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COMEDY
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If you prefer your dating shows in a weird, dystopian, pod-contained format, you’re probably a fan of Love Is Blind, and perhaps suffering from withdrawal since the Netflix show is done for the season. Kickstand has your back—a team of improvisers will head into the pods to try and find love connections without seeing each other. I’m gonna go out on a limb and guess that no love connections will be found, but you’ll likely experience plenty of laughter. LC
(Kickstand Comedy, Ladd’s Addition, $10-$15)
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If you get a kick out of physical comedy and improvised noir, zany gumshoe Ruby Rocket is great at what she does—until she isn’t. This calamity of a comedy stars Stacey Hallal (a “genuine talent,” according to the Oregonian) alongside Portland’s wackiest improvisers. Ruby’s story will blaze to life with multimedia elements and classic noir storytelling, so I’m hoping for smoky alleyways and gals in dark sunglasses. LC
(Curious Comedy Theater, King, $12-$18)
LIVE MUSIC
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Classical Up Close is the Oregon Symphony’s spring concert series that shares the tradition of chamber music with new audiences through free, casual pop-up performances. This weekend, the series will continue at Hillsdale Community Church with the classic works of Pärt, Haydn, Madsen, Fibich, Mozart, Beethoven, and Brahms. AV
(Hillsdale Community Church, Hillsdale, free)
PARTIES & NIGHTLIFE
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Few things have had a chokehold on me quite like the Happy Face motif in the early aughts. Smiley items in my childhood bedroom included a Happy Face landline phone, Happy Face patterned sunglasses (yellow-tinted lenses of course), and a Lisa Frank Happy Face lunch box. I was obsessed. That’s why this week’s Snap! Y2K party feels like the smiley-themed birthday party I never had. Show up in full black, yellow, neon, and tie-dye garb and dance your face off to nostalgic hip-hop, rock, R&B, rave, and pop jams. This is the only acceptable occasion to yell “smile” at someone. AV
(Holocene, Buckman, $10)
VISUAL ART
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California-born artist Mike Young began earning money from hand-drawn greeting cards in the ’70s. Young is deaf and blind in one eye, and observes images from books and magazines close up, “bringing his face close enough to nearly touch the pigment and paper.” Drawn to contour, outline, architectural detail, and anatomy, Young’s pictorial works feel familiar yet reorganized. “His accumulations tell fragmented stories and invent new taxonomies,” PICA artistic director Kristan Kennedy explained. A Berry, A Boot, A Building, A Blue Door: New Works by Mike Young is a great opportunity to check out Elbow Room, a local arts organization providing material support, mentorship, and studio space to artists experiencing intellectual and developmental disabilities.
LC
(Elbow Room, Buckman, free)
COMMUNITY
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The 82nd Avenue of Roses Parade made its triumphant return last year, and we’re excited to once again experience the sights and sounds of some of Portland’s most diverse neighborhoods. Floats, bands, and classic cars are the stars of the east side’s largest parade, which heads north from Eastport Plaza. If you want to hang out with fellow motor-enthusiasts afterward, the Impala Car Club will be hosting a cruise-in from noon to 4 pm at PCC Southeast. SL
(Eastport Plaza Shopping Center, Lents, free)
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St. Johns is celebrating the season with a day of family-friendly fun and activations at local businesses. There will be hula hooping, mini horses (!!), live music from jazz duo Portland Standard Time, free Uniko Fotobus pictures, drag queen story time, and a piñata. The forecast is predicting rain, but that long list of activities is more than worth making it out. Plus, we know what they say about April showers—those May flowers are just around the corner! SL
(St. Johns Plaza, St. Johns, free)
FILM
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The original popular girls—Rose McGowan, Rebecca Gayheart, and Julie Benz—maaaay have sorta kinda killed their best friend on her birthday. Their new “replacement” friend is a little unhinged, and a detective (played by Pam Grier!) is on their case. If Jawbreaker sounds like a truly perfect mixture of The Craft and Mean Girls, you’d be right. Local humorists Elizabeth Teets and Anthony Hudson will host this screening of queer filmmaker Darren Stein’s ’99 flick, which will open with stand-up from Portland’s own Julia Corral. LC
(Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District, $10-$12)
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Calling it now: If you’ve seen Stop Making Sense, it’s probably your favorite concert film. It’s jangly and arty and all of the other words one might use to describe Talking Heads’s catalog, and David wears the suit. Not feeling the Byrne? Listen, I know watching a concert movie for a band you don’t listen to sounds like hell, but this one might be an exception. If you haven’t seen it yet, anticipate looking back on the experience with a funny fondness later, like a good birthday party or the first time you smoked weed. Jonathan Demme (yes, the guy who went on to make The Silence of the Lambs) recorded all of the concert footage over the course of three days at Hollywood’s Pantages Theatre in 1983, during the height of the Heads’ visionary fame. It’s screening in a new restoration, so prep for a “once in a lifetime” experience. LC
(Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District, $10-$12)
LIVE MUSIC
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On his new solo project, Dan Boeckner (known mononymously by his last name) employs lush synths, noisy guitars, and gritty vocals that pull inspiration from his respective bands Wolf Parade, Operators, and Handsome Furs. He said of his solo debut: “Starting back when I was a teenager, my life in music has been trying to develop my own musical language, and this record is the beginning of presenting that.” He will swing by Music Millennium this weekend for a free in-store performance and signing. AV
(Music Millennium, Kerns, free)
PARTIES & NIGHTLIFE
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If you’re in the mood to shake your groove thing, then this is your chance to show off your moves (and knowledge of the irresistible music genre) at this dance party that celebrates all eras of disco and house music. Expect to hear classic hits from ABBA, the Bee Gees, and Earth, Wind & Fire twirled into modern tracks from Dom Dolla, Dombresky, and Purple Disco Machine. AV
(Holocene, Buckman, $0-$15)
READINGS & TALKS
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Current participants in the Independent Publishing Resource Center’s innovative portfolio program, a yearlong course that centers studies in creative writing, print processes, and more, will read excerpts of their works in progress. The portfolio program’s reading series is a chill way to check out the IPRC space, which offers workshops, residencies, and creative tools. LC
(Independent Publishing Resource Center (IPRC), Buckman)
SHOPPING
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Each year, Independent Bookstore Day celebrates something we can all rally behind: indie bookstores. Pop by your local shops all day long for special prizes, swag, and meet-cutes with fellow lit lovers—oh, and books, too.
(Various locations, free)
VISUAL ART
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Art can be fun—just ask Nathan Paul Rice and Ellen Robinette, who tag-teamed this exhibition on the subject. Avoiding preciousness, the duo emphasized improvised, textural mark-making that “explores the tension between play and peril” and “roams along ombre lines and rests in flowered fields of pattern.” While Rice’s works include pattern and color pops, Robinette’s Merge Visible collages past work to mirror the experience of memory. For MODULATIONS, they’ll present a collaborative mural, plus wooden forms and sculptures. LC
(SATOR Projects, Central Eastside, free)
FILM
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On the fourth Sunday of each month, Fuse Theatre Ensemble screens a pay-what-you-can film fave from the queer cinema canon, then follows the flick with a trivia session and discussion. (If you’re interested in the “evolution of the depiction of LGBTQIA+ characters over the last 50 years,” you’ve found your people!) This time around, they’ll screen Gus Van Sant’s New Queer Cinema landmark flick My Own Private Idaho. LC
(Back Door Theater, Sunnyside, Pay-what-you-can)
LIVE MUSIC
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Justice for the Romantics! Sure, they may seem like a cheesy ’80s rock band with matching pleather suits and fluffy hair—but they are so much more than that. And, whether you’re a classic rock fanatic or not, I bet you know the words to “What I Like About You.” I, for one, first heard it on the soundtrack to Freaky Friday (2003) performed by the forgotten pop-punk band Lillix. This Sunday, founding member of the Romantics (and co-writer of the aforementioned bop, along with many others) Mike Skill will perform some of his iconic hits alongside local rockers Monty Vega & The Sittin’ Shivas and the Fauxs. AV
