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WEDNESDAY

FOOD & DRINK

A Conversation with Sohla El‑Waylly Past Event Like List
Chef and editor Sohla El-Waylly is simply the coolest: Besides being generally brilliant, delightful, and charming, she's a fan of psychedelic shrooms, adds hot dogs and olives to cheddar-chipotle onion soup, owns two adorable pups named Clementine and Vito, and shares my (unassailably correct) opinion that Ghirardelli’s dark chocolate brownie mix makes such a superlative brownie that no one else should bother trying. You might know her from the Bon Appétit test kitchen, where she spent a stint being the most qualified person in the room before the magazine underwent a racial reckoning in 2020, or from her work with the New York Times, History Channel, and HBO's The Big Brunch. Fortunately for us all, she's now released her debut cookbook Start Here: Instructions for Becoming a Better Cook. Billed as "culinary school—without the student loans," the book is a foolproof beginner's guide to cooking that even your friend who burns toast can follow, with recipes ranging from charred lemon risotto to "fruity-doodle cookies." She'll chat with James Beard Award-winning cookbook author and chef Gregory Gourdet of Kann about the release, and the conversation promises to be a treat. JB
(Powell's City of Books, Pearl District)

LIVE MUSIC

Portland Music Month 2024 Past Event Like List
Portland Music Month is a (you guessed it) month-long celebration that aims to revive the vibrant local music industry. Fans are encouraged to snap out of their mid-winter hibernation to help Portland's independent venues and artists by seeing live shows, buying merch, winning prizes, and supporting Music Oregon's Echo Fund. Come out and honor the musicians who helped us all get through the darkness of the past few years. The series will come to a close this week with Y La Bamba's Isabeau Waia’u Walker and an evening of electronic music from Feverkin, Ann Annie, and Kalaido. AV
(Various locations)

THURSDAY

COMEDY

Secret Aardvark Remind Like List
Over 30 of Portland's best improvisers will gather again for this who's who of Rose City comedy. Each Secret Aardvark event features an extra-special mystery guest (past guests have run the gamut from David Lynch to random high school theater students), and the show's so spicy that it's named after the organizers' fave local hot sauce, so it should warm your chilly bones at this time of year. LC
(Kickstand Comedy, Ladd's Addition)

FILM

BLACK ARTISTS OF OREGON // Works from Black Film Artists Past Event Like List
Curated by Intisar Abioto, this collection of short films centers works by Black artists and filmmakers who are connected to the Pacific Northwest. Planned in tandem with Black Artists of Oregon, an exhibition currently on view at the Portland Art Museum, the screening is also supported by Black Art/ists Gathering, a "Black arts family reunion and community-in-residence program" that Abioto founded in 2022. After viewing the films by Sika Stanton, ariella tai, Albina Mural Project, elijah jamal asani, Kalimah Abioto, and others, attendees can stick around for drinks and chats with the artists. LC
(Tomorrow Theater, Richmond)

LIVE MUSIC

Cold War Kids - 20 Years Tour Past Event Like List
We all have that one song that transports us to a very specific place and time. For me, it's the Cold War Kids' "Hang Me Up To Dry." The first strum of the distorted guitar pulls me straight back to autumn of 2009—walking around in the rain at the Seattle Center's Fun Forest (RIP) with my best friend while sipping soy milk lattes and talking shit about our middle school teachers. "Hang Me Up To Dry" is angsty, sweaty, and cacophonous—it's the mother of all indie sleaze songs. I shrieked when I heard it on the soundtrack of Emerald Fennell's Y2K period flick Saltburn. The West Coast indie rockers will ride the wave of nostalgia back to Portland in honor of their 20th bandiversary. Indie pop duo Hovvdy with open. AV
(Crystal Ballroom, West End)

FRIDAY

COMEDY

The Broke Gravy Show Past Event Like List
The Broke Gravy dudes (Chris, Leon, and Eric) have forged a unique path in improv comedy, using the off-the-cuff medium to inspire deeper conversations on their perspectives as Black Americans. (They're also funny AF.) They'll head to Kickstand for an hour of "unfiltered conversation, idiosyncratic characters, and the joy of unknown possibilities." LC
(Kickstand Comedy, Ladd's Addition)

