Learning & Tech❯Talks & Lectures❯Science Pubs

Join Portland Opera for an hour of story and song from their latest production, La Traviata.

From the celebrated and award-winning composer Dave Malloy comes Natasha, Pierre and The Great Comet of 1812, an electropop opera based on a scandalous slice of Leo Tolstoy’s War and Peace. Young and impulsive, Natasha Rostova arrives in Moscow to await the return of her fiancé from the front lines. When she falls under the spell of the roguish Anatole, it is up to Pierre, a family friend in the middle of an existential crisis, to pick up the pieces of her shattered reputation. Following a critically exalted premiere at Ars Nova in New York City, a subsequent off-Broadway transfer and an acclaimed run on Broadway, this award-winning musical expands the possibilities for the genre with its daring score and bold storytelling.

Music and Lyrics By Dave Malloy

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.

Trans-Siberian Orchestra is back with a spectacular new production of The Ghosts of Christmas Eve: The Best of TSO and More – featuring the fan-favorite holiday rock opera alongside TSO classics, and rarely performed gems.

Shows:

November 28 at 3:30pm & 8pm

with Nico Spadafora, Paleontologist, Founder of The Fossil Team

Image credit: artist Hodari Nundu

Please note this event takes place on Wednesday due to Election Night.

We’ve all heard the phrase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Turns out, nature seems to agree! From the fossil record to the animals living around us today, evolution has a funny habit of coming up with the same solutions again and again. Different animals can end up looking remarkably alike and sometimes even behaving alike despite evolving completely independently. This fascinating phenomenon is called convergent evolution.

In this fun and fascinating pub talk, paleontologist Nico Spadafora will take you on a journey through the weird, wonderful, and oddly repetitive world of convergent evolution. We’ll explore how it happens, why evolution keeps repeating itself, and what these evolutionary “reruns” can tell us about the incredible diversity of life on Earth.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Zoom Option
If you are unable to join us in person, you can watch on Zoom. You must register in advance. After registering, you will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Nico Spadafora is the founder of The Fossil Team, an education company and traveling museum dedicated to bringing the wonders of natural history to life. He has spent more than two decades studying paleontology, zoology, and the natural sciences, diving headfirst into the scientific literature and developing a deep knowledge of both living and extinct animals. In his teens, Nico earned an internship at the Oregon Zoo where he studied the anatomy, behavior, and traits of elephants, lions, rhinos, and many other animals. He later took his knowledge into the wild as a professional tracker and wilderness educator with Trackers Earth, following the trails and sign of bears, cougars, elk, and other wild animals. Today, Nico specializes in dinosaurs and prehistoric mammals and loves sharing the strange, spectacular, and sometimes downright bizarre stories hidden in the natural world. When he’s not studying, tracking, or obsessing over animals in the wild, he enjoys movies and games cuddled up with his house panthers Puma and Rufus.

One of the most beloved operas ever written, La Traviata pairs soaring melodies with a deeply personal story of love and sacrifice. At its center is Violetta, an independent woman navigating desire, societal expectation, and the fragile possibility of happiness on her own terms. As romance and reality collide, Verdi’s luminous score reveals the emotional complexity of living authentically in a world determined to impose its rules. Tender, tragic, and timeless, the opera continues to resonate for its compassionate portrayal of Violetta’s vulnerability, resilience, courage as she chooses personal truth in the face of public judgment.

Join us for our next Forest Pub focused on Mushrooms as the Architect of the Forest: Fungi and their Hidden Ecological Roles, an evening of storytelling, science, and community exploration in partnership with the Oregon Mycological Society. This special edition of Forest Pub dives into the fascinating world of fungi and their essential role in forest ecosystems—from decomposition and soil health to the hidden underground networks that connect trees and support forest resilience.

Guests will hear from local mycology expert, Tim Glassman, to learn how mushrooms shape forest ecology and climate health, and discover how fungi support both natural systems and human understanding of the forest. As always, Forest Pub blends science with storytelling in a relaxed, social setting designed to spark curiosity and conversation over a shared love of forests.

Speaker: Tim Glassman is currently the Chair of the Education Committee of the Oregon Mycological Society (OMS). He has been teaching Beginner’s ID and Toxicology to members and is currently creating a new Fungal Ecology class. Tim grew up in Buffalo, New York where he foraged around town riding his bicycle. Since then, he earned a Ph.D. in Inorganic Chemistry from MIT and worked as a Semiconductor Process Engineer at Intel for 21 years. After retiring in 2018 he joined OMS to learn about the diversity of mushrooms in the Pacific Northwest.

