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THEATER Pride & Prejudice
SEPT 27–OCT 25 | PORTLAND CENTER STAGE, FROM $25
Playwright Kate Hamill is known for screwball stage adaptations of classics, including Sense & Sensibility and Vanity Fair. In this madcap riff on Jane Austen’s most famous novel, the playwright zeroes in on the question of how anyone can know if they’ve met “the one.” Marissa Wolf, artistic director of Portland Center Stage, helms the production.
VISUAL ART Bootsy Holler & Lucy Bohnsack
OCT 1–31 | BLUE SKY GALLERY, FREE
Blue Sky Gallery’s main exhibitions consider what photography can be. Bootsy Holler’s Contaminated reexamines the Hanford Nuclear Site and the communities of people poisoned by radioactive fallout, including generations of Holler’s family. Lucy Bohnsack’s This Work They Call Love celebrates the resilience of mothers who have to make do by printing her images onto household materials like bandages, plastic bags, and scrap material.
MUSIC Mike D
8PM THU, OCT 1 | CRYSTAL BALLROOM, ALL AGES, SOLD OUT
The Beastie Boys retired as a band with the death from cancer in 2012 of Adam Yauch, a.k.a. MCA. Earlier this year one of the surviving members, Mike D, made a few guest appearances with his own sons’ band and seemed to catch the performing bug again, soon embarking on a tour backed by 5D (his two sons and three other people with last names that are not Diamond).
ROAD TRIP Judy Collins
8PM FRI, 7PM SAT, OCT 2 & 3 | GRANTS PASS & EUGENE, FROM $53+
The Seattle-born folk legend, a onetime piano prodigy who survived polio as a kid, has been recording since the 1960s. Now 87, she’s still gracing audiences with songs like her iconic cover of Joni Mitchell’s “Both Sides Now.” Judy Blue Eyes plays two shows in Oregon, and they’re both a bit of a hike: Friday, October 2, she’s at the Rogue Theater in Grants Pass, and the next night she comes north to Eugene’s McDonald Theatre before heading for the sunny Southwestern US, as many octogenarians do when the weather starts to turn.
MUSIC Sombr
7:30PM FRI, OCT 2 | MODA CENTER, FROM $53+
We asked an area teen to tell us about Sombr, the stage name of Shane Boone, the Grammy-nominated 21-year-old whose hits include “Back to Friends,” “Homewrecker,” and “My Body Isn’t Ready.” The report: “He’s an up-and-coming artist. He sang two Taylor Swift songs when she was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. A lot of his songs will get really trendy, so a lot of people don’t like him, but I like him. One of his recent videos had Milo [Manheim] from Zombies—and [Quenlin] Blackwell, who’s a Victoria Secret model, and then another had the girl who stars in Obsession [Inde Navarrette].”
BIG-SCREEN TV Twin Peaks (with special guest Michael Horse)
2PM SUN, OCT 4 | CLINTON STREET THEATER, $30
Part of its yearlong quest to show Twin Peaks in full, the Clinton Street screens the last two episodes of the original David Lynch TV series followed by the 1992 prequel film, Twin Peaks: Fire Walk with Me. Special guest Michael Horse, who played Deputy Hawk in those two titles as well as Twin Peaks: The Return, will be on hand to sign autographs, share stories, and take photos.
FILM In Search of Portland
7PM THU, OCT 8 | TOMORROW THEATER, $15
BOOKS Larry Crane
7PM Fri, OCT 9 | POWELL’S CITY OF BOOKS, FREE
Crane, the longtime Jackpot! Recording Studio owner and Tape Op magazine editor, comes to Powell’s to talk about Making Music: Conversations with Record Producers , which he edited with John Baccigaluppi. The collection of interviews from Tape Op’s first 30 years, with the likes of RZA, T Bone Burnett, and Jennifer Decilveo, gets into the value of collaboration and what really happens in the booth. Explanatory asides get into the nuts and bolts of recording and how things have changed.
BOOKS Min Jin Lee with Mitchell S. Jackson
7:30PM Fri, OCT 9 | PATRICIA RESER CENTER FOR THE ARTS, $47–61
In a powerhouse lineup, Literary Arts brings Pachinko author Min Jin Lee to Beaverton’s Reser to talk about her latest novel, American Hagwon, with Portland-raised Pulitzer-winning writer Mitchell S. Jackson.
BALLET Swan Lake
VARIOUS TIMES SAT–SAT, OCT 10–17 | KELLER AUDITORIUM, $39–188
Oregon Ballet Theatre brings a version of the classic ballet choreographed by former OBT artistic director Christopher Stowell, complete with its Tchaikovsky score and evil sorcerer.
BOTANY Treevia Night
7:30PM TUE, OCT 13 | GARDEN PARTY FOOD CARTS, FREE
North Williams Avenue cart pod Garden Party hosts one of the City of Portland’s neighborhood tree steward for “a night filled with laughs, fun facts, and a shared love for trees.” Questions might touch on Portland history and nature as well as trees in movies or on album covers.
