Arts & Media❯Galleries

Each year, Milagro observes Día de Muertos with the premiere of a new production, altar displays, and community events with the Día de Muertos Festival. The Centerpiece event of the 31st Annual Día de los Muertos Celebration is Marigolds y Memorias, an original devised production inspired by the traveling carpa tradition, in which humor, music, and storytelling come together in a vibrant theatrical journey. Guided by an elder, a younger generation learns o build an altart, the heart of Día de Muertos, discovering the meaning behind each of its elements, from candles and marigolds to photographs, ofrendas, and cherished recuerdos. Through song, dance, and short theatrical vignettes, the altar gradually takes shape as an act of remembrance and cultural inheritance, inviting audiences to consider how traditions are taught, how memory is kept alive, and what is carried forward when we share rituals across generations.

Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a long-honored tradition with roots in Indigenous Mexican culture. Día de Muertos is observed annually in Mexican and other Latin American cultures on November 1st and 2nd as a remembrance of those who have passed. Individuals and families who honor this day set up ofrendas (altars) with offerings to their departed loved ones. Typical offerings include marigolds, calaveras, photos of the dead, and traditional food like “pan de muerto.”

Each year, Milagro observes Día de Muertos with the premiere of a new production, altar displays, and community events with the Día de Muertos Festival.

Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) is a long-honored tradition with roots in Indigenous Mexican culture. Día de Muertos is observed annually in Mexican and other Latin American cultures on November 1st and 2nd as a remembrance of those who have passed. Individuals and families who honor this day set up ofrendas (altars) with offerings to their departed loved ones. Typical offerings include marigolds, calaveras, photos of the dead, and traditional food like “pan de muerto.”

Monday Mic Night is an open mic event. Bring whatever you’d like to share—music, poetry, a soliloquy, a painting, even a magic trick. All ages and talent levels are welcome. Non-performing audience members are welcome too.

This event is free, all ages, and open to the public.

Date: Monday, November 9
Time: 7-9pm (Signups start at 6:30pm)
Location: Sherwood Center for the Arts, Maera Boughey Theatre
22689 SW Pine Street, Sherwood OR 97140

More information at our website: Monday Mic Night | Sherwood Center for the Arts

The Imperfecta Gallery, in collaboration with North Pole Studio, is proud to present The Island of Misfit Toys. This exhibition presents work by Portland-based artist Davis Wohlford. Every year, Davis Wohlford's art practice gives form to an evolving cast of handmade toys. Inspired by the fictional place of The Island of Misfit Toys, its characters occupy the margins of conventional narratives, finding possibility in their differences and agency in their own stories. Hand-sewn, machine-stitched, felted, painted and sculpted from wood and assembled from found objects, Davis's endlessly resourceful approach to materials yields creations that suggest personalities and histories beyond their physical forms. These are not simply objects to be observed; they are created to be played with, loved, and to inspire one's imagination. The toys welcome you to explore an alternate world of their own, an immersive world that Davis builds and shares with his audience. This year, that world expands into performance. Handcrafted puppets take the stage alongside a musical accompaniment, while familiar fairy tales are dismantled, reimagined, and given unexpected trajectories.

Opening Reception: November 5, 5–8 p.m.

Davis Wohlford is a prolific, lifelong artist and the co-founder of North Pole Studio. His work is deeply influenced by characters, stories, and fables that resonate with him and bring narratives to life through diverse media. Davis' works depict a vast array of interconnected characters and fantastical subjects who inhabit North Pole Jr., a self-constructed, multidimensional magical land that Davis has developed over time. His art is a window into this imaginative world, where whimsy and complexity coexist, and every piece is a chapter in an ongoing narrative. Davis is also deeply engaged in re-imagining classic books and movies, exploring playwriting, filmmaking, and animation. This multifaceted creative practice reflects Davis's belief in the power of storytelling as a means of both personal expression and universal connection. Whether through the visual richness of his paintings or the dynamic exploration of narrative in his written and filmed work, Davis Wohlford's art reflects his boundless imagination and his desire to craft worlds that invite others to explore and find meaning in the stories he creates.

The Imperfecta Gallery, in collaboration with North Pole Studio, is proud to present a Puppet Show by Davis Wohlford. Join a delightful, wondrous afternoon, filled with fantastical puppets, toys and imagination.

Davis Wohlford is a prolific, lifelong artist and the co-founder of North Pole Studio. His work is deeply influenced by characters, stories, and fables that resonate with him and bring narratives to life through diverse media. Davis' works depict a vast array of interconnected characters and fantastical subjects who inhabit North Pole Jr., a self-constructed, multidimensional magical land that Davis has developed over time. His art is a window into this imaginative world, where whimsy and complexity coexist, and every piece is a chapter in an ongoing narrative. Davis is also deeply engaged in re-imagining classic books and movies, exploring playwriting, filmmaking, and animation. This multifaceted creative practice reflects Davis's belief in the power of storytelling as a means of both personal expression and universal connection. Whether through the visual richness of his paintings or the dynamic exploration of narrative in his written and filmed work, Davis Wohlford's art reflects his boundless imagination and his desire to craft worlds that invite others to explore and find meaning in the stories he creates.

