Headout Picks 2/19/14

RIGHTEOUS BABE: Ani DiFranco plays Aladdin Theater on Wednesday, Feb. 19.

FRIDAY FEB. 21
TRAVEL HOME, A STORY
[THEATER] Drawing from interviews with homeless Portlanders, traveling troupe the Honest Liars stages an original work about the elusive concept of home. The piece incorporates physical theater and dance to tell the stories of a wide cast of characters, including a would-be beat poet, a runaway and a woman convinced she’s a pirate. The Headwaters, 44 NE Farragut St., No. 9, honestliars.org. 7:30 pm. $10.
BLACKOUT BEER FEST
[BEER] Black-as-night beers, from host brewery Lompoc’s merlot-aged Baltic porter to Breakside’s salted-caramel stout. Just don’t black out yourself. Sidebar, 3901 N Williams Ave., 288-3996, lompocbrewing.com. 4-11 pm. $15 tasting package. 21+.

SATURDAY FEB. 22

OREGON BALLET THEATRE
[DANCE] Part of the deal to keep OBT’s Alison Roper from retiring last year was the promise of a tall male partner. Artistic director Kevin Irving delivered, bringing back Artur Sultanov, who retired in 2012. The 6-foot-4 Sultanov will join Roper, who’s just shy of 5-foot-9, for Nicolo Fonte’s exuberant Bolero. Also on the bill are James Kudelka’s minimalist Almost Mozart, Christopher Wheeldon’s mystical Liturgy and a premiere by former artistic director Christopher Stowell set to Dmitri Shostakovich. Keller Auditorium, 222 SW Clay St., 222-5538. 7:30 pm. $25-$150.
HILLSDALE BREWFEST
[BEER] Twenty McMenamins brewers compete against each other for ale supremacy, with public tasting and voting. The winner goes to the Oregon Brewers Festival. McMenamins Hillsdale Brewery & Public House, 1505 SW Sunset Blvd., 246-3938. 11 am. $9 for 10 4-ounce tasters. 21+.

MONDAY FEB. 24

LEONARD’S OF THE 1930S & ’40S
[HISTORY] For a good stretch in the 20th century, downtown institution Leonard’s was the prime meeting spot in Portland for Jewish men, who were often excluded from other clubs in the city. Tonight, Leonard Kaufman, the owner’s son, recounts memories of the place, and historian Harry Stein jaws about Portland’s Jewish community at the time. Kennedy School, 5736 NE 33rd Ave., 249-3983. 7 pm. Free.

TUESDAY FEB. 25

TOM BROSSEAU
[MUSIC] For Grass Punks, his first solo record in five years, the David Foster Wallace of DIY folk relocated from North Dakota to Los Angeles and recorded directly into a dictation machine. The result is a chillingly beautiful chronicle of a restless outsider’s yearning to understand a strange new place and its many inhabitants. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave., 288-3895. 8 pm. $12. 21+.

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