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Jump to: Comedy | Film | Food & Drink | Live Music | Performance | Readings & Talks | Sports & Recreation | Spring | Visual Art & Exhibits

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COMEDY

Whose Live Anyway? Past Event Like List
Check in with the current cast of the classic Emmy-nominated show Whose Line Is It Anyway? on this comedy tour of unpredictable tomfoolery. In true improv style, audience members will shout out suggestions for Ryan Stiles, Greg Proops, Jeff B. Davis, and Joel Murray, who will then create uproarious scenes off the cuff. LC
Revolution Hall, Buckman (Wed Apr 3)

Tina Fey & Amy Poehler: Restless Leg Tour Past Event Like List
Few comedic roles live on in the public consciousness like Tina Fey's Liz Lemon and Amy Poehler's Leslie Knope—even if you've somehow never watched a single episode of 30 Rock or Parks and Recreation, you know damn well who they are. The comedy queens, who, unsurprisingly, are also BFFs, will celebrate 30 years of camaraderie with jokes, stories, and "conversational entertainment," which I hope involves Tina eating her night cheese. LC
Moda Center, Lloyd District (Sun Apr 14)

Hasan Minhaj: Off With His Head Tour Past Event Like List
America could do with more Muslim comics and their under-acknowledged observations, especially if they’re as sharp-witted as Hasan Minhaj. His charming demeanor belies a deceptively acerbic humor, honed during his trenchant appearances on The Daily Show. Minhaj truly rose to the occasion at the 2017 White House Correspondents’ Dinner, where he delivered hundreds of punishing left jabs at right-wing politicians. It was a roast for the ages, and if it made the president’s blood pressure rise to dangerous levels, Minhaj deserves a Nobel Prize. His Netflix special Homecoming King proved he could conceive exceptionally moving personal comedy, too. STRANGER CONTRIBUTOR DAVE SEGAL
Keller Auditorium, Downtown (Sat Apr 20)

FILM

Ryuichi Sakamoto - Opus Past Event Like List
Ryuichi Sakamoto, Oscar-winning composer, unparalleled style icon, and one of the three melodic geniuses behind the Tokyo electronic outfit Yellow Magic Orchestra, passed away last year after a battle with cancer. (Chances are good that you've heard YMO's arty electro-pop tunes, but if not, throw this on before continuing.) Ryuichi Sakamoto | Opus is Sakamoto's swan song—as a parting gift in 2022, he curated, sequenced, and performed a piano concert that "wordlessly narrates his life through his wide-ranging oeuvre." You'll hear selections from his pop icon days in YMO, his scores created for Bernardo Bertolucci, and his reflective final album. LC
Cinema 21, Nob Hill (Apr 6–7)

Tag! Queer Shorts Festival 2024 Past Event Like List
This international festival is celebrating its 11th year of spotlighting the best in queer and trans filmmaking with 51 original short queer films on the lineup. Four intriguing blocks of programming allow viewers to watch films within specific themes, including "Queer Fam," which focuses on families of origin and of choice, "Acting Up," which centers queer resistance efforts, "Ensemble," which includes everything from animation to musical flicks, and a West Coast film block. LC
Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District (Apr 6–7)

Tampopo Past Event Like List
The Hollywood's spring installment of Food and Film serves up a screening of Juzo Itami's "ramen western." Tampopo follows a band of milk truck drivers whose pit stop at a roadside noodle shop blossoms into a quest for the perfect noodle recipe. The genre-bending 1985 film is segmented by stirring stories that don't relate to the main plot, but speak to the emotional power of food. Slurp it up in a new 4K restoration at this screening, then head to the Hollywood's VIP afterparty at Vivienne Culinary Books's new Alberta location, where you'll find wine, sake, and Tampopo-inspired small plates and bowls. LC
Hollywood Theatre, Hollywood District (Sun Apr 7)

