Books & Talks

Reza Aslan

7:30 p.m. Thu, Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, $29
It’s been an eventful few months for Aslan, a religious scholar and author of the New York Times bestseller Zealot, a historical account of the life of Jesus. Last summer, he called Trump “a piece of shit” on Twitter. (Trump, for the record, had just repeated his demand for a travel ban following terror attacks in London.) Aslan deleted the tweet and apologized, but CNN promptly canceled his show, Believer. Now Aslan re-enters the spotlight with a brand-new book, God: A Human History, about how people strive to understand the divine.

Comedy

Ilana Glazer and Phoebe Robinson

7:30 and 10 p.m. Fri, Revolution Hall, $25–100
Two hilarious humans—Glazer stars in Broad City, while Robinson cohosts the 2 Dope Queens podcast and is the author of You Can’t Touch My Hair—team up for this “Yaaas Queen Yaaas” stand-up tour, promising to distract us all from these uncertain, oft-ghastly times.

Matt Bellassai

8 p.m. Sat, Aladdin Theater, $40
The former Buzzfeed comedy writer spreads his wings, celebrating his new book, Everything Is Awful: And Other Observations. Be prepared for “fully-clothed full frontal nudity” as he whines about life, adulthood, and everything in between.

Dance

L-E-V

8 p.m. Thu–Sat, Lincoln Hall, $25–34
Six dancers from the Israeli company—L-E-V  is Hebrew for "heart"—perform OCD Love, which aims to convey the challenges of love and life for a person with obsessive-compulsive disorder. The piece is set to DJ Ori Lichtik's pulsing techno score.

Music

Ari Shapiro

7:30 p.m. Thu–Fri, 7 and 9 p.m. Sat, World Trade Center, $60
The former Portlander, Pink Martini guest vocalist, and All Things Considered host embarks on his first solo tour, Homeward, swinging by the World Trade Center for four shows over three nights.

Ibeyi

8 p.m. Thu, Revolution Hall, SOLD OUT
Stark electro-beats, haunting vocals, and Yoruba chants—these French-Cuban twin sisters make music like nothing else out there. They dropped their sophomore album, Ash, in late September, featuring collabs with the likes of jazz saxophonist Kamasi Washington and Spanish hip-hop star Mala Rodríguez.

Chicano Batman

8 p.m. Fri, Wonder Ballroom, $20
The four-piece, exceptionally well-dressed psychedelic rock band from Los Angeles dropped Freedom Is Free earlier this year. It’s their third album and their funkiest and most soulful to date.

Kishi Bashi with Tall Tall Trees

9 p.m. Fri, Alberta Rose Theatre, SOLD OUT
The former Of Montreal member released his third solo album, Sonderlust, in September 2016—it’s hyperactive and wistfully romantic all at once, with each track more danceable than the last. He’s joined tonight by the banjo-wielding Mike Savino, who tours under the name Tall Tall Trees.

Theater

OPENING Psychic Utopia

7:30 p.m. Thu–Sat, New Expressive Works, $15–25
In the 1980s, thousands descended upon a dusty patch of Central Oregon to build an alternative society. They were followers of the Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, an Indian guru who preached a cocktail of sexual liberation, impending nuclear catastrophe, and vigorous meditation. Now Hand2Mouth, known for inventive, vividly staged work, uses that episode as a jumping-off point for Psychic Utopia, a performance exploring intentional communities and the lengths to which people will go for a fuller, freer life. Director Jonathan Walters calls it a “mind experiment” for 2017. Read on for more about the show.

OPENING Belfast Girls

7:30 p.m. Fri–Sat, 2 p.m. Sun, Shaking the Tree Theatre, $20–25
Corrib Theatre’s new season launches with Jaki McCarrick’s drama, which follows five young Belfast women fleeing the Great Famine on an Australia-bound ship. Things go south (and not just literally).

CLOSING The Events

7:30 p.m. Thu–Sat, Imago Theater, $25–45
Third Rail Rep presents The Events, David Greig’s drama of forgiveness and healing after a community choir faces sudden tragedy. The play—which won a Scotsman Fringe First Award in 2013—will also feature live community choirs from the area.

CLOSING Water by the Spoonful/The Happiest Song Plays Last

7:30 p.m. Thu–Fri, 2 and 7:30 p.m. Sat–Sun, Artists Repertory Theatre, $20–38
Profile has devoted this season to Quiara Alegría Hudes, and it sends things out with two shows in rotating rep: Water by the Spoonful, a 2012 Pulitzer winner, and its sequel, The Happiest Song Plays Last. Both chronicle the life of a returned Iraq War veteran as he tries to reconnect with his Puerto Rican family—and community at large—in Philadelphia.

CLOSING Year of the Rooster

7:30 p.m. Thu–Sat, CoHo Theater, $20–32
Lauded by the New York Times as “astonishingly entertaining,” Olivia Dufault’s fierce comedy takes on the high-stakes world of cockfighting—in the process requiring several performers to portray the beaked brawlers themselves.

Visual Art

Disjecta's 11th Annual Artists' Auction

6 p.m. Sat, Disjecta, $40
Disjecta's annual auction features work donated by dozens of Pacific Northwest artists, from Storm Tharp to Vanessa Renwick to Carson Ellis. Expect auctions both silent and live, plus free food and booze.

Sylwia Kowalczyk and Benoit Fournier

Noon–5 p.m. Thu–Sun, Blue Sky Gallery, FREE
In Babylon, Benoit Fournier juxtaposes mise-en-scènes and experiments with red hues. Meanwhile, Sylwia Kowalczyk, a Polish native, rips photographs printed on paper and rearranges the pieces to form altered figures, which she then re-photographs. The title of her exhibit, Lethe, takes its name from the river in Purgatory that cleanses Dante in the Divine Comedy.