(Star Theater, Old Town-Chinatown, $10-$15)
SPORTS & RECREATION
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I am not very good at biking, but riding a bike in a superhero costume surrounded by a bunch of kids and adults also wearing tights and capes might just give me the confidence I need. (There will also be “superhero music” playing, so even if I go down, it’ll be epic.) Join this group ride in honor of National Superhero Day from the Sunnyside School playground to Books with Pictures and back again, taking breaks to shop comic books and grab bites from food trucks along the way. SL
(Sunnyside School Park, Sunnyside, free)
VISUAL ART
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Stop by the Portland Art Museum for free on Sunday to catch up on their current exhibitions, including the 2024 edition of HeART of Portland: A Portland Public Schools K-12 Arts Showcase Visual Art Exhibition. (Showcasing visual art, dance, theater, and musical talents from across Portland Public Schools, The HeART of Portland includes “over 100 works that highlight [the school system’s] diversity.” Talented young musicians and dancers from McDaniel High School, Lincoln High School, Martin Luther King Jr. Elementary School, and other nearby schools will perform in the Fields Sunken Ballroom throughout the day; visitors can also peep Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting Edge Kicks and Throughlines: Connections in the Collection, the exhibition that “inspired the HeART of Portland collaborative art projects.” LC
(Portland Art Museum, South Park Blocks, free)
FILM
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Italian auteur Luca Guadagnino’s latest follows Zendaya as Tashi, a prodigy tennis player-turned-coach whose training transformed her husband into a national champion. Things get weird and maybe horny when she forces him to play a pro-tournament “Challenger” event alongside her former boyfriend. Do I care about tennis? No, of course not!! But I don’t ask for much—Zendaya and a psychosexual plotline are enough for me. LC
(Cinema 21, Nob Hill, $9-$11, Friday-Sunday)
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Alex Garland’s latest, Civil War, is A24’s most expensive in-house production to date, following a group of military-embedded journos headed to DC “before rebel factions descend upon the White House.” Honestly, I’m wary of how he’ll handle this one, although Garland’s work does tend to thrive in dystopian settings. But Kristen Dunst stars as a photojournalist, which is reason enough to watch. Also, Garland may or may not be retiring from directing (“I’m going to take a break for the foreseeable future,” he clarified recently), so if you’re a fan of the filmmaker behind Annihilation and Men, you should plan to let his new one marinate. LC
(Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District, $10-$12, Friday-Sunday)
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If you aren’t riveted by the prospect of this film, well, we’re two very different people. David and Nathan Zellner’s Sasquatch Sunset follows a family of Bigfoots (Bigfeet?) over the course of one year, as they wander, grunt, and munch mushrooms in North America’s foggy forests. Riley Keough and Jesse Eisenberg star, and they look like this. We owe it to them to go see this film as payment for the zillion hours they spent having prosthetics applied. LC
(Cinema 21, Nob Hill, Friday-Sunday)
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OMSI’s Sci-Fi Film Festival seems like a solid opportunity to watch science fiction flicks in the way god intended: on the Empirical Theater’s gigantic four-story screen. The museum will screen over 40 spacey greats, with genre classics (E.T. the Extra-Terrestrial, 2001: A Space Odyssey, and personal fave The Thing) and more recent entries (Blade Runner 2049, Annihilation) represented. The fest’s closing night celebration on May 24 will feature a screening of George Miller’s latest madhouse, Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga. LC
(OMSI, Central Eastside, Passes $65-$95, individual tickets $6.50-$8, Friday-Sunday)
SHOPPING
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Florals for spring may not be a groundbreaking concept, but we look forward to them every year all the same. Portland Night Market’s spring fling edition will feature a fun floral installation along with the usual array of local vendors and food purveyors. The only question is, “Who will be spring fling queen?” JW