We've all heard the phrase, "If it ain't broke, don't fix it." Turns out, nature seems to agree! From the fossil record to the animals living around us today, evolution has a funny habit of coming up with the same solutions again and again. Different animals can end up looking remarkably alike and sometimes even behaving alike despite evolving completely independently. This fascinating phenomenon is called convergent evolution.

In this fun and fascinating pub talk, paleontologist Nico Spadafora will take you on a journey through the weird, wonderful, and oddly repetitive world of convergent evolution. We'll explore how it happens, why evolution keeps repeating itself, and what these evolutionary "reruns" can tell us about the incredible diversity of life on Earth.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Science Pub Mission Theater is a monthly event that is open to anyone and everyone. No scientific background required. Just bring your curiosity, sense of humor, and appetite for food, drinks and knowledge! For more information or to sign up for our mailing list, email: [email protected].

Speed Dating Tonight!
Music & Libretto by Michael Ching
Based on a concept by Dean Anthony

Portland State University’s Opera program kicks off its 50th anniversary season with Michael Ching’s “Speed Dating Tonight!” (2013). Set over the course of a single evening at a local bar, this clever, heartwarming opera follows a revolving cast of singles searching for that elusive spark. There's the dreamer, the hopeless romantic, the bashful, the over-sharer, the chronically distracted, and everyone in between, each getting their moment in the spotlight through music that is equal parts tender, heartbreaking, and hilarious.

Written with duets and ensembles for up to 45 voices, “Speed Dating Tonight!” has a flexible modular structure that can be customized to fit any cast size, voice type, or gender identity. PSU Opera’s version of “Speed Dating Tonight!” features 35 song selections and arrangements specifically chosen to reflect the unique assortment of voices in the 12-member cast.

At its heart, this is a show about the universal human longing to be seen and cherished by another person. Woven through the interactions is another question: can a genuine connection actually happen in five minutes or less? With Michael Ching’s delightful opera, the answer is decidedly yes.

Visit the Speed Dating Tonight! web page to learn more about this production, including additional dates, cast and crew information, photos, and more as we get closer to opening night.

Learn more about the Opera program at Portland State University's School of Music & Theater.

Portland Opera To Go (POGO) proudly presents the latest installment of the Our Oregon series--a collection of original youth operas that examines Oregon history by highlighting the lives of extraordinary Oregonian women through a variety of lenses.

You've all heard the phrase, “If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” Turns out, nature seems to agree. From the fossil record to the animals living today, evolution has a funny habit of coming up with the same solutions again and again. Different animals can end up looking remarkably alike and sometimes even behaving alike despite evolving completely independently. This fascinating phenomenon is called convergent evolution. In this fun and fascinating pub talk, paleontologist Nico Spadafora will take you on a journey through the weird, wonderful, and oddly repetitive world of convergent evolution. Explore how it happens, why evolution keeps repeating itself, and what these evolutionary “reruns” say about the incredible diversity of life on Earth.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Nico Spadafora is the founder of The Fossil Team, an education company and traveling museum dedicated to bringing the wonders of natural history to life. He has spent more than two decades studying paleontology, zoology, and the natural sciences, diving headfirst into the scientific literature and developing a deep knowledge of both living and extinct animals. In his teens, Nico earned an internship at the Oregon Zoo, where he studied the anatomy, behavior, and traits of elephants, lions, rhinos, and many other animals. He later took his knowledge into the wild as a professional tracker and wilderness educator with Trackers Earth, following the trails and signs of bears, cougars, elk, and other wild animals. Today, Nico specializes in dinosaurs and prehistoric mammals and loves sharing the strange, spectacular, and sometimes downright bizarre stories hidden in the natural world. When he’s not studying, tracking, or obsessing over animals in the wild, he enjoys movies and games, cuddled up with his house panthers, Puma and Rufus.

Few conservation behaviors have captured the public’s interest as much as recycling. But sorting your trash and placing it at the curb isn’t recycling . . . it’s just the start of a long and somewhat surprising journey for your empty milk cartons and back issues of Cat Fancy.

• Where do those materials go once in the bin?
• How do they get sorted out? And where do they go from there?
• What about those rumors that recycling trucks just deliver materials to the landfill, or dump them in the ocean?
• How can recycling even deliver environmental benefit, given all of the trucks and machinery involved?
• What’s the deal with plastic, anyway?

You have questions, and we have answers!

After pioneering recycling policy in the late 1980s, Oregon is now implementing the first “extended producer responsibility” law for packaging in the U.S. The Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act, adopted in 2021, was launched July 1, 2025 and is designed to provide residents and businesses a recycling system that can be trusted to deliver the environmental benefits that recycling has long promised. But even a fully modernized recycling system has limited potential to stem the tide of unsustainable levels of production and consumption.