Portland Mercury Presents The 2024 Undisputable Geniuses of Comedy! Past Event Like List
It's not often that you'll find local crowd favorites like Neeraj Srinivasan, Dianna Potter, Julia Corral, Kyle Kinane, and sketch comedy masters Sisters of Mercy all smushed together, cracking funnies on the same stage. The Pacific Northwest's knee-slappin' legends will bring the laughs alongside other mirthful mainstays and up-and-comers with a night of improv and stand-up hosted by the loveably loud and silly Adam Pasi. Best part? It's presented by our pals at the Mercury—and if anyone can put together a comedy show, it's them. LC
(Revolution Hall, Buckman)

LIVE MUSIC

Jamila Woods Past Event Like List
Jamila Woods' latest album, Water Made Us, opens with heavenly plucked harps followed by the lines: "You smoke a lotta weed, like a lot / You said you feelin' me, like a lot / I can't stand the smell of it / I breathe it in, it makes me sick." This type of prosaic lyricism shouldn't work, yet it does. Woods has a gift for translating mundane (and sometimes humorous) anecdotes into insightful life lessons—like the aforementioned opening track "Bugs," which resolves into a lush, poetic R&B bop about finding pleasure and lowering unrealistic standards for the sake of love. She will support the album alongside indie folk gem Kara Jackson (she's amazing too, don't miss it!) AV
(Wonder Ballroom, Eliot)

Kalia Vandever with Sheers Past Event Like List
Kalia Vandever is a Brooklyn-based trombonist, composer, and quartet leader who has toured with artists like Harry Styles and Japanese Breakfast. As a solo artist, she moves away from the traditional pop sound with a focus on improvisations. Her latest album, We Fell In Turn, uses an ethereal mix of trombone, voice, and electronic effects for an ambient jazz album that “dips you into a feeling or a pattern or a breathing speed and keeps you there” (the New York Times). If you enjoyed Andre 3000's New Blue Sun, then you'll love this too. Don't miss an opening set from avant-pop harpist Sheers.AV (Holocene, Buckman)

READINGS & TALKS

Kaveh Akbar and Karen Russell Past Event Like List
I credit the Iranian American Pushcart Prize winner and poet Kaveh Akbar for sparking my initial interest in poetry—his confessional collection Calling a Wolf a Wolf is totally extraordinary, especially if you or someone you love has lived with addiction. Suffice it to say I'm excited about Akbar's debut novel, excellently titled Martyr!, which tells the story of a martyr-obsessed, "newly sober orphaned son of Iranian immigrants" who meets a terminally ill painter living at the Brooklyn Museum. He'll discuss the book with Karen Russell, whose award-winning fiction works are tinged with magical realism. LC
(Powell's City of Books, Pearl District)

SATURDAY

FILM

9 to 5 Past Event Like List
When three female coworkers conspire to kidnap their tyrannical sexist boss, the office starts to run a lot more smoothly in his absence. (Shocker.) But how long before the jig is up?! This '80 screwball comedy might be the most enticingly cast film ever produced, starring Jane Fonda, Lily Tomlin, and Dolly Parton. (Yep, Dolly wrote that song specifically for the movie.) Portland humorists Elizabeth Teets and Anthony Hudson will host this screening, which also celebrates the release of Elizabeth Teet's book Isn't She Great: Writers on Women-Led Comedies from 9 to 5 to Booksmart, and LA's Ella Gale will hit the stage with some Parton-approved stand-up. LC
(Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District)

LIVE MUSIC

Say She She Past Event Like List
With varied inspirations like Rotary Connection, Asha Puthli, Grace Jones, and Tom Tom Club, Brooklyn-based trio Say She She blends '80s soul, dream pop, spiritual jazz, and disco for a result that is nothing short of magical. The group will support their sophomore album, Silver, which is just over an hour of dreamy falsetto harmonies, dancey basslines, and smooth-as-hell jazz flutes. AV
(Aladdin Theater, Brooklyn)