PLUS PLUS Fest invites you to dissolve your boundaries, question everything and reimagine what could be.

PLUS PLUS is a 4-day festival celebrating bold storytelling across mediums. It is an exploration of art forms converging, where art, music, comedy, film and conversation collide. Join PAM CUT at the Portland Art Museum, the Whitsell, and the Tomorrow Theater for this yearly festival of unbound storytelling.

The Saloon Ensemble‘s epic all-ages production of The Nitemare B4 Xmas is back. Featuring Kylee Wegner as Jack, Patrica Charms as Sally, Jason Wells as The Mayor, Noah Veil as Oogie Boogie, Dan Stauffer as Dr. F, Phil Sano as Sandy Claws, Richard Cawley, Iris Asher, and Stacey Ludlow as Lock, Shock, and Barrel, Julia Andalora as Zero, plus Jon Vancura on sax, Mike Danner on accordion, Jeremy Baron on mandolin, and Joe Hagel on drums.

Portland's legendary performance troupe, The Saloon Ensemble, will once again bring to the stage a live performance of the brilliant score complete with interactive sing-along, a costume contest, everyone's favorite screaming contest and many other 'horrible' surprises.

Celebrate the Halloween season with the annual production that's been packing houses and delivering joyous fun for all spirits, young and old.

One Last Gathering of the Crows. Join Darcelle XV Plaza for the Wildwood: Follow the Crows Farewell Weekend. After soaring across Portland all season, all 30 spectacular crow sculptures are coming together for one final celebration. This free, family-friendly event is your last chance to see the crows in Portland—and the only opportunity to experience the entire flock in one place.

Meet some of the talented artists behind the crows, collect autographs, take plenty of photos and support OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital through optional donations.

Costumes are highly encouraged. At 2 p.m. on Halloween Day, costumed guests can strut, flap or swoop through the plaza in a festive Costume Parade. Prizes will be awarded in both Adult and Under-18 divisions for:

• People’s Choice
• Best Themed Costume
• Best Crow Costume

Admission is free, and all ages are welcome. Bring your family, gather your flock and help give Portland’s beloved crows a send-off to remember.

This fall, Portland welcomes an extraordinary celebration of classical ballet as PRIMA Ballet Gala brings together artists of the Grand Kyiv Ballet and international guest performers for one unforgettable night.

More than a performance, PRIMA Ballet Gala is a night of elevated artistry – where timeless classics meet contemporary expression, and the stage becomes a space of beauty, power, and emotion.

The program features iconic highlights from world-renowned ballets including Don Quixote, Spartacus, and The Dying Swan, alongside vibrant national dance such as the thrilling Hopak, set to music by legendary composers including Tchaikovsky.

Begin your evening on the red carpet, then step inside for a celebration of artistic excellence and international cultural connection.
Guests are warmly encouraged to attend in the evening attire, helping create an atmosphere of elegance worthy of this special occasion.

Join us for a rare opportunity to experience world-class dancers, timeless choreography, and a night filled with beauty and inspiration.

Seats are limited. Be part of PRIMA Ballet Gala — where ballet speaks from the heart.

Stephen Mallatratt’s The Woman in Black has been terrifying audiences since its London debut in 1987 and is one of the most successful and terrifying shows in West End history. Based on Susan Hill’s beloved novel, it’s one of the most celebrated ghost stories ever staged: atmospheric, relentless, and the kind of theatrical experience that makes you question every shadow on your way to the car.

Set in a remote English village, it follows a young lawyer unraveling the secrets of a recently deceased client and the vengeful presence that doesn’t want him to. Just two actors portray all the characters, leaning into what B&B’s performers do best.

Chilling, clever, and unforgettable. Halloween is back at Bag&Baggage.

Sat, Oct. 24th – ASL Interpreted Performance
Sun, Oct. 25th – Audio Described Performance

Church of Art's collaborative neurographics is a mindfulness-based creative activity that provides therapeutic relaxation through intuitive mark-making on a grand scale. For this mindfulness-based collaborative art activity, Church of Art will cover a long row of tables with a roll of paper and acrylic paint pens in a variety of sizes and colors. Participants will move freely around the table, filling the paper with sweeping, colorful doodles to the sounds of calming music. The giant scale allows for whole-arm movements, which signal brains to move out of fight-or-flight mode and into a state of mental relaxation and improved focus. The collaborative aspect of this workshop teaches one to let go of perfection and expectation through shared creative exploration, while working large encourages greater freedom of expression.

Neurographic art is a relatively new form of focused, intentional mark-making that uses curved, bold lines, vibrant colors and calming patterns. Physician and neurographics practitioner Ruben Halperin, M.D., will be the guide, co-facilitating this workshop with artist and Church of Art founder, Erika Halperin.

Immerse yourself in this beneficial form of meditative doodling and experience the mood-boosting effect of creativity coupled with community gathering.

Using paper and acrylic markers. All materials and supplies are provided by the studio.

Tickets Include:

• 2 hours of guided creative exploration in a supportive, friendly environment with all supplies included.
• Light snacks and non-alcoholic beverages are included.
• That wonderful feeling of joy and connectedness that comes from a few hours of in-person artistic play with other adults.