Little Shop of Horrors w/ Gone West PDX Plant Sales Past Event Like List
Fans of carnivorous plants, aliens, and doo-wop will appreciate this sci-fi frolic, wherein a seemingly benign new plant at a flower shop develops an unfortunate fondness for human blood. Frank Oz's Little Shop of Horrors is also the freakiest Muppet movie—it includes frankly incomparable puppetry straight from Jim Henson's workshop, it's set to a swinging Motown soundtrack, and it offers an unexpectedly pointed capitalist critique. What more do you want?! Well, you might also want plants, in which case Go West PDX will have you covered with a pop-up plant sale staged in the lobby before the screening. LC
Tomorrow Theater, Richmond (Sun Apr 14)

Banff Mountain Film Festival World Tour Past Event Like List
The scenic Canadian film festival held every fall in Banff, Alberta will glide into Portland, sharing the best of the best in mind-bamboozling outdoor filmmaking, environmental storytelling, and mountain sportsmanship. LC
Revolution Hall, Buckman (Apr 18–20)

FOOD & DRINK

Filipino Food Month Remind Like List
Your April just got way more delicious: Members of ALIST Consulting, Baon Kainan, Magna Kusina, and Magna Kubo have come together to present the Portland area's inaugural Filipino Food Month, featuring a collaboration between over 26 small local businesses. Each week, 15 different locations between Beaverton and Troutdale will offer fresh food and drink specials highlighting a different classic Filipino ingredient, complemented by "historical and personal storytelling" online to lend additional cultural context. With participants like GrindWitTryz, Makulit, Shop Halo Halo, Sun Rice, Sugarpine Drive-In, and more, this culinary crawl promises to be as mouthwatering as it is educational. JB
Various locations (Apr 1–30)

World Foods 10 Year Anniversary Past Event Like List
The Pearl District's family-owned specialty grocer World Foods is throwing a bash to mark a decade of business. They'll go all out with appearances from brewers, vendors, and winemakers, plus sidewalk grilling, cocktail specials, and other festivities. JB
World Foods, Pearl District (Sat Apr 13)

LIVE MUSIC

Sleater-Kinney Past Event Like List
PNW rock royalty Sleater-Kinney will stop by their hometown to support their new album Little Rope. The cathartic, post-punk-driven album tackles personal and national grief with nods to the loss of Brownstein's parents and the overturn of Roe v. Wade. In a statement from the band, Brownstein writes "We’re always mixing the personal and the political but on this record, despite obviously thinking so much about politics, we were really thinking about the person—ourselves or versions of ourselves or iterations of depression or loneliness—in the middle of the chaos.” NYC indie rock project Palehound will open. AV
Crystal Ballroom, West End (Fri Apr 5)

Fatoumata Diawara Past Event Like List
Former Stranger writer Jas Keimig once compared Grammy-nominated singer-songwriter Fatoumata Diawara's captivating vocal range to Sade, noting that her unique voice "skips like a rock over water across different registers." Diawara will get the crowd on their feet with her futuristic blend of traditional Malian folk, Wassoulou music, R&B grooves, and fuzzed-out electric guitars that blaze through her latest album London Ko. AV 
Revolution Hall, Buckman (Sat Apr 6)

Eliza McLamb Past Event Like List
I am a regular listener of the feminist philosophy/pop culture podcast Binchtopia—a "Binchie" to be precise (IYKYK)—so, the fact that I will be in the presence of my parasocial bestie Eliza McLamb this month has me shaking in my boots. If you know anything about her podcast with Julia Hava, then you know that McLamb is incredibly insightful about the trials of girlhood, which is the heart of her debut album, Going Through It. Exploring female friendships ("Glitter"), parentified children ("Bird"), social media addiction ("Modern Woman"), and being mythologized by boys ("Mythologize Me"), the album chronicles her own experiences of growing up through tender folk-tinged lullabies and ferocious indie rock anthems. She will support the album alongside the LA-based indie rock project Mini Trees. AV
Lola's Room, West End (Sat Apr 13)

