounge
The local quartet brings its psych-pop rhythms to the Doug Fir, joined by two Portland openers: garage-pop band the Hugs and prog instrumentalists the Early Stuff.

THEATER

OPENING Coriolanus, or The Roman Matron
7:30 p.m. Thursday–Saturday, Tom Hughes Civic Plaza, Hillsboro
Political dodgery and deception reign in Thomas Sheridan’s 18th-century adaptation of Shakespeare’s tragedy, given an outdoor showing by convention-busting Hillsboro theater company Bag & Baggage.

OPENING Eugene Onegin
7:30 p.m. Friday and 2 p.m. Sunday, Newmark Theatre
Portland Opera’s new production updates Tchaikovsky’s opera to late-20th-century Russia, seeing the impetuous young lovers from the early ’80s through the collapse of Communism.

Weekend at Bernie’s
8 p.m. Friday–Saturday, Siren Theater
A point will come, we presume, when Portland performers will have created a stage version for every ’80s cult classic out there (Road House? Check! The Lost Boys? Check!). This adaptation of 1989′s slapstick fave—in which two numbskulls carry around their dead boss’ body, trying to convince everyone he’s still alive—first hit the stage in 2013, to gleeful reviews, and now it’s back for a summertime run.

VISUAL ART

OPENING Portland Biennial
Noon–5 p.m. Saturday, Disjecta Contemporary Art Center
The Portland Biennial pulls from across Oregon’s creative landscape to showcase work in 25 venues across the state. The anchor will be the 12,000-square-foot former bowling alley that’s the home base of Disjecta, the eternally scrappy North Portland nonprofit that orchestrates the whole production. For more, check out our story on the exhibit.

R. Keaney Rathbun
11 a.m.–5:30 p.m. Thursday–Saturday and 11 a.m.–4 p.m. Sunday, Waterstone Gallery, FREE
In Memory and Stone, Rathbun draws from his time in Paris, New Zealand, and the Southern Highlands of Australia to create vibrant bas-relief carvings.

Recent Grads
11 a.m.–5 p.m. Thursday–Saturday, Blackfish Gallery, FREE
For the 21st year, Blackfish offers a glimpse into the future of our art scene, showcasing work by 30 just-minted BFA and MFA graduates of Oregon art schools.

Native Fashion Now
10 a.m.–8 p.m. Thursday–Friday and 10 a.m.–5 p.m. Saturday–Saturday, Portland Art Museum
Haute couture meets North American Native culture (Navajo to Luiseño) in this touring exhibit of nearly 100 high-fashion pieces from 69 designers. Don’t expect a history lesson: each of the pieces on show was created within the past 50 years. Items range from the Christian Louboutin stiletto boots Jamie Okuma embellished with thousands of vibrant, turquoise beads and pops of gold and coral to the embroidered pink silk gown Frankie Welch tailored for First Lady Betty Ford to wear to a White House Christmas bash. Plus, on Sunday at 2 p.m., Beyond Buckskin's Jessica Metcalfe will give a talk on Native American fashion and appropriation. 

SPECIAL EVENTS

Mississippi Street Fair
10 a.m. Saturday, N Mississippi Avenue, FREE
The annual street party turns 15, with more than 500 (!) vendors lining N Mississippi from Fremont to Skidmore, for a day filled with food, music, beer, and more.

The Big Float
11 a.m. Sunday, Tom McCall Waterfront Park
For the eleventy-billionth time, yes, it’s safe to swim in the Willamette now. Join the revolution—err, riverlution—at this Human Access Project fundraiser, featuring an all-ages inner tube parade, bands on barges, two 100-foot-long slip-and-slides, and a big ol’ party in the Tom McCall Bowl.

RuPaul's Drag Race Live
8 p.m. Sunday, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall
Contestants from Season 8 of RuPaul’s Drag Race hit Portland for a night of long lashes and catwalks. Expect to see Bob the Drag Queen, Kim Chi, Chi Chi Devayne, Thorgy Thor, and Robbie Turner. High heels required.