COMEDY Lady Killers with Gwen Rose
7 PM WED, OCT 14 | SHOW BAR, $13.62, 21+
Chicago-based comedian Gwen Rose headlines Lady Killers Comedy, a monthly show of all-female stand-up comedians at Revolution Hall’s Show Bar.
FILM Outdoor School
7 PM WED, OCT 14 | TOMORROW THEATER, $15
When Vin Shambry was a kid, his mom fled domestic violence with him and his younger sister. For a while, they slept under a tree at Irving Park. Then Shambry attended Outdoor School, the long-standing environmental education program that puts Portland sixth graders in the woods for a week. That experience is dramatized in Outdoor School, the debut feature film from writer-director Ime N. Etuk. A portion of the ticket sales benefits nonprofits Bradley Angle, which serves those affected by domestic violence, and p:ear, which provides mentorship to homeless youth.
DANCE Circa
7:30PM WED, OCT 14 | ARLENE SCHNITZER CONCERT HALL, $5–130
THEATER Marigolds y Memorias
Various TIMES OCT 14–NOV 8 | MILAGRO THEATER, $28–32
Milagro Theater commemorates El Día de Muertos with this family-friendly walkthrough of different Day of the Dead symbols and customs.
THEATER Trans Femme
7:30PM THU–SAT, 3PM SUN, OCT 15–25 | FUSE THEATER, $25 SUGGESTED DONATION (nO ONE TURNED AWAY FOR LACK OF FUNDS)
The latest production by local playwright Mikki Gillette takes its audiences back to a trans women’s support group set in the bygone days of 2011. Yes, that was 15 years ago, so either prepare for a massive throwback or (if you are too young to remember 2011) a timely, heart-filled history lesson.
THEATER An Scéal: Samhain x Día De Muertos
4:30PM FRI, 12:30pm & SUN, OCT 16–18 | KILO D’COFI NE, $15–30
Kicking off its new season celebrating “Shared Senses,” local Irish theater company Corrib blends El Día de Muertos with the spirit of the ancient Gaelic-Celt festival of Samhain in An Scéal to honor the dearly departed. (Saturday’s show is already sold out.)
THEATER Saw: the Musical
VARIOUS TIMES OCT 16–NOV 8 | ALBERTA ABBEY, $34–176
The Saw horror movie franchise got ridiculous with a quickness, and Saw: The Musical embraces the farce of the Jigsaw Killer’s ludicrously elaborate, selectively moralistic murders. While there are 10 movies to riff on, this unauthorized parody mostly focuses on the iconic bathroom trap from the first movie.
CONCERT Sherbet Tone
4PM SAT, OCT 17 | TURN! TURN! TURN!, $12.16, FREE FOR AGES 12 AND UNDER
This local jam band sounds like it pulls from the past and future of indie rock for the warmest, sunniest tones possible. Fellow Portland rockers Babytooth join the bill for an all-ages afternoon show.
FILM The Lighthouse
7PM SAT, OCT 17 | CLINTON STREET THEATER, $10
Relive the grayscale tension between Willem Dafoe and Robert Pattinson in s 2019 Robert Eggers’ A24 film that sees two nineteenth-century lighthouse keepers face isolation, alcoholism and a few long dark nights of the soul.
CONCERT Doja Cat
7:30PM SAT, OCT 17 | MODA CENTER, from $40.90+
The pop provocateur tours her new album, Vie, bringing fellow rap sensation Latto with her to amp up the fun.
DRAG BOYeurism
8PM SAT, OCT 17 | ALBERTA ROSE THEATER, FROM $42+
The long-running queer quarterly cabaret returns for its Halloween edition. Among the spooky surprises in store is a rare reunion between local drag superstar Isaiah Esquire with BOYeurism’s original cofounder, Esequiel Esquire, who decamped to Texas more than a decade ago.
BOOKS Anthony Hudson
7PM MON, OCT 19 | POWELL’S CITY OF BOOKS, FREE
The local drag artist-turned-playwright discusses his debut book, Lamp Back: Plays and Other Grievances, with queer filmmaker (and Portland Monthly contributor) Thom Hilton.
FOOD Portland Fermentation Festival
6–9PM THU, OCT 22 | ECOTRUST CENTER, $15–20
Affectionately nicknamed Stinkfest, this annual celebration of all things pickled offers demonstrations, samples, a bacterial petting zoo, pickle pizza at neighboring Hot Lips, a starter adoption opportunity, and a BYO ferment station.
Image: Courtesy Laika Studio
FILM Wildwood
VARIOUS TIMES STARTING THU, OCT 22 | MULTIPLE THEATERS
There will be plenty of ways to support independent theaters as Laika Studios’ stop-motion adaptation of Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis’s fantasy novel Wildwood as the Portland made-and-set gem opens this week. There’s hardly a local theater that won’t have it. At the century-old Hollywood, it’s even screening on both digital and 35 mm film formats, to the delight of local cinephiles.