Ekklesia Theatre launches its “Love Your Neighbor” season with Will Eno’s funny, haunting “Middletown,” Oct. 23-Nov. 1 at Magenta Theater, in partnership with NAMI Southwest Washington. The play follows an unlikely friendship between longtime Middletown resident John Dodge and newcomer Mary Swanson. Around them, a librarian, a mechanic, a police officer, tourists and other townspeople try to make sense of their lives — and one another. Their paths cross in surprising ways, taking audiences everywhere from a library to outer space. Shows are 7:30 p.m. Fridays and Saturdays from Oct. 23-31 and 2 p.m. Sundays through Nov. 1 at 1108 Main St., Vancouver. NAMI Southwest Washington will be at the theater after performances on Oct. 25 and 30 to discuss loneliness and mental health. Plays are recommended for viewers age 13 and older. Tickets are $15 at ekklesiatheatre.com/tickets.

Celebrating 20 years of cinema, culture, and community—a very special milestone celebrating two decades of building bridges between Latin America and Portland through film.

Over these 20 years, the stories have made audiences laugh, reflect, and feel deeply, while offering new perspectives on identity, collective memory, and cultural diversity. What began as a dream has grown into a vibrant community of filmmakers, artists, volunteers, sponsors, and audience members who believe in the power of cinema to bring the community closer together.

This year features the generous collaboration of musician and composer José Manuel Aguilera, who has authorized the use of his song "Confabulario"—from the album *Tinta negra y roja*—as the official theme for this anniversary edition. The official poster for the twentieth edition was designed by Gilberto Martínez and inspired by the work of renowned graphic artist Joel Rendón. Its visual power and rich symbolism reflect the creative spirit and cultural diversity that have defined the festival over the past two decades.

Join the Harvest Celebration, a one-of-a-kind evening where the worlds of art and wine come together in the heart of Portland. Presented by the Portland Art Museum and the Willamette Valley Wineries Association, this immersive tasting experience celebrates the creativity, craftsmanship, and intersection between artists and winemakers. Enjoy wines from 50 Willamette Valley wineries alongside engaging artistic experiences, seasonal culinary offerings, and opportunities for discovery throughout the evening.

Each artist will be paired with a collection of participating wineries, creating unique intersections between visual art and winemaking. Meet the artists, learn about their creative process, and discover how artistic expression and winegrowing share a common foundation.

The evening will also feature a live artist creating work in real time, offering guests a firsthand look at the creative process. Interactive experiences invite attendees to become creators themselves, including opportunities to design a custom wine label and blend a personalized spice mix to take home. Guests can further extend their experience by exploring works available through the Portland Art Museum’s Rental Sales Gallery, offering an opportunity to bring a piece of local art home and continue the experience long after the event concludes.

In Smith Claudel's third solo exhibition with Carnation Contemporary, the yard is both a symbol and a physical source material, juxtaposing the enclosure of nature and its display with the control of the body. In this exhibition, temporary sculptures of raw clay, harvested from the artist’s yard, will soon return to the earth. A series of botanical drawings was made with the artist's menstrual blood. And a site-specific installation displays a collection of yard work specimens: a small patch of grass unnaturally maintained, nail enamel coating unfired pinch pots, and plant clippings caught in resin.

Yard Work examines the absurdity and care of maintaining one's landscape, and the tension between being kept and being desired.

Kim Smith Claudel is an artist and visual designer based in Portland, Oregon. Working across painting, sculpture, and installation, Smith Claudel creates work that exists in deliberate flux. Her process-driven approach embraces the ephemeral, the decaying, and the mundane, building visual systems that resist completion. Her work has been exhibited nationally and internationally, including a recent solo exhibition (End Cycle) at The Vestibule in Seattle. Other recent solo exhibitions include The Arts Center (Corvallis, OR), The Painting Center (NYC), Mt. Hood Community College (OR), and KyotoBA (Japan). Recent residencies include Building 5 in Portland and the Boston Center for the Arts. She holds an MFA from the School of Visual Arts. She received an MS in Media Arts and Sciences from the MIT Media Lab, where she was a Learning Innovation Fellow. She is a member of Carnation Contemporary Gallery and the WAVE artist collective.

Opening Saturday, October 03, 5–8 p.m.

Doomsday is an MF Doom-themed group art exhibition celebrating the life, legacy, music, and unmistakable visual identity of one of hip-hop’s most influential and mysterious artists. Presented in partnership with Unspoken and More Than February Art Gallery, the exhibition brings together a diverse group of artists working across painting, illustration, sculpture, design, fashion, and mixed media to reinterpret the world of MF Doom through their own creative lens.

Timed around the anniversary of Doom's passing, Doomsday is both a tribute and a celebration—honoring an artist whose impact extended far beyond music. From the iconic metal mask and comic-book-inspired mythology to his intricate lyricism, production, and independent spirit, MF Doom created a universe that continues to inspire artists, musicians, designers, and fans around the world.

The exhibition will feature original artwork and special installations inspired by Doom, including sculpture, collectible objects, apparel, prints, collaborative pieces, and one-of-a-kind interpretations of the mask and character. Guests will also be able to experience interactive elements including an MF Doom-inspired photo booth, music, merchandise, raffles, and special collaborations created specifically for the exhibition. At its core, Doomsday is about bringing together art, hip-hop, community, and independent creativity while giving artists a space to celebrate a cultural figure whose influence remains deeply present.

