Cheap & Easy

The Best Bang for Your Buck Events in Portland This Labor Day Weekend: Sept 1–4, 2023

Art In The Pearl, Timberline Daydream, and More Cheap & Easy Events Under $15
September 1, 2023
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Portugal. The Man is headlining the new Timberline Daydream festival at Timberline Lodge.
Labor Day weekend has arrived to unofficially close out summer, and we've put in the work to round up the events that are worth your time, from Art In The Pearl Fine Arts & Crafts Festival to Timberline Daydream: Portugal. The Man, The Get Ahead, Tony Smiley, and The Fur Coats and from Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders Watch Party to the Mid-Autumn Moonlight Market. For more ideas, check out our guide to the top events of the week.


Editor's note: Holiday hours may vary; please check venue websites for the most accurate opening times.


Jump to: Friday | Saturday | Sunday | Monday | Multi-Day


FRIDAY

COMMUNITY

Mid-Autumn Moonlight Market Past Event List
Lan Su Chinese Garden's second annual Moonlight Market celebrates one of the most important Chinese holidays of the year, the mid-autumn festival. During this evening celebration, the garden will be illuminated with moody lanterns while festival goers shop AANHPI vendors and enjoy live music, lion dances, a rabbit meet-and-greet, and the "world debut of adorable rabbit lantern sculptures from China." Don't miss the mooncakes available on-site—they're a must-have festival treat. LC
(Lan Su Chinese Garden, Old Town-Chinatown, $10-$25)

Portland Music Mural Unveiling Past Event List
Be one of the first Portlanders to clap eyes on a massive new mural celebrating the city's music culture and legacy! Created by Jason Savage Images, comic book artists the Pander Bros, and Artichoke Music, the 50-by-22 foot colorful mural features the faces of many Portland musical icons. Try to name them all at this unveiling ceremony as you join in on a "Louie Louie" sing-along and enjoy treats provided by TriMet. SL
(Mayer Building, Southwest Portland, free)

FOOD & DRINK

Cousins Lobster Truck & Coastal Beers Party! Past Event List
The Los Angeles-founded lobster roll chain Cousins Lobster, whose main claim to fame is an appearance on Shark Tank, will sling its creamy crustacean-packed specialties at Loyal Legion. Choose between Maine-style rolls (dressed in mayo) or Connecticut-style (butter and lemon), with additional items like lobster grilled cheese, lobster quesadillas, lobster tots, and clam chowder. Fort George and Buoy Beer will provide cold coastal brews to complement the nosh. JB
(Loyal Legion, Buckman)

LIVE MUSIC

SoundsTruck Summer Series 2023 Past Event List
The SoundsTruck Summer Series, which takes the masterful musicians on the road in a large food truck-esque vehicle, is en route to a location near you to serve up fresh (and free!) live music. This weekend, the music mobile will make its final stop of the summer at Lewis and Clark College with the classical ensemble Palatine Piano Trio. AV
(Lewis & Clark College, Southwest Portland, free)

SATURDAY

COMEDY

Lone Wolves: Solo Sketch Comedy Past Event List
Have you peeped Siren Theater's new-ish location on N Mississippi Ave yet? Lone Wolves is a great excuse: The show's seasoned comics have been howlin' since 2013 with smart, sharp sketch comedy performances. You might've already caught their routines at Portland Center Stage, the CoHo Theater, or the Portland Sketch Comedy Festival. For this edition of the show, seven local laughers (Shelley McLendon, Nicholas Kessler, Brett Sisun, and others) will share their self-written sketches with help from their fellow wolves. Awooo! LC
(Siren Theater, Boise, $12-$15)

FILM

The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas Past Event List
Take heed, for Dolly is upon us! In The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, she plays Miss Mona, a brothel owner whose business is threatened by an annoyingly pious TV reporter—boooooo! With some help from the local sheriff, she's gotta save the Chicken Ranch from God-fearing ne'er-do-wells and turn that scrappy little whorehouse into a whorehome. If anyone can do it, it's Dolly. Bless. Portland laugh masters Elizabeth Teets and Anthony Hudson will host the Southern-fried screening, which will open with stand-up from LA-based gender-bending goofball Mav Viola. LC
(Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District, $10-$12)