CIRCUS Night Flight’s Night Fright
7:30PM THU–SAT, 6:30PM SUN, OCT 22–25 | ALBERTA ROSE THEATRE, $32.25–64.75, RECOMMENDED FOR AGES 13 & UP
The local aerial troupe dazzles year-round with its costumes and sky dancing, but things go from majestic into more macabre territory every spooky season. Night Fright, Night Flight’s annual Halloween show, sets its sights this year on giving The Phantom of the Opera the circusy treatment. Jack StockLynn, a Night Flight coach and ring master of Sir Cupcake’s Queer Circus, makes a guest appearance.
DANCE NW Dance Project
7:30PM FRI & SAT, OCT 23 & 24 | NEWMARK THEATRE, FROM $39
The local powerhouse of contemporary dance opens the season with a trio of works. Expect world premieres by Ihsan Rustem, who spent a decade as the company’s resident choreographer, and Akira Uchida, a New York–based choreographer with a love for high-energy dance music whose resume includes work with Florence and the Machine and fashion brands. Rounding out the program is artistic director Sarah Slipper’s “The Other Half of We,” a duet inspired by Edward Albee’s Marriage Play.
WORDS & MUSIC Fonograf Editions 10th Anniversary
8PM FRI & SAT, OCT 23 & 24 | ATRIUM MUSIC & EVENTS, FROM $21.05
The nothing-quite-like-it small press and record label celebrates its first decade with a two-night fundraiser featuring some of the voices who populate Fonograf Editions‘ 50 releases and counting, including Dao Strom and Mark Leidner on Friday and Rae Armantrout and Eileen Myles on Saturday. Can’t make it but still want to support the project? You can buy a ticket for the live stream, too.
THEATER Anthropology
OCT 23–NOV 15 | 100 LIVES THEATRE, $26–50
100 Lives Rep’s season opener, this Lauren Gunderson play follows a coder who develops an artificial intelligence simulation of her recently deceased sister. Featuring an all-woman cast, Anthropology explores emerging technology pulling out onto the road of grief and wonders if those driving AI really looked both ways before crossing.
CONCERT Julia Jacklin
8PM MON, OCT 26 | CRYSTAL BALLROOM, $41
The singer-songwriter, confessional and emotionally raw in her lyrics and voice, returns to Portland in support of her new album, The Gem. She sold out her last local shows four years ago at Revolution Hall, so there’s no guarantee it won’t happen again. Jordan Patterson opens.
MUSIC Team Dresch
8PM WED, OCT 28 | REVOLUTION HALL, $45.96
The legendary PNW punk band returns to Portland supporting new record Furthermore, its first record in 30 years. Fellow riot grrrl pioneer Heavens to Betsy—Corin Tucker’s recently reunited first band, with Tracy Sawyer—and local punk quarter Altar Girl offer their kickass opening act duties.
COMEDY Marlon Wayans
7:30PM THU, 7 & 9:15PM FRI, 7 & 9:30PM SAT, OCT 29–31 | HELIUM COMEDY CLUB, $61.74–238.49
With some slots sold out as of press time, the late-night Halloween show offers the best chance to hear one of the minds behind White Chicks, The Wayans Bros., and the Scary Movie franchise. And, if you remember his villainous role in the sports horror Him, it could balance laughs with scares.
MUSIC Gorillaz
7PM THU, OCT 29 | MODA CENTER, $128–550+
Feel good! Gorillaz returns to Portland supporting its new album, पर्वत, or, The Mountain. Though the record explores heavy themes of grief, death, and the afterlife, The Mountain’s classical Indian-influenced sounds are filled with life and Gorillaz’s classic global electro-pop style.
VISUAL ART Ashley Anson
OCT 30–DEC 4 | ONE GRAND GALLERY, FREE
The textile artist blends quilting, small sculpture, and personal folklore in her new exhibition, Home Sweet Home.
STAGE Fake Radio: The Phantom of the Opera
8PM FRI, OCT 30 | IMAGO THEATER, $25–45+
Night Court legend and occasionally-spotted-in-Ridgefield celeb John Larroquette plays the Phantom in Fake Radio’s “loving parody” of Lux Radio Theater’s 1943 broadcast of The Phantom of the Opera. Expect Larroquette and the rest of the cast, dressed in ’40s outfits and using vintage microphones from Portland’s Ear Trumpet Labs, to go off script a bit in this staged recreation.
MUSIC Mono Space Gallery Hours
NOON–5 PM SAT, OCT 31 | MONO SPACE, FREE
This Pearl District high fidelity listening room Mono Space is like an art gallery for vinyl records. Its open gallery hours offer a chance to hear music on speakers so finely tuned that fans might swear they’re in the studio with their favorite musicians. It’s not clear what Mono Space’s curators will play on Halloween afternoon, but whether they play “Monster Mash” or not, get into spooky season’s big day being moved by the spirit of music.
Ongoing
VISUAL ART The Stars We Do Not See: Australian Indigenous Art
THRU JAN 3 | PORTLAND ART MUSEUM, $27.50
Melbourne’s National Gallery of Victoria provided nearly 150 works for this exhibition at PAM, which features pieces by Indigenous artists from across Australia, spanning from the late 19th century to the present. The work spans genres, too—ochre bark paintings, sound installations, photography, weavings, and more.
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