Opening Reception: Thursday 6 p.m.–9 p.m.

Fred Armisen is a comedian, writer, producer, and musician. He is the co-writer and co-star of IFC’s Emmy-nominated series Portlandia. He is in the hit Netflix series Wednesday as Uncle Fester. He stars in HBO’s Los Espookys, which he co-wrote and executive-produced. He can also be heard in the hit animated movie Super Mario Bros. Armisen stars in, writes, and produces IFC’s hit show Documentary Now. He has also appeared in HBO’s Our Flag Means Death, Judd Apatow’s The Bubble, and Amazon’s series Forever. He voices characters in Big Mouth and The Mitchells vs. The Machines. He is currently starring in the Broadway play All In. Armisen is an 11-season veteran of Saturday Night Live. From 2014-2024, Armisen was the band leader of the 8G Band on Late Night with Seth Meyers.

Ghost Show! is the story of a group of people who have found themselves at the lowest point in their lives — making a low-budget ghost hunting show that’s in last place in the local ratings. But an accidental death (is she dead, though?) leads to a boost in engagement…and a whole new set of problems. Filmed both behind the scenes and as in-universe episodes of the show, Ghost Show! is all about failure, found family, and trying to make meaning out of the ghosts of the past — and future.

Join the Tiny Park Productions team at Twilight Theater for the launch party of the pilot reading of Ghost Show! Not only will you see and hear the first official reading of the pilot script, but you’ll also get to enjoy fun, spooky-season-themed activities and treats — think of it as a theatrical carnival.

There will also be a costume contest with Door Prizes, so Halloween costumes are encouraged.

Tickets include a free raffle ticket. Prizes include real ghost-hunting gear.

Nuwave Runway is a celebration of the Pacific Northwest fashion community and the many designers, models, creatives, businesses, nonprofits, and organizations that make it unique. This year’s theme is “Awareness,” focusing on increasing visibility of the fashion industry in the PNW and highlighting communities and talent that deserve more recognition.

The evening will begin with a pre-show dinner social at 6:00 p.m., followed by the fashion show at 7:00 p.m., featuring over nine designers from across the Pacific Northwest, showcasing their unique designs and perspectives on the runway.
Throughout the show, designers will have an opportunity to introduce themselves, share the stories and inspiration behind their designs, and talk about who they are. Select sponsors will also have the opportunity to speak about their fashion-related business or nonprofit, helping connect the audience with organizations contributing to the growth of the PNW fashion community. The dress code is to wear anything fun and fashionable in your own way.

Join the Farewell Weekend at Darcelle XV Plaza. See the entire flock gathered together for the first—and final—time before the sculptures head to auction in support of OHSU Doernbecher Children’s Hospital.

Choreographer Lai Hung-Chung makes dances of striking beauty and intention. “Birdy,” his captivating signature work for Hung Dance, moves between suspense and explosive energy, between the weight of tradition and the pull toward something new. Hung Dance blends traditional Chinese arts, including tai chi, Peking Opera, and classical Chinese music, with contemporary dance technique and driving electronic music, creating work that is poetic and rhythmic at once. What audiences see on stage is a world in constant transformation, where bodies bend and resist, images linger, and the tension between holding on and letting go becomes the dance itself.

TAIPEI CITY, TAIWAN

Birdy

“…a dreamy sensibility with astonishing athleticism in culturally sensitive modern dance performance.” —Charlie Smith, Pancouver

Sponsored by George & Nancy Thorn. White Bird’s Uncaged Series Sponsor: Ronni Lacroute

The Friday and Saturday performances will have pre-show talks. Come early to hear from the dancers from 6:15–6:45 PM. No ticket needed.

Join us November 3rd for the Hung Dance Lecture Demonstration, FREE with RSVP here .

Adornment is often reserved for the aristocracy. The common person is expected to wear plain colors and utilitarian shapes meant for labor; clothes that blend in. In Loose Threads and Raw Edges, the GMS Collective explores adornment as a form of identity. The exhibition celebrates our artists’ love of color, texture, and responsiveness to material. These creations are meant to be seen and felt. They are the antithesis of the erasure that many artists experience in this capitalist society.

First and foremost, the GMS artists create for themselves. In a world obsessed with production, efficiency, and exploitation, it is a solace to experience art made to fulfill individual creative impulses rather than be commodified. This exhibition asks, “How can I make the most creative impact with the least amount of environmental impact?” In the hands of the GMS artists, simple threads, notions, and trims are alchemized through countless hours of experimentation. Gold spun from rubbish. Discarded textiles are treated like jewels, meticulously assembled into garments and tapestries fit for royalty — creating a kingdom of one’s own.

Funded in part by the Regional Arts & Culture Council and the Arts Access Fund.

Show Opening: Thursday, September 3, 2026, 5:30–7:30 p.m.
Gather:Make:Shelter Group Exhibition

Third Rail Repertory Theatre gives the stage to its neighbors. Off the Rails is a storytelling series built from true stories that community members shape in Third Rail’s workshops, then perform live. Four evenings across the season.