Chastity Belt Past Event Like List
Chastity Belt's debut album No Regerts instantly transports me to the summer of 2013—driving around Alki Beach in my friend's VW Cabriolet, scheming for beers, complaining about boys, and shouting the lyrics to "Giant Vagina." It isn't just my personal memories that tie this album to the sunny season, but it's the breezy guitars, the lyrics that evoke the freedom of a summer break, and frontwoman Julia Shapiro's free-flowing, full-bodied vocals. When I hear the opening chords of "Black Sail," I swear I can hear the crack of a Rainier beer opening. Now, a decade later, the quartet will play a hometown show to support their latest release, Live Laugh Love, which beautifully showcases their knack for riding the line between satire and sincerity. Don't miss an opening set from the LA-based indie pop trio Peel Dream Magazine. AV
Wonder Ballroom, Eliot (Tues Apr 16)

Kath Bloom Past Event Like List
If you're not yet familiar with the work of Kath Bloom, allow me to introduce you. The Connecticut-born singer-songwriter released a handful of albums in the late '70s/early '80s with the avant-garde guitarist Loren Connors. Both Bloom and Connors individually shine with their emotionally resonant, intuitive style, so their collaborative work is truly transcendent (if you queue it up, be ready to wrap yourself in a blanket and cry for several hours). Bloom's voice is raw, emotive, and often sounds as if she's on the edge of tears, crooning poet lyrics about physical and emotional closeness. Don't miss this rare opportunity to see Bloom on her PNW tour alongside fellow troubadours Cruise Control with Bob and Lila on night one, and the Barry Walker Unit with Steel Fringe on night two. AV
Turn! Turn! Turn!, Humboldt (Apr 17–18)

Portland Gay Men's Chorus: Human/Nature - A Cascade Showcase Past Event Like List
At their annual Earth Day concert, the Portland Gay Men's Chorus (one of the longest-running gay men's choruses in the country!) will celebrate with songs and stories about the human experience on Earth. The program will be centered around the question, "What is our place in this world, and what does it mean to be human?" with themes of individuality, personal perspective, and LGBTQ+ identities. AV
Alberta Abbey, King (Sat Apr 20)

Cheekface Past Event Like List
Cheekface has been around since 2017, but it was four years later that they really captured the voice of our generation with the song "We Need a Bigger Dumpster." KEXP wouldn't stop playing it, and for good reason—with its guitar-driven rhythms and tongue-in-cheek lyrics like "I caught a cold / I coughed on all my friends / Now everyone is coughing on everybody else / And we're coughing on our doctors and our doctors cough out / 'EVERYTHING IS FINE.'" the song is equal parts catchy indie rock and social commentary. Lead singer Greg Katz's talk-singing puts the message front-and-center as we bob our heads and smile wryly to the beat in spite of (because of?) existential dread. Hazy bedroom pop artist Yungatita will open this show. SL
Mississippi Studios, Boise (Mon Apr 22)

Mannequin Pussy Past Event Like List
You can go ahead and file Mannequin Pussy under bands I love whose name I hate (it's not out of prudishness, I promise). Besides, making the effort to overlook an off-putting band name is a telltale sign that the band is really good. The quartet originated in Philadelphia in 2010, and more than a decade later, their sound has gotten more and more refined. In my opinion, their new album I Got Heaven is their greatest accomplishment thus far with melodic post-riot grrrl riffs, cathartic lyricism, and percussion that you can feel in your bones. They will support the album alongside fellow Philly hardcore trio Soul Glo. AV
Wonder Ballroom, Eliot (Mon Apr 29)

PERFORMANCE

Jimbo's Drag Circus World Tour Past Event Like List
Canada's Drag Race season one contestant and unabashed drag clown Jimbo will head to Portland sans bologna to continue her reign as one of the world's most beloved bizarre queens. Prepare yourself for the weirdest show on earth.
LC
Revolution Hall, Buckman (Mon Apr 1)

