Portland Events, Music, Art, Entertainment, Sustainability | PDXPIPELINE.com

(We will be giving away two pairs of tickets to The Shrunken Head of Pancho Villa as well as many other weekend events to our Portland Facebook Group on Thursday. Join & win.)

Posted by Nathalie Weinstein

It is not very often that one of the lead characters in a play is nothing more than a grunting head sitting on a tabletop. That was the case Sunday afternoon when I attended a matinee of Miracle Theater's production of The Shrunken Head of Pancho Villa. Part situational comedy, part social satire, the play focuses on a family of Chicano farmworkers in 1960s California.

Matriarch Cruz (Bunnie Rivera) has her hands full with a cockroach infested house, a son in jail, Joaquin, a pregnant daughter, Lupe, an alcoholic, out-of-work husband, Pedro, and another son, Mingo, who returns from the military only to degrade the quality of life she has been trying to provide. And then there is Belarmino (Vicente Guzmán-Orozco), her son, who was born with only a head. That doesn't stop him from Read the rest of this entry »

Can you feel it? It's called May and this is the month when hopes of warmth and dreams of sun inspire outdoor concerts in Pioneer Square and neighborhood/street fairs around Portland. Last weekend was the Laurelhurst Art Walk and Trimet is having a Bus parade on 5th Avenue next weekend.

This weekend, NE is the place to be as Alberta Street steps up to the plate.

From press release:

WHO: Art on Alberta
WHAT: 10th Annual Art Hop
WHEN: Saturday, May 16, 2009 11am — 6pm
WHERE: NE Alberta Street, Portland

On Saturday, May 16, 2009 from 11am to 6pm, Art on Alberta will hold its 10th Annual Art Hop with the theme, "Coming Home." 17 blocks of NE Alberta Street will be closed to car traffic to accommodate over 150 artists, crafts people, music, dance and theater performances, interactive art events along with food and other vendors. Two stages are being sponsored by Binks and Siren Nation. This year's featured artist is Thelma Johnson Streat (1911 – 1959).

Streat was an internationally acclaimed artist and dancer from Portland, Oregon and the first African American woman Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by Saundra Sorenson

A libertine, the tears of a clown, countless broken hymens… yes, it is Portland Opera's own staging of Rigoletto, and it is (to borrow a phrase overheard in Keller) superb.

Like many self-respecting operas, Verdis's Rigoletto is political satire. But unlike, say, Mozart's Marriage of Figaro (which softened the edges of Beaumarchais's play about social-structure angst), there is less cutesy romance (and resolution) … although there is just as much revelry. The kind where women of ill-repute get dragged around by their ankles, and honorable husbands get cuckholded. You know, those kinds of parties.

And unlike Figaro, Verdis's questionable hero is not a well-intentioned lightening rod of idealism, but a disfigured, embittered fool-for-hire. On the privacy of his own stoop, he rails against being the count's performing monkey, but he plays the game until it (or, more succinctly, the count's libido) threatens Rigoletto's daughter (or, more graphically, her virtue).

And though given a pretty raw deal Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by Kimberly Gehl

Why Wait Until October to Celebrate Halloween?

Every time I pass the outside terrace of the World Trade Center on 1st Street downtown, I am reminded of my senior prom. It was the middle of Spring – so  uncomfortably cold to be outside in a dress or even a tux and the “prom queen” donned a fake-orange tan and was scantily-clad in a two-piece 'dress'.

So, my memories of prom obviously aren't something I particularly cherish and, judging from the way that prom is represented in many films and television shows, I suspect that I am not alone in my anti-prom sentiment.

This Saturday night Heather Erickson – aka Bella Boo – is throwing the 2nd Annual PDX Zombie Prom. This event is sure to be Read the rest of this entry »

Just saw this posted and 1) happy the service is finally starting back up and 2) Ain't party like a Trimet party 'cuz a Trimet party has a “parade with Mall safety information along the way”. BOOYA.

From Trimet:

In partnership with Portland State University, we're throwing a party downtown to celebrate the return of bus service to the renovated Portland Mall on 5th and 6th avenues. (Service begins Sunday, May 24, 2009.)

On Friday, May 22, 2009, a lively bus parade will travel along 5th Avenue, taking riders to PSU for a lunch-time street fair.

Schedule after the jump… Read the rest of this entry »

(Click here for info on the BEST Portland Restaurants, Bars, Food, Drinks & More)

We're been asking our Portland Twitter followers advice and suggestions happy hours, tattoo shops, Bloody Marys, local beers, music venues and more the last month. The PDX Pipeline doesn't have much advice on food & resturatnts in Portland, so we are having a food week of Q&A.

We started this week with Indian Food because many people don't know where to grab good Indian food in the Portland area or believe there is none. There are 25+ replies below and Chennai Masala, Swagat, Vindalho, and Bombay Chaat House (food cart) seem to be Portland's favorites with Chennai Masala (in Hillsboro) the overall top pick.

Where is the best Indian food in Portland? 25+ replies after the break… Read the rest of this entry »

Still don't know what to do with Mom tomorrow? We don't know either* so we asked our twitter followers for suggestions. Of course, you can take your Mom to one of these many events tomorrow.

Portland Mother's Day plans & suggestions after the break… Read the rest of this entry »

I was lucky enough to see Austin up at Holocene last weekend before the Starfucker show. I handed him my Flip cam (FLIP MODE SQUAD!) and he shot and edited this short video. Pretty good skills considering the equipment and the overflowing sold out crowd in that room.

According to the Myspace, Starfucker is playing an in-store performance at Jack Pot records on Saturday 3PM. It is free, open to the public and all ages. I suggest you get down there.

Related Pipeline Posts:

• 75+ Weekend Events & Parties: Music, Film, Art | May 7-10
• Black Lips at Berbati's Pan | Daily Stank Video Bank

Reminder: We give out free tickets every Thursday to our Portland Facebook Group including to many shows at Holocene like this one. Join it if you like free stuff. Read the rest of this entry »

(Click here for info on the BEST Portland Restaurants, Bars, Food, Drinks & More)

Oregon is famous for its beer brewing scene. With all these Portland happy hours & all these events this weekend, you'll need to know which beers to drink. We asked our Twitter followers what their favorite local beers are. And since our twitter followers are the best, we are saying these must be the best.

Related Portland Questions and Answers:

• What are the BEST Happy Hours in Portland? | 25+ Suggestions
• What is the BEST music venue in Portland? | Twitter Answers
• What is the best tattoo shop in Portland? | Twitter Answers
• Where is the BEST Bloody Mary in Portland? | 25+ Suggestions

What are the BEST Portland & Oregon Beers? 15+ Twitter answers after the break… Read the rest of this entry »

Posted by Mark Lore

Stephen Malkmus brings his Jicks out for one night at the Doug Fir … just call it another perk of living in Portland. 2008's Real Emotional Trash saw the band getting even jammier, while drummer Janet Weiss added more bash to the Jicks' mix. Live it can be unpredictable—with songs giving way to extended noise sessions. One thing you can count on: Malkmus will wield a mighty axe and display the bookish wordplay he established with Pavement. Another thing you can count on: Portland's Nurses will open … yet another perk of living in Portland.

Links: myspace.com/stephenmalkmus & dougfirlounge.com

Related Posts:

• 75+ Weekend Events & Parties: Music, Film, Art | May 7-10
• Video of Stephen Malkmus & The Jicks live at Satyricon March 4th 08
• Slate Magazine: "Why Portland is America's indie rock Mecca." By Taylor Clark