You will not know what you are getting until someone starts talking, which is the appeal. Take one night or take all four.

Marigolds y Memorias is an original devised production inspired by the traveling carpa tradition, in which humor, music, and storytelling come together in a vibrant theatrical journey. Guided by an elder, a younger generation learns to build an altar, the heart of Día de Muertos, discovering the meaning behind each of its elements, from candles and marigolds to photographs, ofrendas, and cherished recuerdos. Through song, dance, and short theatrical vignettes, the altar gradually takes shape as an act of remembrance and cultural inheritance, inviting audiences to consider how traditions are taught, how memory is kept alive, and what is carried forward when we share rituals across generations.

Age Recommendation: All Ages
Estimated Running Time: 1 hour 30 minutes, including one intermission

Ticket Availability:

• Season Packages: Tickets may be secured now when you purchase a Milagro Season Package, offering savings of 12.5% – 20%, depending on the package specified.
  To see package options, please CLICK HERE.
• Group Sales: Groups of 10+ may book now to order.
  Please CLICK HERE to send us an email with your desired performance date/time, the number of tickets you are seeking.
  Your order will not be processed until after we have confirmed with you. Someone will respond to your email within approximately 72 hours.
• Single Tickets: On sale beginning Friday, August 21, 2026

Single Tickets:
Adults – $32
Seniors 50+ – $28
Students – $24

SHOW TIMES:

Join Portland Japanese Garden and experience the awe-inspiring artistry of NUNO, the iconic Japanese textile design studio. Featuring vibrant and compelling fabrics produced across eight specific regions of Japan, NUNO’s championing of small-community makers illuminates the breadth and depth of contemporary Japanese textile design. This unforgettable exhibition includes site-specific installations and a hands-on touch wall that will make you rethink your relationship to cloth.

Step into a slippery world where the line between truth and fiction is all in the packaging. It’s 1936, and a pair of passionate filmmakers has landed their next big project: a sweeping Spanish Civil War film with the potential to change American hearts and minds. It just happens to be bankrolled by the KGB. Spain by Jen Silverman is a seductive and tense thriller about the power of art to change the world — for better and for worse.

by Jen Silverman, directed by Josh Hecht

One of the most ambitious productions in recent Profile history, Spain is a grand cross-disciplinary spectacle featuring multiple partnerships with arts organizations throughout Portland, including live opera developed in partnership with Portland Opera, and both recorded and live music performed by musicians with 45th Parallel.

Ever wonder what happens when exes meet for dinner? Douglas Lyons’s Table 17 dives into just that, bringing you Jada and Dallas, two people revisiting their past relationship. What begins as a simple catch-up quickly unravels, moving between humor and honesty. You’ll discover their spark, the eventual unraveling, and the lingering question: what if?

Directed by Charles Grant, this play invites you into a single night holding years of love, mischief, and unspoken words. It’s set in Bianca’s Restaurant, where your seat is part of the world. Choose a floor table, a riser, or a traditional theatre seat. You’re in the story. Go see it!

Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian

ALL SALES ARE FINAL. PLEASE, DOUBLE CHECK YOUR ORDER BEFORE PURCHASING. NO REFUNDS.

Anish Kapoor: Dissolving Margins, from the Collections of Jordan D. Schnitzer and His Family Foundation, is a bold and expansive exploration of nearly four decades of Kapoor’s printmaking practice and marks the artist’s first retrospective survey dedicated to this collaborative and technical practice. This exhibition presents an immense catalog of the artist’s printmaking–over 150 prints spanning from his earliest experiments to his most recent work.

Visit the exhibition, meet the curator, and enjoy light refreshments on the evening of October 22, 5 p.m.

For lovers of the strange, unusual and bizarre, the Oddities and Curiosities Expo showcases hand-selected vendors, dealers, artists and small businesses from all over the country with all things weird. You’ll find items such as taxidermy, preserved specimens, original artwork, horror/Halloween-inspired pieces, antiques, handcrafted oddities, quack medical devices, creepy clothing, odd jewelry, animal skulls/bones, funeral collectibles, and more. There is something weird for everyone. All items you see at the shows are legal to own and sustainably sourced.

In this live Dungeons and Dragons show, comedians and performers take to the stage to play some theater games, share some jokes, and play some D&D.

This season of Magic Tea Party, you will join Dungeon Master Juliet Mylan, who will lead:

• Cosmo Reynolds (as Joey, just some guy with a ukulele that frequents Portland open mics)
• Jenna Britann (as Holbrook, a 165,786,084 yr old dilophosaurus),
• Riley McCarthy (as Enoch "Nucky" Fallstar, an apostle of the doomsday cult Threshold of Paradise with some unorthodox powers)

Audience members will take part in controlling the players' fate as they navigate an AU magical Portland in a series of side quests to gather magical artifacts for MOMSI (that's Magical OMSI for the layperson). The show can include strong adult themes and language, so if you bring your 8-year-old, just know they may learn something you were hoping to discuss with them after they hit puberty. Recommended for ages 16+ and parental guidance for those younger.