White Bird Presents: Sydney Dance Company Past Event Like List
Venture outside Portland's hyper-local focused performing arts scene with this single-evening opportunity to see Sydney Dance Company, presented by White Bird. If international dance is something you enjoy, now is a particularly important time to support White Bird, as its founders Walter Jaffe and Paul King (and their still-living cockatoo Barney, the organization's namesake) continue to transition ownership to the new executive director Graham Cole. Named for Latin phrasing for "from within" Sydney Dance's ab [intra] promises "lush cello with ambient electronica" for musical ambiance and movements onstage that explore visceral, impulsive, primal responses. PORTLAND MERCURY ARTS EDITOR SUZETTE SMITH
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, South Park Blocks (Wed Apr 10)

Live Wire Radio: Ijeoma Oluo, John Craigie, Jane Marie, W. Kamau Bell Past Event Like List
Live Wire's spring offerings will continue with another edition of the honest and funny conversational show hosted by Luke Burbank. This time around, featured guests will include self-proclaimed "internet yeller" and New York Times bestselling author Ijeoma Oluo, Portland-based modern-day troubadour John Craigie, Peabody- and Emmy-winning journalist Jane Marie, and sociopolitical comedian W. Kamau Bell, who penned the racial justice workbook Do The Work! with Megan Rapinoe and Kate Schatz. LC
Alberta Rose Theatre, Concordia (Thurs Apr 11)

The Second Annual International Booklover's Burlesque Festival Past Event Like List
Any lit lover will tell you that reading can be a truly titillating experience. Booklover's Burlesque agrees, and since 2016, they've blended on-stage readings by local writers and actors with sexy, body-positive performances inspired by each written piece. For their second annual International Booklover's Burlesque Festival, they'll stage four days of unique shows that spotlight the written word with a side of salacious burlesque, boylesque, and draglesque acts. LC
Various locations (Apr 11–14)

Fertile Ground Festival Past Event Like List
Fertile Ground, which we've described in previous years as "delightfully uncurated," gives itself full permission to go bananas. The affordable 11-day art fest, spearheaded by the Portland Area Theatre Alliance (PATA), dodges the "fringe festival" misnomer with premieres by dozens of local artists, "ensuring that the artistic and financial benefits of the festival stay in Portland." Participants will present staged readings, theatrical workshops, ensemble, multidisciplinary and collaboration-driven work, and a variety of dance, comedy, and film events. LC
Various locations (Apr 12–21)

Grand Kyiv Ballet: Swan Lake Past Event Like List
Chances are good that you're already familiar with this ethereal story of love, agency, and good versus evil. Swan Lake is a must-see for the uninitiated, and a graceful reminder of ballet's power for die-hard fans. Crafted with precision, prime dancers from the Ukrainian National Opera and Ballet Theater will bring this adaptation of the wing-flapping masterpiece to life. Here's your chance to immerse yourself in the tale of Prince Siegfried and Odette, Queen of the Swans, set to Tchaikovsky’s original score. LC
Newmark Theatre, South Park Blocks (Sun Apr 21)

READINGS & TALKS

Everybody Reads 2024: Gabrielle Zevin Past Event Like List
If you follow the goings-on in contemporary literature, you've probably heard more than a few nods to Gabrielle Zevin’s Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, and Tomorrow, which was released in 2022 to significant fanfare, including New York Times bestseller status and a lofty 4.18 review ranking on Goodreads. In my opinion, one of the book's merits is that it might get your non-reader friends to pick it up: The plot follows three friends who begin a video game company together. (This perked up my partner's ears–try it yourself.) The tome was also the chosen book for the Multnomah County Library's 2024 Everybody Reads program, which offers free copies of the book available at all Multnomah County Library branches. This culminating talk with the author will double as a celebration of "the power of books to create a stronger community." LC
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, South Park Blocks (Thurs Apr 4)