Explore how recycling is simultaneously necessary and insufficient, how recycling needs to be improved, and what else Oregon could be doing to use materials sustainably.

David Allaway and Justin Gast work at the OR Department of Environmental Quality, and between them have over 57 years of experience with recycling systems. In addition to his time at DEQ, Justin has worked at the local and national levels for the likes of Resource Recycling magazine, the Washington County (OR) Solid Waste & Recycling Program and The Recycling Partnership. David has testified before Congress and co-chaired Oregon’s Recycling Steering Committee, and his work has been featured in Last Week Tonight with John Oliver, the National Law Review, Time, Sierra and PBS Frontline.

Minors ok when accompanied by a parent or guardian

For more than 20 years, Portland Opera to Go (nicknamed POGO) has shared opera experiences with communities around the region. The Crown Maker is a world-premiere opera inspired by the life and legacy of Eva Castellanos, a Mexican American healer, artist, educator, and tireless advocate for immigrant rights. Rooted in Oregon history and shaped by the traditions of community storytelling, the work explores how creativity, compassion, and cultural knowledge can transform lives across generations.

Told as a traditional corrido, The Crown Maker blends poetry, history, and music to explore how one woman’s vision empowered generations through art, healing traditions, and fearless community leadership. Through an evocative score and intimate storytelling, The Crown Maker honors Castellanoz’ lifelong dedication to uplifting others through art, healing practices, and grassroots activism. Her work created spaces where identity, heritage, and belonging could thrive, even in the face of social and political barriers. The opera examines the lasting influence of those who build community not through power or prestige, but through care, vision, and persistence.

Created especially for Portland Opera to Go audiences, The Crown Maker blends poetry, history, and music to explore how one woman’s vision empowered generations through art, healing traditions, and fearless community leadership. This production brings a uniquely Oregonian story to life, while speaking to universal themes of resilience, memory, and self-determination. The Crown Maker celebrates the power of cultural inheritance and the people who preserve it, inviting audiences of all ages to reflect on how stories, traditions, and acts of courage continue to shape communities today.

Nov. 14 — Two performances at Walters Cultural Arts Center in Hillsboro at 11 a.m. and 2 p.m.

Dec. 4-5 — Three performances at the World Trade Center Theatre.

Jan. 10 — Watch at the historic Clatskanie Cultural Center at 2 p.m.

Jan. 24 — Join the Happy Valley Library at 2 p.m.

As young musicians passionate about opera and about their hometown, Emily Nelson and Bethany Schweitzer Goshorn thought, "What better place for an Opera on Tap chapter than our fair city known for its beer, wine and cocktail culture?" Thus Opera on Tap PDX was born - one of 16 nationwide chapters of Opera on Tap. Northwest native Sadie Gregg joined the Managing Diva team in 2016, after singing with the Boston chapter.

Why are we so passionate about opera? Opera speaks to the human condition. It expresses human emotion and relationship in a very unique and profound way. The human voice in all its glory has a visceral effect on us. In a culture focused on instant gratification with short attention spans, opera demands your full attention and rewards you with a wild ride on the emotional roller coaster.

Chances are that people who say they don't like opera have never heard it live! Opera on Tap seeks to change this by bringing the genre back to the people in familiar places: community gathering spaces, restaurants, and bars - much how music was historically enjoyed in Germany pubs. We seek to share, educate and bring simply fabulous music to an audience that might not otherwise be able to enjoy the art form. So grab your friends and your favorite pint, and join us for Opera on Tap!

Opera On Tap Nationwide
Opera on Tap (OOT) was born in 2005 at Freddy's Bar and Backroom in Brooklyn and incorporated in 2007 to promote opera as a viable, living, and progressive art form and to support the developing artists who continue to keep the art form alive. What began as a small monthly gathering of ambitious, classically trained singers looking for more performance opportunities has grown into a producing organization that has gained a loyal audience base and national recognition as an innovative force on the classical music scene. Through its Chapter program, which now has sixteen vibrant national chapters, OOT has created a large network of performers, creators, and supporters.

Join us for an evening of storytelling, science, and community exploration in partnership with the Oregon Mycological Society. This special edition of Forest Pub dives into the fascinating world of fungi and their essential role in forest ecosystems-from decomposition and soil health to the hidden underground networks that connect trees and support forest resilience. Guests will hear from local mycology experts, learn how mushrooms shape forest ecology and climate health, and discover how fungi support both natural systems and human understanding of the forest. As always, Forest Pub blends science with storytelling in a relaxed, social setting designed to spark curiosity and conversation over a shared love of forests.