Small concessions booth with snacks, sodas, seltzers, beer, and wine available at the show. A coffee shop is located in front of the theater, and beverages are welcome in the theater. Tickets are GAYAF (Give As You’re Able Friend) with a suggested donation of $20 to compensate the performers and keep this independent LGBTQ theater running.

Set in turn-of-the century New York City, Newsies is the rousing tale of Jack Kelly, a charismatic newsboy and leader of a band of teenaged “newsies.” When titans of publishing raise distribution prices at the newsboys’ expense, Jack rallies newsies from across the city to strike against the unfair conditions and fight for what’s right!

Based on the 1992 motion picture and inspired by a true story, Newsies features a Tony Award-winning score by Alan Menken (Little Shop of Horrors, Sister Act) and Jack Feldman and a book by Tony Award winner Harvey Fierstein (Kinky Boots). Featuring the now classic songs “Carrying the Banner,” “Seize the Day,” and “Santa Fe.”

Fri, Nov 6 from 7-9:30pm

Sat, Nov 7 from 1-3:30pm & 6-8:30pm

Fri, Nov 13 from 7-9:30pm

Sat, Nov 14 from 1-3:30pm & 6-8:30pm

Adult (ages 19 and up) – $22
Youth (ages 2-18) – $20
Senior (ages 62+) – $20
Groups of 15+ –

At Fort Vancouver High School

Glass. Kill. Bluebeard. Imp. is a collection of four short, surreal plays by acclaimed English playwright Caryl Churchill. Premiering at London's Royal Court Theatre in 2019, these darkly imaginative works weave together myth, fairy tale, and contemporary horror. Moving between collective voices and intimate encounters, Churchill explores violence, power, desire, and the stories we tell to make sense of a fractured world. By turns funny, haunting, and unsettling, the plays invite audiences into a landscape where the familiar becomes strange, and ancient myths reveal modern anxieties without explanation or comfort.

A girl made of glass. Gods and murders. A serial killer's friends. And a secret in a bottle.

Four short plays by Caryl Churchill

Directed by Samantha Van Der Merwe

Internationally renowned artist Pipilotti Rist presents her major installation 4th Floor to Mildness in a West Coast premiere and only second exhibition in the U.S.

Pipilotti Rist dissolves exhibition spaces through luminous color, moving imagery, and melodic sound. 4th Floor to Mildness immerses the viewer in a soft, aquatically inspired environment, where a film shot underwater plays across two biomorphic-shaped screens hanging from the ceiling. A soundtrack by experimental musician Soap&Skin/Anja Plaschg adds to the ambience with lyrics about dreams, love, and memories as the camera catches glimpses of floating bodies. Two projected light circles move across the room, enlightening it with visceral hues. For Rist, this light represents a “desire to turn yourself inside out.”

Rist creates conditions for visitors to come together in unconventional ways so that they might better understand their relationships to one another, their own bodies, and nature. In the gallery, raft-like beds provide a place or visitors to rest and share social space as they watch the projection overhead. She asks: “What happens to our perceptions when we don’t have to stand or fight gravity?” The sensation of floating may evoke a sense of returning to an elemental state. For the artist, the work “describes the fantasy of [ourselves] being an organic plant . . . and simulates our dissolution into water, mud, slime, molecules and atoms.”

Originally created for the fourth floor of the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York, PAM adapted the work to the Crumpacker Center with the assistance of the artist’s team at Atelier Rist; production partner Portland Garment Factory, a woman-owned B-corp and zero-waste creative factory, created the curtains, beds, and bed coverings, and Figure Plant engineered and fabricated the hanging screens.

Art in the Burbs was purposefully and creatively designed to weave local artists with student artists. During the show, 20% of each artist’s sales will be retained to benefit The Foundation for Tigard Tualatin Schools’ Art in the Burbs Grant program. Grants are awarded to each of the district’s schools to use only in their arts programs – writing, music, fine art, and performing arts. The Foundation is a 501(c)3 organization.

Art in the Burbs provides a financial vehicle to enrich students’ lives through the arts. Click the button below to see how proceeds from last year’s show were used at your local school.

Anthony Hudson reads from his new collection of performance works Lamp Black: Plays and Other Grievances at Portland Art Museum in the American Art gallery (Level 2, Room 211), paired with Moses Soyer, Girl with a Cigarette.

Followed by book signing at The Shop at PAM.

A major collection of performance works by artist and agitator Anthony Hudson.

Lamp Back: Plays and Other Grievances collects nearly a decade of work by Anthony Hudson, a queer Indigenous artist and agitator also known as Portland, Oregon’s premier drag clown, Carla Rossi. Whether fumbling with a lamp in a satirical takedown of land acknowledgments or confronting the history of redface in pop culture, Hudson alternates between Rossi’s cackling “ghost of white privilege” and more earnest, vulnerable confessionals as himself—all with a deep commitment to bitter humor and brutal honesty. In these performance works, a mixed-race Native boy plays a pilgrim in his kindergarten Thanksgiving pageant. A young artist recounts the racism in their favorite musical and the larger American theater system. A drag queen storytime goes disastrously wrong and calls for an exorcism with a plunger. Kate Bredeson’s unflinching introduction speaks to Hudson’s work through a cultural and historical lens and illuminates the importance of his project to filet the American Empire.