FOOD & DRINK

Our Legacy Harvested Presents: BIPOC Block Party Past Event List
Our Legacy Harvested, an organization founded in 2020 in order to educate, advance, and empower the BIPOC community in the wine industry, will host its fourth annual BIPOC block party in front of Mac Market in McMinnville. They'll welcome their new "cru" of harvest interns for the upcoming season and uplift BIPOC artisans, chefs, brewers, vintners, and other industry folks. Look forward to free wine tastings, live music, dance, comedy, and family-friendly activities, including Zumba.(Mac Market, McMinnville, $10 $20)

LIVE MUSIC

Hyphen Hyphen Past Event List
It's impossible for me to see the phrase "c'est la vie" without thinking of the 1998 banger by iconic Irish girl group B*Witched. But alas, C'est La vie is also the title of HYPHEN HYPHEN's latest album. Like B*Witched, the French electropop trio makes catchy bops, dances in unison, and often wears matching outfits. But unlike B*Witched, the group prides itself on its strong positive messages about queerness, friendship, and confidence. They will travel across the pond to support the album alongside '80s-inspired pop project Seance Crasher. AV
(Holocene, Buckman, $15)

Timberline Daydream: Portugal. The Man, The Get Ahead, Tony Smiley, and The Fur Coats Past Event List
Just like a daydream, Timberline Lodge's new festival aims to divert your attention away from your day-to-day realities for an "inspiring, supportive, hope-filled distraction." Lose yourself in live music, refreshing brews, biking, and Mt. Hood's picturesque landscapes, with donations benefiting the OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital. Portland-via-Alaska transplants Portugal. The Man will headline the festival with songs from their latest album, Chris Black Changed My Life. If you think you're unfamiliar with the pop-rock group, think again! Their 2017 earworm "Feel It Still" continues to ring through Top-40 radio (I bet you know all the words). Don't miss opening sets from fellow Portlanders the Fur Coats, Tony Smiley, and the Get Ahead. AV
(Timberline Lodge, Mt. Hood, free)

PARTIES & NIGHTLIFE

Dance Craze: Swingin' 60s Past Event List
Beloved all-vinyl DJ Action Slacks will bid summer adieu with a groovy multi-genre sock-hop. Shake, rattle, and roll to a rare mix of 1960s soul, pop, mod, Latin, and bubblegum grooves. Don't forget to dress on theme with retro attire like go-go boots, mini skirts, and psychedelic prints. AV
(The World Famous Kenton Club, Kenton, $10-$20, pay what you feel)

SPORTS & RECREATION

Portland Timbers vs. Seattle Sounders Watch Party Past Event List
The boys in green and gold will head north to face our bitter rivals, the Seattle Sounders, in the final regular season matchup between the two teams. The rivalry is the fiercest in Cascadia, and perhaps even the entire MLS. If you're not traveling to Lumen Field to cheer on PTFC, no worries—you can still watch the game with a horde of raucous fans at this official watch party. JW
(Grand Central Bowl & Arcade, Buckman, free)

VISUAL ART

Imaginary Shelter Past Event List
Merging half-remembered buildings and carefully observed vegetation from her past, the paintings in Heather Lee Birdsong's Imaginary Shelter depict long-gone scenes of her demolished childhood home, sites of wildfire, and former houses and apartments. The result feels like a carefully excavated reflection on modern living in the face of climate change, which often involves migration, rentals, displacement, disposable architecture, housing instability, and semi-nomadic lifestyles. Drawing from both Pacific Northwestern and Mojave Desert landscapes, Birdsong aims to understand home as both a physical place and a deeper feeling of belonging. LC
(Carnation Contemporary, Kenton, free)