(100 SE Alder, Buckman, free, Friday-Saturday)
VISUAL ART
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Far be it from me to pass up an opportunity to talk about Clarice Lispector, which means Quinha Faria and I have something in common. Faria’s newest work, presented in Atrás Do Pensamento (Behind Thought), reflects on the Brazilian writer’s unconventional, stream-of-consciousness 1973 book Agua Viva, which was originally titled Behind Thought. Faria’s compositions contemplate Lispector’s totally singular style with layers of thin paint and curious textures. The artist also “encourages viewers to consider the unseen elements of a space” with contributions by scent-focused bodyworker Tatiana Godoy-Betancur and sound artist Ryan Windus. LC
(Carnation Contemporary, Kenton, free, Saturday-Sunday; closing)
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Self-taught artist Aaron Hankins will present an “endurance and protest art installation” in Ceasefire, which tracks each day of the ongoing genocide in Gaza through daily paintings of watermelons, a symbol of Palestinian solidarity. Hankins’s paintings (created on the backs of USPS mailers) are full of symbolism—the watermelon seeds “denote numerical order and serve as a physical log of the days at unrest.” The paintings are stitched together in a growing banner. Hankins will lead ceasefire demonstrations in the gallery for the exhibition’s duration. LC
(One Grand Gallery, Buckman, free, Friday-Sunday)
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Anna Von Mertens’s meticulous colored-pencil drawings on black paper arrange illustrative icons of our everyday life. In the series Objects (100 Emojis), her placement of items like a feather, plunger, toothbrush, safety pin, etc. mimics quilting patterns. In Remnants, UV-sensitive paper and tangled jewelry form the backdrop of drawings that, according to the reception notes, “[reference] the generative life cycles of stars.” Also on view at Elizabeth Leach, is a collection from the estate of Lee Kelly, Bennington Suite & Color Studies, which presents sculpture and watercolor pieces from different points in the artist’s long career. Paired together, the 2D paintings and 3D geometric sandstone structural forms illustrate Kelly’s mastery over either realm of expression. PORTLAND MERCURY CONTRIBUTOR ASHLEY GIFFORD PETERSON
(Elizabeth Leach Gallery, Pearl District, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)
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Here’s one way to celebrate paying your art tax. Showcasing visual art, dance, theater, and musical talents from across Portland Public Schools, The HeART of Portland includes “over 100 works that highlight [the school system’s] diversity.” Cool! The free show will also feature the collaborative art project Artistic Alchemy: Transformative Art Making, which pulled inspiration from the current Portland Art Museum exhibition Throughlines: Connections in the Collection. LC
(Portland Art Museum, Southwest Portland, free, Friday-Sunday; closing)
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As a devotee of Holly Osborne’s Instagram page, I’m thrilled to see the Oregon-born artist and teacher continue to draw from the natural world as inspiration. In this ethereal solo exhibition, the acrylic and oil artist’s fluid compositions (drawn from the “wild countryside of Portugal, the formal vistas of France, and the spontaneous arrangements encountered during walks in North Portland”) elicit peace with a dash of the unexpected. Lush, candy-colored landscapes encourage the eye to roam and daydream. LC
(Chefas Projects, Central Eastside, free, Friday-Saturday)
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My fourth-grade self spotted the Beastie Boys reference in this exhibition’s title and wanted to stop right there—say no more, I thought. I’m on board. But since it’s my job to write about art events, I’ll dig further. Intergalactic/ Planetary/ Planetary/ Intergalactic showcases work by Brian Knowles and Andrea Alonge, who explore portals, wormholes, and inner worlds with insulation foam, used Xacto blades, and a whole host of other materials, emphasizing a handmade quality. Hop in their kaleidoscopic rocket ship, we’re going to the center of the universe. LC
(Well Well, Kenton, free, Saturday-Sunday; closing)