Portland artist Eva Wrzesinski spent months visiting Blanchet House’s free café, drawing portraits of 22 guests while learning about their lives. The result is "At Our Table", a portrait exhibition that invites viewers to see people experiencing poverty, homelessness, addiction, and mental health challenges as unique individuals with stories worth hearing.

The event offers an opportunity to view the portraits and interview Wrzesinski and participating café guests about their experiences.

Each portrait includes excerpts from interviews that explore guests’ memories, relationships, challenges, and hopes for the future.

tell ___ ‘hi’ from me showcases the work of 27 self-taught, neurodivergent artists who live and create in Oregon and are members of the Portland-based Progressive Art Studio, North Pole Studio. This diverse collection of contemporary 2D and 3D works reflects honest creative expression and raw innovation. It invites the viewer to deepen their understanding of the Progressive Art Studio movement and artists working within it, both regionally and nationally. tell ___ ‘hi’ from me offers a warm greeting and a long overdue introduction. It speaks to presence, persistence, and belonging: ‘we’ve always been here, won’t you get to know us?’ … ‘it’s time you get to know us’.

Join us during Hillsboro Art Walk to stroll through the gallery and meet the artists. Enjoy hands-on art activities, refreshments, and more!

Heaven’s Gate (2021)
High-definition 3D 8K video with sound, color; 5 min., 45 sec., loop

A lavish and satirical take on the silver-screen spectacle of Hollywood dreams and excesses, Heaven’s Gate both celebrates collective storytelling and satirizes saturated glamour and stereotypes. The continuously looping video ascends through the seven levels of purgatory, each stage its own unique landscape of visual samples lifted from iconic moments in cinematic history.

Anthology (2025)
Photo–montage printed on wallpaper

Anthology mirrors the way we recall films: as iconic moments, cinematic scenes and emotional cues. By intuitively forming associations between set pieces and characters, Marco Brambilla constructs a compelling “memory timeline”, a series of powerful still images that represent narrative fragments, punctuating the rhythm of cinema across genres and eras.

These curated images resonate not because of their plot context but due to their visual and emotional impact. Chosen for their ability to stand apart, they act as pauses or reflections within the flow of a film’s narrative, exploring how singular moments in film can encapsulate entire stories. Characters and scenes become a visual grammar—pauses, interruptions, and exclamations— underscoring the evolving relationship between image, time, and viewer interpretation in cinema history.

Step into autumn’s splendor as the garden transforms with the colors and textures of chrysanthemums, a flower of nobility and longevity in Chinese culture. Stroll among 81 mum varieties, cascading displays along the waterfall, and sweeping floral sculptures that transform the garden into a living gallery.

From dazzling floral artistry to hands-on learning opportunities, Chrysanthemum Festival is one of the garden's most anticipated annual celebrations—and an unforgettable way to experience Lan Su in fall. Explore this beautiful flower and time of year.

Nov. 5-8 — Nights of the Golden Flower: Immerse yourself in the illuminated works of 18 talented local floral artists and featured designer Toni Tibbits as they interpret this year’s theme, Golden Blooms Upon Autumn Waters. Plus, enjoy gentle music by Lulu Guzheng Studio, dance performances by YZ Dance Academy, floral jewelry-making, and all-ages fun as you wander among glowing lanterns and vote for your favorite designs of the showcase. Sensory Night November 14.

An empty space. Enter the Poet. He has a story to tell—one he’s been telling for thousands of years, drifting through countless taverns and across countless stages. He invokes the Muses and fills the empty space with a tale at once grandly mythical and strikingly familiar.

Is this a story of antiquity or a story of today?

Told entirely by two performers, a poet and a musician, Lisa Peterson and Denis O’Hare’s An Iliad remixes Homer’s tale, bridging the ancient with the contemporary. In turns humorous and tender, violent and harrowing, An Iliad is a vital examination of the human compulsion towards war, a passionate interrogation of the toll war has on our humanity, and a testament to the power and potential of storytelling.

“An Iliad is pure theater: shocking, glorious, primal and deeply satisfying.”—Time Out New York

Lookout Landscape is an immersive art exhibition by Oregon-based artist and designer David Buckley Borden and a team of collaborators working across forestry, design, and engineering. Inspired by fire lookout towers, trail culture, and backcountry gear, the exhibition invites visitors onto a fabricated “Lookout Trail,” where a series of imaginative scenes—from a trailhead to a weather station, campground, and tool shed—reimagine the visual language of forestry and outdoor culture in the Pacific Northwest.

Blending research, humor, and design, the exhibition explores the complex relationships between people and working forests, with wildfire as an underlying thread. As visitors move through the space, they are encouraged to reflect on how forests are shaped, valued, and cared for, and to consider their own connection to these landscapes.

Puppet show presented by Venezuelan Americans, Melissa and Carlos Bertran. A bilingual (Spanish/English) story from Venezuela. In this story, the tiny heroine thinks herself much too fine to accept the proposal of a common mouse. Instead, she sets her sights on 'worthier' matches, such as the sun, the wind, and the mountain. Yet, her search for the perfect suitor brings her right back to the romantic little mouse who first proposed. This show was developed with the guidance of Venezuelan Americans and features Venezuelan music. A truly bilingual experience!