Portland Arts & Lectures: Aimee Nezhukumatathil Past Event Like List
My first encounter with poet Aimee Nezhukumatathil's work was 2018's Oceanic, an astonishing nature-inspired collection that felt crystalline and sharp. I've come to rely on Nezhukumatathil's poetry as a reminder that all is not lost—in fact, some things about the world we live in are genuinely all right. You'll find evidence of this in the New York Times bestseller World of Wonders: In Praise of Fireflies, Whale Sharks, and Other Astonishments, which was also a finalist for the Kirkus Prize and the Southern Book Prize. The book is peppered with Fumi Nakamura's organic illustrations, including this very important rendering of an axolotl. LC
Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, South Park Blocks (Thurs Apr 18)

TEDxPortland 2024 Past Event Like List
If you've ever yearned to hear the phrase "welcome to my TED talk" in real life, well, here's your chance. This year's TEDxPortland conference, which is on an "alchemy" theme, features talks and performances that meet Portland at its current transition point to imagine possibilities for diversity, technological advancement, and increased intention. Featured guests include "accidental middle-aged influencer" Lou Featherstone, James Beard Award-winning chef Gabriel Rucker, Children's Institute CEO Kali Thorne Ladd, indie folk outfit Y La Bamba, and many others. LC
Keller Auditorium, Downtown (Sat Apr 27)

SPORTS & RECREATION

NCAA Women's Basketball Championship Past Event Like List
Get ready for Women's March Madness to come to town! Division One regionals are split between Portland and Albany, New York in the second-ever two-site format (and we all know the better site; here). There will be six games across four days, and you can treat yourself to an all-access pass or just grab a single-day ticket. Sign up for the NCAA Fan Experience to get your pic with the National Championship Trophy, say hi to a former NCAA player or coach, and more. It's going to be six years until we host the Final Four again, so we recommend that college basketball fans jump on this opportunity. SL
Moda Center, Lloyd District (Mon Apr 1)

2024 Nike Hoop Summit Past Event Like List
Portland is a basketball city. If you need proof, let me point you to the fact that we've hosted the Nike Hoop Summit since 2008, bringing the best basketball-playing high school seniors from around the country to compete against world teams of the top international players 19-and-younger. Thirty-seven Hoop Summit alums have been recognized as NBA All-Stars, including KD, Kyrie Irving, and Zion Williamson (whose recent viral alley-oop slam might just earn him the "Dunk of the Year" award). This is only the second year of the women's game, and I'm excited for the chance to see future WNBA stars. SL
Moda Center, Lloyd District (Sat Apr 13)

The One Motorcycle Show Past Event Like List
The family behind See See Motor Coffee Co. gears up for the 15th installment of their celebration of unconventional bikes and the unconventional humans who ride them. Check out over 300 custom motorcycles, a helmet art exhibit, freestyle stunt shows, and even "motorcycle drill teams." The show returns to the historic Zidell Yards, a fittingly gritty backdrop for all things moto. New this year: an indoor flat track race at the Expo Center on Friday night. SL
Zidell Barge Building, South Waterfront (Apr 19–21)

SPRING

2024 Wooden Shoe Tulip Festival Past Event Like List
After a particularly grueling 2023 season (atmospheric rivers to start and a heatwave to finish), the Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm promises to come back better than ever this year for their 40th annual fest. Make sure you snag tickets in advance—they're only available online. We recommend a weekday visit to beat the crowds and boost your mood—after all, who doesn't love playing hooky to dance in 40 acres of flowers against the majestic backdrop of Mount Hood? SL
Wooden Shoe Tulip Farm, Woodburn (Apr 1–May 5)

Oregon Spring Cleanup Past Event Like List
In honor of Earth Day, environmental nonprofit SOLVE puts on its biggest annual event with numerous volunteer opportunities that invite you and your friends and family to help make our planet cleaner and greener. From beach cleanups to mulching projects, there's something for all kinds of volunteers (green thumb or not). The statewide effort kicks off on April 13, a majority of the events are scheduled for Saturday, April 20, and the cleanup concludes on Earth Day, April 22. SL
Various locations (Apr 13–22)