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I last wrote about Kinke Kooi’s squishy bodily compositions in 2021, when her exhibition The Grotesk of Raising interrupted my pandemic isolation with “a non-hierarchical Eden, where curving pearl-forms and intestine-like masses intertwined, becoming body and beyond-body.” Praise be. Kooi returns to Adams and Ollman with The Male Part of the Flower, in which the artist remains true to her fleshy forms, oceanic realms, and collaged elements. LC
(Adams and Ollman, Northwest Portland, free, Friday-Saturday)
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Shining a spotlight on labor practices that have been “historically and systematically concealed from the public sphere,” Labor of Love curates multimedia works by artists Tania Candiani, Tannaz Farsi, Jay Lynn Gomez, Midori Hirose, Charlene Liu, Alberto Lule, Narsiso Martinez, and Patrick Martinez. Show up to learn something about invisible, poorly paid, and emotional labor, much of which is done by marginalized people. Each artist finds a personal connection to this labor and uses their work to contend with systemic racism, immigration, class inequality, and gender discrimination. LC
(Jordan Schnitzer Museum of Art, Southwest Portland, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)
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Elizabeth Leach Gallery has showcased revered Pacific Northwest artist Lee Kelly’s sculptures, paintings, and works on paper periodically since 1986, but this curated selection of the artist’s watercolors and angular sculptures has never been exhibited before. Spanning thirty years of Kelly’s career, Bennington Suite & Color Studies includes bright maquettes and Mayan architecture-influenced compositions created while he was at Bennington College in Vermont. LC
(Elizabeth Leach Gallery, Pearl District, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)
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Portland-based painter Nicole Williford’s Madonna, Madonna pulls from seemingly discordant visual languages—expect traditional portraiture and realist exactitude combined with surprising moments of abstraction and surreality. Drawing from family photographs, Williford’s compositions function as a meditative practice for the artist, and follow subjects “from girlhood into matriarchy.” The results emphasize all of the monotony, grief, and beauty that occurs in a life. LC
(Chefas Projects, Central Eastside, free, Friday-Saturday)
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Artists Lark Pien, Josh Sin, and Yuyang Zhang blend their own stories with Chinese immigrant history in the Pacific Northwest to reflect on the “complex and nuanced psychological landscape of being ethnic Chinese living in America.” Re:Generation – Manifesting at the Peach Blossom Spring pulls from a fifth-century Chinese fable of utopian discovery to describe how the artists are pursuing “personal utopias” through their provocative work, which varies from conceptual world-building to political satire. The exhibition is a great opportunity to check out the Portland Chinatown Museum if you haven’t yet—you can also catch Beyond the Gate: A Tale of Portland’s Historic Chinatowns, the museum’s permanent exhibition. LC
(Portland Chinatown Museum, Old Town-Chinatown, $0-$8, Friday-Sunday)
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Toni Pepe’s Mothercraft thinks carefully about constructions of 20th-century motherhood through flea market photos and eBay images. The results create a surprising sociopolitical commentary on women’s liberation over the decades, but the backs of the photos are just as interesting as the fronts—”they offer information ranging from the objective, such as age and location, to the more partial and idiosyncratic details tied to tradition and duty.” (For more art that traverses the complex terrain of maternity, check out Francesca Capone: A Mother’s Discourse at Nationale.) LC
(Blue Sky Gallery, Pearl District, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)
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I’m a simple person: When I see a silver gelatin print of a kitty, I think everyone else should see it, too. Japanese artist Yamamoto Masao’s Animal Spirit is your opportunity; the show includes “small-scale, poetic, and intimate” images of animals by the painter-turned-photographer. You’ll also see goats, garden-dwelling pups, and fancy horses rendered in high-contrast, yet still delicate compositions. PDX Contemporary Art describes Masao as “one of Japan’s most important living photographers,” too. LC
(PDX CONTEMPORARY ART, Slabtown, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)
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