Espectáculo de títeres presentado por los venezolano-estadounidenses Melissa y Carlos Bertran. Una historia bilingüe (español/inglés) de Venezuela. En esta historia, la pequeña heroína se cree demasiado fina para aceptar la propuesta de matrimonio de un ratón común. En cambio, fija su atención en pretendientes "más dignos", como el sol, el viento y la montaña. Sin embargo, su búsqueda del pretendiente ideal termina llevándola de vuelta al pequeño ratón romántico que fue el primero en pedirle que se casara con él. Este espectáculo fue desarrollado con la guía de venezolano-estadounidenses y tiene música venezolana. ¡Una verdadera experiencia bilingüe!

Portland Art Museum invites the community to join a Free First Thursday event featuring free museum admission for all. This unique day includes a chance to explore the special exhibitions and PAM’s transformed campus and reinstalled permanent collection galleries.

October’s Free First Thursday features a special free film program presented in conjunction with The Stars We Do Not See: Australian Indigenous Art. The screenings celebrate film and video work by and about Aboriginal and Torres Strait Island people, offering another way to explore the stories, histories, and perspectives at the heart of The Stars We Do Not See.

A concise program of staged readings explores what it means to be lost. The lineup includes Words, Words, Words, which turns the classic idea of monkeys at typewriters into a lively exchange among the primates themselves. Sure Thing follows two people in a café as an offstage bell resets their missteps, clearing the path toward a genuine connection. The Items Forgotten centers on spouses Kira and Travis, locked out yet again on a freezing night, whose search for a spare key prompts doubts about memory and marriage. Alfred and Lily and Their Marvelous Tank in the Forest follows two pond dwellers moved to a strange tank by unseen caretakers. Lily embraces the change, while Alfred notices the water receding and neighbors vanishing, raising unsettling questions. Written by David Ives and Tara Meddaugh and directed by Dylan Sladky, this PG-13 program runs about 30 minutes. The venue is open to the public, and donations are welcome but optional. Presented as part of a First Friday performance series.

One Grand Gallery is delighted to welcome back Portland-based Ashley Anson for her second solo exhibition with the gallery. Home Sweet Home expounds on Anson’s fondness for found textiles and materials and processes historically associated with feminine domestic labor. Drawing on traditionally gendered art forms such as quilting and embroidery, she combines textiles with painting and small sculpture to create narratives about the unseen worlds within people’s homes. Home is central to her work, a place that can hold peace, chaos, and danger all at once.

Anson transforms personal family folklore into layered narratives, exploring how stories imagined in childhood are remembered, exaggerated, and reinterpreted across generations. Her work also examines gender roles in art, asking what gives a painting masculine or feminine attributes and whether an artist’s gender can be sensed in the work. By combining the historically male-dominated practice of painting with embroidery and textiles, she challenges conventional distinctions between artistic mediums.

Join the opening reception on Friday, Oct. 30 from 6- 9 p.m. In the spirit of the Halloween season, the opening will transition into a party as the evening approaches. Costumes are strongly encouraged.

In her first solo show, Cathy Aster explores the public and private layers women wear at different life stages. Using image transfer and cut-collage techniques, she creates formal and metaphorical transparencies across a series of 14 images. She bathes the scenes in the autumnal glow provided by vintage magazines, then excavates the images for tenderness, risk and danger. She hooks the viewer with nostalgic images, then transforms the image by revealing unseen psychic realms. The women in Aster’s work look away even as they look directly at you; they look directly at you even as they look away.

Cathy Aster is a cut paper collage artist based in Portland, Oregon. After years of experience working in rare book conservation and digital library settings, she spends her time making art and creating community for collage artists. She has shown work at Alberta Street Gallery, Art at the Cave and Taylor Street Kitchen. She is part of the organizing group of the Pacific Northwest Collage Collective.

Enjoy Leslie McMillan’s one-of-a-kind handcrafted jewelry and painter bd dombrowsky’s visual explorations of the mischievous silver night and the many insights the capricious muse offers.

Painter bd dombrowsky's visual style is derived from an interest in vintage illustrated books — encyclopedias, primers, comics, and stories — all the simple visual devices used as a culture to educate and socialize. Much of their work is informed by myths and folklore, as they retell old stories and weave them into new ones. Drawing on a background in drama, sculpture and printmaking, bd dombrowsky's goal is to craft a resonant space in which these stories can unfold, drawn from a shared mythos but reimagined by the artist and narrated by the viewer.

Jewelry Artist Leslie McMillan

As a jewelry smith, Leslie McMillan is all over the place. To begin with, they have ADHD, so their mind is manic. Leslie roams from fusing gold on steel to traditional silversmithing to bonding Japanese silver leaf. When working with steel and gold, Leslie is drawn to the truth that you cannot control the outcome. When heated high enough to fuse with the steel, the gold takes on a life of its own and travels where it wants to go. When working with sterling silver and natural stones, Leslie follows a more traditional approach. Creating hand-forged settings and sourcing stones from First Nation lapidary artists are fundamental to the work. No matter the process, Leslie relies on inspiration from the great Pacific Northwest and all its natural beauty to influence the final piece.

Last Thursday Opening Reception, Oct. 29, 6–9 p.m.