LUNAR NEW YEAR

Chinese New Year Cultural Fair 2024 Past Event Like List
Fun fact: the dragon is the only mythical creature in the Chinese zodiac. Celebrate this symbol of strength, health, and good luck at the Chinese New Year Cultural Fair, an event presented by the Portland Chinese Times that draws thousands of attendees every year. You can check out lion, dragon, and other Chinese folk dances, as well as music, martial arts demonstrations, children's games, and more. The digitalization of the modern age means handwriting skills have degraded (we know ours has), so brush up and try your hand at a calligraphy class. SL
(Oregon Convention Center, Lloyd District)

PARTIES & NIGHTLIFE

Jacques Strappe Pizza Party Past Event Like List
It's time to get sultry and glam, so throw on your false lashes, body glitter, and a sequined halter dress and flirt the night away at this "tutti gay" edition of the monthly queer dance party Jacques Strappe. DJs Barolo Blahnik and Yawning will keep the Italo disco coming, while the rest of the evening promises champagne, fiasco bottles of chianti, lambrusco punchbowls, and grandma-style pizza pies from chef Justin Woodward of OK Omens and Castagna. Sounds like a recipe for a perfect evening to me. JB
(Davenport, Kerns)

Lost In The Woods with Wooden Wisdom (Elijah Wood & Zach Cowie) Past Event Like List
Remember Frodo Baggins? This is him now—DJing at a local nightclub. Feel old yet? Actor Elijah Wood will cover his elfin ears with headphones for a fantasy-themed rave with his buddy, fellow actor/indie label guy Zach Cowie. Together, the duo has toured under the name Wooden Wisdom for over a decade, spinning a broad range of tunes from acid rock to African funk. They will be joined by DJs Nora Van Alken and THE.HALFLIFE. AV
(45 East, Central Eastside)

PERFORMANCE

Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood Live! - King for A Day Past Event Like List
Fred Rogers might be gone (RIP, you lovely, lovely man), but his legacy lives on in Daniel Tiger’s Neighborhood, an animated Daytime Emmy-winning PBS show for preschool-aged children. It's based on the Neighborhood of Make-Believe from Mister Rogers' Neighborhood and features characters of all shapes, sizes, and animal (and non-animal) persuasions. It’s sweet and charming and kind of annoying, but it's also one of my daughter’s favorite shows, so this live theatrical production with all the Daniel Tiger characters (“filled with singing, dancing, and laughter”) seems like a no-brainer. LEILANI POLK
(Keller Auditorium, Downtown)

SUNDAY

LIVE MUSIC

Portland's Folk Festival Past Event Like List
More than a dozen folk, Americana, blues, and bluegrass acts will set up shop at the historic ballroom for an all-day affair. Festival highlights include California-born jam band ALO (Animal Liberation Orchestra), local folk-pop duo Shook Twins, indie folk band Glitterfox, and acoustic rock troubadour Greg Holden. AV
(Crystal Ballroom, West End)

MULTI-DAY

ACTIVISM & SOCIAL JUSTICE

Birds for Gaza Portland Past Event Like List
As the siege on Gaza continues, many are feeling the heaviness of the ongoing fight for Palestinian liberation. This community grief event, organized in solidarity with Palestinians, invites participants to craft birds in honor of the children (8,000 and counting) who have been killed in Gaza. Check out Birds for Gaza's calendar for bird-making workshops, then head to the art installation on February 10, which will display the flock of paper birds created by local participants. LC
(Various locations, Monday/Wednesday/Friday)

FESTIVALS

Portland Winter Light Festival: What Glows Under Pressure Past Event Like List
The Portland Winter Light Festival is an after-holiday reminder that the best lights of the year aren’t illuminated until February. Brighten up from the winter blues with the ninth edition of the fully lit fest, which includes various free art installations on either side of the Willamette on a deep sea, bioluminescent theme this year. (You'll find art pieces inspired by coral, jellyfish, and more.) The "Glowing Under Pressure" theme encourages attendees to "explore the wonders and dangers of the deep," which "reminds us of our own insignificance in the face of nature's forces." Sound, like, kinda scary? Never fear. Just head to the disco fungus, or Tomorrow Theater's celebratory screening of TRON, which will include an electro-luminescent performance of Rainbow Dance Theatre's iLUMiDance. LC
(Various locations, Friday-Sunday)