SUNDAY

FESTIVALS

Arab Mahrajan Festival Past Event List
Experience the breadth and diversity of Arab culture, communities, and cuisines at the 12th annual Arab Mahrajan Festival! Shop from the bazaar, check out music and dance performances, get a henna tattoo, enjoy delicious foods from kebabs to gyros, and more. Bring the whole family, there are plenty of activities to delight kids of all ages. SL
(The Hangar at Oaks Park, Sellwood, free)

FILM

Church of Film: Maria Mirabela Past Event List
When Maria and Mirabela venture into the woods, they find a frog with frozen feet, a firefly with burnt shoes, and a fearful butterfly princess. That's a lot of drama for one day. Church of Film's screening of '81 Romanian flick Maria, Mirabela blends live-action and animated elements in that mildly unsettling way that only '80s children's films can, and I'm stoked to learn "the true purpose of frogs on Earth," which the film's main characters apparently discover on accident. Animator, filmmaker, and artist Ion Popescuo Gopo's Maria, Mirabela comes complete with a sick pop-funk soundtrack that should help propel you into the psychedelic fantasy. LC
(The Red Fox, Humboldt, free)

SHOPPING

Mike Bennett Moving Sale Past Event List
The time has come for professional joy-bringer Mike Bennett to vacate his longtime Kerns studio, and he plans to end his time in the memory-filled space with a monstrous moving sale of never-before-seen lawn signs and undisclosed "other goodies." Bennett will be on site all day painting scrapwood monsters, so pull up a stool to chat with the master, peep relics from Dinolandia and A to Zoo, and check out the mini-arcade and photo booth. Bennett's latest cartoon exhibit, Science and Sawdust, is also still on display, so you'll get an eyeful of cartoon cut-outs old and new. LC
(Mike Bennett Studios, Kerns, free)

MONDAY

PERFORMANCE

Twin Peaks Mondays Past Event List
Hosted by "trans femme drag enigma" Violet Hex, this weekly series screens two episodes of David Lynch and Mark Frost’s 1990 creepy, cult-favorite show Twin Peaks every Monday at Black Water Bar, accompanied by themed drag and burlesque performances with a different special guest each time. I don't know about you, but watching talented performers embody the likenesses of Audrey Horne, Laura Palmer, the Log Lady, and other fan favorites sounds like, excuse me, a damn fine time. JB
(Black Water Bar, Irvington, $5 Suggested Cover)

MULTI-DAY

COMMUNITY

Ankeny Alley Festival - Labor Day Weekend! Past Event List
Stroll the alley blocks between SW Second and Third to catch live performances, visual art, and more at the Labor Day Weekend edition of the ongoing Ankeny Alley Festival. Grab a delicious bite to eat from one of many local vendors, and soak it all up as you enjoy the last party of summer on this pedestrian-only thoroughfare. SL
(Ankeny Alley, Old Town-Chinatown, free, Friday-Sunday)

FESTIVALS

Dahlia Festival Past Event List
Grab your camera and your allergy meds and get ready to experience 40 acres of dahlias and a stunning indoor display of over 370 varieties. Floral novices and aficionados alike can sign up for flower arranging and crafts classes, listen to flower care lectures, take a bunch of flowers home, and more. Check out the farmers market every Sunday, listen to local bands perform on weekends, or grab a bite to eat from a rotating selection of food carts. SL
(Swan Island Dahlias, Canby, free, Friday-Sunday)

FILM

Barbie Past Event List
Brought forth from the primordial depths of the mid-'90s, where Barbie remains in perpetuity because that is the last time I played with her, a shiny pink convertible rolls noiselessly into our modern times. It is Barbie's car, and somehow, Barbie is in it. She has roller skates in her purse and she's on a mission. She is played by Margot Robbie, and she's journeying to the human world, or something. Listen, the specifics don't matter. It's the Barbie movie. I will be seated, surrounded by popcorn and Nerds rope, and you will be, too. LC
(Cinema 21, Nob Hill, Friday-Monday)