VISUAL ART & EXHIBITS

Heidi Schwegler: Existential Action Thriller Remind Like List
I've followed Heidi Schwegler's art practice for years, and it's not just because I used to be her catsitter. Schwegler alters and re-casts everyday objects to create eerie integrations and uncanny hybrid forms, prompting an endless barrage of questions. In Existential Action Thriller, the inquiries continue—a hand-braided cotton rug purchased on eBay melds with a strand of hair, a cat’s claw, remnants of a corn chip, and a splash of wine. It all sounds pretty typical within a domestic sphere, but don't be fooled. "Our domestic objects absorb memory as the events that make up our lives are forever crystalized in their materiality," says Schwegler. LC
PCC Sylvania Campus, Southwest Portland (Apr 1–May 16)

Tyrannosaurs - Meet the Family Remind Like List
As a child, I begged my mom to take me to a "fossil digging" experience staged in an old Chuck E. Cheese, where kids were given a shovel and a sifter and let loose in a swimming pool-sized sand pit to hunt for petrified remains. I had the time of my life, came away with dozens of fossils, and it only hit me about five minutes ago that they were probably all fake. Point is, dinosaurs evoke strong emotions. "Tyrannosaurs – Meet the Family brings the latest tyrannosaur discoveries to life, overturning preconceptions about these ferocious predators," OMSI's promotional materials read. Okay, so do we have T. rex's vibes all wrong? Have we been slandering their name for...let's see...66 million years? This exhibition seems like a solid way to find out. Head to OMSI to learn about tyrannosaurs through real and replica specimens, fossils, three life-sized reconstructed skeletons, and a "30-foot tunnel where you can watch tyrannosaurs exploring modern-day Portland." LC
OMSI, Central Eastside (Apr 2–Sept 8)

Re:Generation – Manifesting at the Peach Blossom Spring Remind Like List
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 (Apr 4–May 4)

MODULATIONS: Nathan Paul Rice and Ellen Robinette Remind Like List
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 (Apr 6–May 4)

Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks Remind Like List
Future Now: Virtual Sneakers to Cutting-Edge Kicks, which comes to the Portland Art Museum by way of Canada's Bata Shoe Museum, features almost 60 "futuristic" footwear designs created with ultra-modern technologies and materials. (If you could actually imagine yourself sporting the auto-lacing Nike MAG, this one's for you.) This might be your only chance to scope out 3D-printed shoes, repurposed ocean plastics, and mushroom leather within a museum space, so don't miss out. LC
Portland Art Museum, South Park Blocks (Apr 4–Aug 11)

Math Bass: Full Body Parentheses Remind Like List
Math Bass's latest is a mid-career survey of the Los Angeles-based abstract artist's sculptural pieces, site-specific murals, and paintings. Bass began their practice in the performance art realm, but expanded their visual lexicon to include many mediums—and the graphic, symbolic style for which they're best known—over time. In Full Body Parentheses, Bass’s sculptures "animate and complicate those more familiar, flattened forms, creating a resonant, playful world of iconic objects." LC
lumber room, Pearl District (Apr 13–July 13)

Targeted / 100+ Kites Past Event Like List
Inspired by Refaat Al-Areer’s poem If I Must Die (which I implore you to read before continuing to skim this blurb), this installation pays tribute to the journalists and media workers who have documented the unfolding genocide in Gaza. Refaat Al-Areer was a respected writer and professor who was killed in an airstrike by the Israeli military on December 6, along with six members of his immediate family. Proceeds from Targeted / 100+ Kites will be donated to Gaza relief efforts (Palestinian Children’s Relief Fund, Committee to Protect Journalists, and Anera specifically). LC
Performance Works NorthWest, Foster-Powell (Apr 17–18)