FILM

All Of Us Strangers Past Event Like List
The bisexual lighting is hard at work in All of Us Strangers, a film that stars Andrew Scott (the hot priest on Fleabag) and Paul Mescal in cute sweaters. The film follows two Londoners living in the same near-empty tower block, where they find each other, do ketamine, and vibe before memories of past traumas begin to interrupt their romance. The film is based on the eerie, hypnotic 1987 novel Strangers by Taichi Yamada. LC
(Cinema 21, Northwest Portland, Monday-Thursday)

34th Annual Cascade Festival of African Films Past Event Like List
The "longest-running annual, non-profit, non-commercial, largely volunteer-run African film festival in the United States" features works by African directors, centering non-Western perspectives on African culture with films like Burkinabé award winner Sira. Join in on the Connection, Centerpiece, and Women Filmmakers-themed weekends, or head to a Family Fest matinée screening of the French film Hawa. The after-screening Q&A sessions with directors round out the cultural event, with virtual and in-person viewing opportunities. LC
(Various locations, Friday-Sunday)

Poor Things Past Event Like List
Real Lanthimos heads know that he doesn't direct anything without dystopic, black comedy underpinnings and plotlines that make audiences ponder why they're on the planet at all. He is weird, as directors should be, and you're either in or you're out. This time around, he's adapted a '92 Scottish novel for the screen, painting the picture of a young woman (played by Emma Stone, who is raven-haired and looks charmingly bananas) brought back to life by an unorthodox scientist (played by my famous dad, Willem Dafoe). Best part? Poor Things "saved" my other dad, Mark Ruffalo, from "depressed dad typecasting." Praise be. LC
(Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District, Monday-Thursday)

Studio Ghibli Film Festival Past Event Like List
Over the last 30 years, Studio Ghibli has become legendary for its lush visuals, emotional and affecting storytelling, and poetic, intelligent approach to nature and the more-than-human world. OMSI's Studio Ghibli Film Festival will return for its ninth presentation of audience faves like My Neighbor Totoro and Kiki's Delivery Service, as well as underrated classics like Pom Poko and The Tale of the Princess Kaguya. LC
(Empirical Theater at OMSI, Hosford-Abernethy, Tuesday-Sunday)

PERFORMANCE

Goodnight Moon Past Event Like List
The best part of Margaret Wise Brown's Goodnight Moon is its impeccable vibes—I mean, check out this image and tell me you don't long to be Bunny, delightfully cuddled in bed, surrounded by kittens and yarn and bear paintings and a cozy fireplace. This theatrical production is the closest thing to entering Bunny's comfy, dreamy, imaginative world, where we'll hopefully see all the jumping cows and dancing bears our hearts desire. I'm getting sleepy already, but in a good way. LC
(Winningstad Theatre, South Park Blocks, Saturday-Sunday)

What the Constitution Means to Me Past Event Like List
How might the Constitution impact generations to come? Playwright Heidi Schreck, who won debate competitions defending the Constitution across the country as a teen, digs into it in this funny, insightful play. What the Constitution Means to Me traces the relationship between four generations of women, was a finalist for a Pulitzer Prize, and "culminates in a live debate with an actual teen," so brace yourself to get told what's really up. LC
(Portland Center Stage, Pearl District, Wednesday–Sunday)

VISUAL ART

Africa Fashion Past Event Like List
London's Victoria and Albert Museum curated this major exhibition, bringing dozens of well-dressed mannequins to the Portland Art Museum for an exploration of African fashion culture and history from the mid-20th century to the present. Africa Fashion includes "garments, textiles, adornments, personal testimonies, photographs, film, and catwalk footage," with artifacts pulled straight from the archives of legendary African designers like Shade Thomas-Fahm, Chris Seydou, Kofi Ansah, Naïma Bennis, and Alphadi and contemporary creatives Imane Ayissi, IAMISIGO, Moshions, Thebe Magugu, and Maison Art. Not sold? The exhibition was featured in Vogue, Forbes, and CNN, which deemed the show "an archive of achievement." LC
(Portland Art Museum, Southwest Portland, Wednesday–Sunday)