Bottoms Past Event List
Considering the glut of raunchy high school sex comedies that revolved around hetero teen boys attempting to pop their cherries in the '90s and early-aughts, it's about time we had a horny romp about queer girls trying to get laid. In this madcap dark comedy helmed by Emma Seligman (director of the nail-biter Shiva Baby), two hapless losers (played by Rachel Sennott and Ayo Edebiri) scheme to start a self-defense club for women in order to hook up with their cheerleader crushes (Havana Rose Liu and Kaia Gerber). Naturally, hilarity ensues. It's Book Smart meets Fight Club with acerbic shades of Heathers, and I for one can't wait to see Seligman's sapphic Gen-Z take on this campy genre, especially with the two leads' deadpan delivery. JB
(Cinema 21, Nob Hill, Friday-Monday)

VISUAL ART

Art In The Pearl Fine Arts & Crafts Festival Past Event List
A longstanding Portland favorite, Art In The Pearl is the city's largest art fair. On Labor Day weekend, thousands of visitors will gather to celebrate the winding-down days of summer under the shady canopy of the North Park Blocks, engaging directly with local artists at over 100 freestanding exhibits. Seasoned art collectors and newbies alike will find too-cool creations up for grabs, and an education pavilion will offer hands-on art activities for children and adults. LC
(North Park Blocks, Northwest Portland, free, Saturday-Monday)

Converge 45 Contemporary Arts Biennial Past Event List
The free, citywide art exhibition Converge 45 is in full swing, with artists showcased across over 15 venues in Portland, including college campuses, the Portland Japanese Garden, and Pioneer Square. The biennial's theme, Social Forms: Art as Global Citizenship, takes on topics of Amazon deforestation, indigeneity, citizenship, and immigration, and aims to amplify the voices and experiences of people of color, so you're bound to find a cause you can get behind. I'm looking forward to local textile legend and Seneca Nation member Marie Watt's Chords to Other Chords (Relative) and Yishai Jusidman's history-driven cyanotypes in Prussian Blue. LC
(Various locations, free, Friday-Monday)

Ed Bereal: Wanted: Ed Bereal for “Still Disturbing the Peace” Past Event List
Activist-artist Ed Bereal, whose assemblage and sculptural works have examined sociopolitical issues and racial stereotypes since the '60s, presents new works in the solo exhibition Wanted: Ed Bereal for “Still Disturbing the Peace”. The 86-year-old art star actually fancies himself a landscape painter—“I’m painting the socio-political landscape," says Bereal—but in this show, his vertically suspended, large-scale works are termed "topographical drawings," and represent the artist's embrace of still-new technologies like 3D printing. LC
(Elizabeth Leach Gallery, Pearl District, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)

Laura Camila Medina: Mi Reflejo Past Event List
Laura Camila Medina's debut solo exhibition at Nationale explores her own reflection, which intertwines with the artist's dreamlike, pastel, world-building aesthetic—which is totally infectious, if you haven't seen it—to expand on everything from childhood memories to cultural identity. As with all people, Medina's internal world is a bit of a complicated archive, layered with possibilities for recontextualization. (Have you ever reframed a memory within the context of who you are now? Medina's magic transpires there.) Blending painting, sculpture, textiles, and video, Medina's limbo-like world addresses "the real complexities of immigrant culture, “the American Dream," gender, and familial lineage." I'm especially drawn to her painterly pillow forms. LC
(Nationale, Buckman, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)

Peter Gronquist: Manifest Past Event List
In Peter Gronquist: Manifest, the Portland-based multimedia artist's large-scale sculptural paintings spotlight his interest in excavating personal narratives through found material manipulation. (The works showcased here include bone fragments, dyed wasp paper, wool, lace, rose quartz, and "fossilized event posters, painstakingly chiseled from area telephone poles," to give you a sense of his approach.) Gronquist's first exhibition with Elizabeth Leach also includes an interactive sculptural installation, Missoula Floods, a drawing automaton created from Columbia River-sourced boulders and sheet metal; it's a mammoth testament to his rural, pastoral poetic, which draws from his lifelong stomping grounds in the Pacific Northwest. LC
(Elizabeth Leach Gallery, Pearl District, free, Friday-Saturday; closing)

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