Join us for a pint & learn about our forests!

Step into the world of our forests at Forest Pub, a monthly program brought to you in partnership with McMenamins History at the Mission Theater in NW Portland. Every second Monday, we bring in dynamic guest speakers to explore how forests touch every part of our lives - from the natural wonders we depend on to the creativity, culture, and cutting-edge solutions they inspire. Whether it's science, stories, or the latest breakthroughs in innovations, Forest Pub connects the dots between our forests and our world.

Why are some plant species rare, and what can be learned from them? These are two of the fundamental questions at the core of conservation biology. In an era of accelerated anthropogenic change, understanding how the past has shaped our biota and the distribution of species across our region is more important than ever before.

In this talk, evolutionary biologist Ash Gill will introduce some rare flowering plants of our region and discuss how their habitats have been affected by European colonization. She will go on to describe how data collected from rare species can be used to understand the evolutionary process. Lastly, she will share how citizen scientists can contribute to conservation by using tools at the Oregon Flora Project to learn about their local flora and document their observations.

With Ash Gill, Taxonomist at the Oregon Flora Project and Botanist/Wetland Scientist at SWCA Environmental Consultants

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Speed Dating Tonight!
Music & Libretto by Michael Ching
Based on a concept by Dean Anthony

Portland State University’s Opera program kicks off its 50th anniversary season with Michael Ching’s “Speed Dating Tonight!” (2013). Set over the course of a single evening at a local bar, this clever, heartwarming opera follows a revolving cast of singles searching for that elusive spark. There's the dreamer, the hopeless romantic, the bashful, the over-sharer, the chronically distracted, and everyone in between, each getting their moment in the spotlight through music that is equal parts tender, heartbreaking, and hilarious.

Written with duets and ensembles for up to 45 voices, “Speed Dating Tonight!” has a flexible modular structure that can be customized to fit any cast size, voice type, or gender identity. PSU Opera’s version of “Speed Dating Tonight!” features 35 song selections and arrangements specifically chosen to reflect the unique assortment of voices in the 12-member cast.

At its heart, this is a show about the universal human longing to be seen and cherished by another person. Woven through the interactions is another question: can a genuine connection actually happen in five minutes or less? With Michael Ching’s delightful opera, the answer is decidedly yes.

Visit the Speed Dating Tonight! web page to learn more about this production, including additional dates, cast and crew information, photos, and more as we get closer to opening night.

Learn more about the Opera program at Portland State University's School of Music & Theater.

Tuesday, November 3 6pm doors, 7pm presentation All ages welcome at Mission Theater

Why are some plant species rare, and what can we learn from them? These are two of the fundamental questions at the core of conservation biology. In an era of accelerated anthropogenic change, understanding how the past has shaped our biota and the distribution of species across our region is more important than ever before.

In this talk, evolutionary biologist Ash Gill will introduce some rare flowering plants of our region and the ways their habitats have been impacted following European colonization. She will go on to describe how data collected from rare species can be used to understand the evolutionary process. Lastly, she will share how citizen scientists can contribute to conservation by using tools at the Oregon Flora Project to learn about their local flora and document their observations.

Science Pubs are a casual lecture series located in fun venues across the region, recommended for ages 10 and over.

Science Pub Kennedy School is a monthly event that is open to anyone and everyone. No RSVP or scientific background required. Just bring your curiosity, sense of humor, and appetite for food, drinks and knowledge! For more information or to sign up for our mailing list, email: [email protected].

Dinner and drinks will be available throughout the presentation. Please visit the McMenamins Kennedy School website for a dinner menu and venue information.

Suggested donation of $8 all goes to OMSI.

One of the most beloved operas ever composed, La Traviata combines sweeping emotion with some of the most recognizable music in the operatic repertoire. Giuseppe Verdi’s masterpiece tells the story of Violetta Valéry, a woman determined to live freely and authentically despite the rigid social expectations that surround her. When she falls deeply in love, she is forced to confront the painful realities of class, reputation, sacrifice, and the cost of pursuing happiness on her own terms.

Adapted from Alexandre Dumas fils’ La Dame aux camélias, the opera broke new ground in its portrayal of a contemporary woman whose emotional life is treated with dignity, complexity, and compassion. Verdi’s luminous score captures both the exhilaration of love and the devastating consequences of societal judgment, moving seamlessly from moments of intimacy and joy to heartbreaking tragedy.

More than a romantic drama, La Traviata remains a powerful reflection on personal freedom, vulnerability, and the tension between public expectation and private truth. Its enduring resonance lies in its humanity: the opera asks what it means to truly live according to one’s own values in a world eager to define worth through convention, status, and appearance.