AIDS Memorial Quilt Past Event Like List
Conceived in 1985 by human rights activist Cleve Jones, the AIDS Memorial Quilt aimed to honor those who died of AIDS and document the lives of those living with the devastating impacts of the disease. Today, it's a 54-ton tapestry and a living symbol of a lost generation. "As we have recently experienced, science communication, information sharing, and awareness building are crucial in combating pandemics," says OMSI in this exhibit's promotional materials. Selected panels from the AIDS Memorial Quilt will be on display at OMSI; the quilt can also be viewed in its entirety online. (Before you head to OMSI, I suggest reading Duane Puryear's powerful quilt panel.) LC
(OMSI, Central Eastside, Monday-Sunday)

Kenji Ide: American Friend Past Event Like List
If you caught Kenji Ide's first Portland exhibition (A Poem of Perception at the Portland Japanese Garden) back in 2022, you're in luck—the Japanese artist will return to the city to showcase new wood and found object sculptures that "theatrically weave a narrative based on both the artist’s imagined and real-life experiences." American Friend takes its title from the '77 Wim Wenders film, which Ide had heard of growing up in Japan, but never seen, only imagining what the film might be about. Paralleling his experience of creating an alternate storyline for an unseen film, Ide's sculptures create space for the viewer to project their own narratives within the frameworks of puzzles, built environments, and poetic abstractions. The result is a "stylized landscape" that's both meditative and brain-tickling. LC
(Adams and Ollman, Northwest Portland, Wednesday–Saturday)

Modern Folk Past Event Like List
This group exhibition spotlights eight West Coast artists whose work aims to modernize and complexify folk art traditions, from paintings of everyday objects to "whimsical ceramics," self-portraiture, and mixed-media works. I'm excited to see Portland-based fave Lisa Congdon's snazzy visual language of luminous color and patterning with a folk art twist, as well as Justin Morrison's "raw" sculptures and Godeleine de Rosamel's clay pieces. LC
(Chefas Projects, Central Eastside, Wednesday–Saturday)

Pace Taylor: Before the Doors Open Past Event Like List
In Pace Taylor's 2022 Nationale exhibition Breathe when you need to, the painter developed a warm-hued dialogue with the surrealist gender-nonconforming artist Claude Cahun, exploring the mask as an identity-driven self-preservation tool and domestic spaces as sites for unmasking. Now, in Before the Doors Open, Taylor draws from references to Joan Didion(!) and Shirley Jackson(!!!), reckoning with "self-imposed isolation, agoraphobia, and their cyclical impact on the creative process." The series of framed paintings and smaller watercolors is lush and smooth—previous fans of Taylor's work won't be disappointed. LC
(Nationale, Buckman, Monday/Thursday-Sunday)

Ruined Windows: Jessica Jackson Hutchins with Marley Freeman Past Event Like List
Jessica Jackson Hutchins's tactile works transform everyday objects into art forms that are both intimately familiar and reverently heightened, and her ambitious, raw, playful style, which runs the gamut from massive sculptural installations to clothing pieces, is easily recognizable. The artist often employs castoff household objects to create her earth-toned, figurative, and vessel-like forms. Her process has expanded since 2016 to include collage-like window pieces in fused glass, and in Ruined Windows, Adams and Ollman showcases glass sculptures created in collaboration with painter Marley Freeman. The exhibition's pièce de résistance is Presence, a 2017 sculpture that blends fused glass with ceramics to create a "rich assemblage of texture, color, light and imagery." LC
(Adams and Ollman, Northwest Portland, Wednesday–Saturday)

WINTER

Woodsy Winter Village and Ice Rink Past Event Like List
Channel your inner Tonya Harding (minus the knee-bashing tendencies) and take to the ice at Portland's open-air skating rink this winter. Après-skate, warm up in the cozy winter village with hot bevvies and snacks from local vendors like Momo Cocoa, Where's Coffee Girl, La Casa de Mamá, and more. Pro tip: spend at least $20 at a central city business (peep the map to see what qualifies), bring your receipt, and receive a $5 discount on your skate ticket. JW
(Morrison Bridgehead, Downtown, Monday-Sunday)