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Friday, Jan. 12
Three Sisters
After a two-year hiatus, Northwest Classical Theater is returning with Chekov's classic about a Russian family who is forced to leave their privileged life in Moscow for banal farm life. Shoebox Theatre, 2110 SE 10th Ave., nwctc.org. 7:30 pm. $25.
Love Heals All Wounds
A few years ago, hip-hop choreographers Jon Boogz and Lil Buck founded Movement Art Is, a performing arts collective aimed at addressing police brutality and promoting social change. Now, they're taking that vision on tour with a lineup of artists performing dance and spoken-word poetry. The show is pro-diversity and anti-violence, and features some of the most progressively populist and technically impressive voices in contemporary dance—Lil Buck is best known for bringing jookin' into the lexicon of "high brow" modern dance in the past few years. Newmark Theatre, 1111 SW Broadway, portland5.org. 7:30 pm Friday, Jan. 12. $20-$40.
I drowned in moonlight, strangled by my own bra
After premiering over the summer as part of a showcase, the contemporary show by Portland choreographers Sada Naegelin and Leah Wilmoth is getting a night of its own. It's a goofy exploration of female stereotypes, so it's fitting that the title comes from the obituary Carrie Fisher wrote for herself eight years before her death. Performance Works Northwest, 4625 SE 67th Ave., pwnw-pdx.org. 7:30 pm. $10.
Third Angle presents A Family Affair
Musical nepotism rules in this contemporary classical music concert. Ebullient Third Angle and Oregon Symphony cellist Marilyn de Oliveira and her sister, singer Edlyn, perform popular British composer John Tavener's Akhmatova Songs. Her husband, fellow cellist Trevor Fitzpatrick, joins her in new music written especially for the couple by Portland composer and fellow Oregon Symphony player Kenji Bunch. Other members of de Oliveira's Oregon Symphony/Third Angle "families" join on viola, percussion and clarinet in a pair of pieces by recent Pulitzer Prize winner Carolyn Shaw and young New York composer Andy Akiho. Studio 2 @ N.E.W., 810 SE Belmont St. 7:30 pm. $10-$25. All ages.
Candace, Bitch'n
It's difficult to add punk urgency to the lush space-pop of Mazzy Star and Galaxie 500 without sounding like an unfocused heap of shoegaze mush, but Portland's Candace did just that on their phenomenal 2016 release, New Future. "Celestial" is a word that comes to mind often as the reverb-soaked joys of that album unfold. However, on their 2017 EP Horizons/Greys, it's the way Sarah Rose and Sarah Nienaber's joyous harmonies orbit one another so beautifully that truly captures their essence and earns Candace a place at the table amongst modern space-rock royalty. Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water Ave., 503-328-2865. 9:30 pm. $10 advance, $12 day of show. 21+.
Saturday, Jan. 13
The Red Turtle
NW Film is screening one of the studio's most recent movies that was released in the US less than a year ago. The Red Turtle is a gorgeous, wordless film about a man who befriends a massive turtle while marooned on a desert island. NW Film Center's Whitsell Auditorium, 1219 SW Park Ave., nwfilm.org. 2 pm. $9.
Chervona's Russian Old New Year Party
Think you've got one more New Year's Eve left in you? Portland's premier Eastern European party band Chervona will be turning up the heat for its 12th annual Russian Old New Year Party. This year's bash has a tropical theme. Guest singers are promised. Drunkenness is assured. Star Theater, 13 NW 6th Ave., 866-777-8932, startheaterportland.com. 9 pm. $20 general admission, $70-$360 for reserved tables. 21+.
Red Fang Red Bottle Release
Teutonic will throw a party for their new, epicly good Red Fang Red wine. The band will hang out, and drummer John Sherman will spin metal on the decks. $25 price of entry includes a glass of the wine, a metal-horns wine glass, a house-made corn dog with house-made sausage, and of course a bag of Fritos. Teutonic Wine Company, 3303 SE 20th Ave., teutonicwines.com. 6 pm. $25.
Bourbon and Bacon Fest
The idea is simple. A bunch of bourbon. A bunch of bacon. And a bunch of half-cocked adults whizzing around the science museum with no kids in sight, shooting off water rockets and pretending to be chemists in (mostly harmless) experiments. If you've still got the attention span, you can also learn why bacon has such a hold on the deepest parts of your reptile brain. OMSI, 1945 SE Water Ave., 503-797-4000, omsi.edu. 6-10 pm. Only VIP tickets still available. $70 for early admission and 15 drinking tokens.
Steve Gunn, Julie Byrne, Rebecca Gates
Brooklyn-based guitarist Steve Gunn has accumulated the sort of resumé more often associated with a Nashville session player—the kind where any adept axemen can hang around a studio and find themselves as temporary members of whatever band is tracking that day. The bona fide troubadour blends the eclectic drone of Robbie Basho with the bluegrass twang of Jack Rose into succinct rock tunes chipper enough to fit on a playlist alongside any of contemporary indie's modern bigwigs. Meanwhile, Julie Byrne's Not Even Happiness is a subdued, plaintive highlight featured on several of last year's best-of lists. This double-header offers anyone who slept on getting tickets for her Revolution Hall gig opening for Whitney last year a second chance at redemption. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave., 503-288-3895. 9 pm. $15 advance, $17 day of show. 21+.
Sunday, Jan. 14
Itzhak
Alison Chernick's 2017 documentary attempts to get behind Itzhak Perlman, who's widely regarded as the best violinist in the world. But the film is less concerned with the annotated history of Perlman's life (he survived polio at an early age and later made a now-famous appearance on the Ed Sullivan Show) and more with impressions of his legacy. As an in-depth documentary, the film will likely leave audiences wanting more. As a piece of filmmaking, it's a fascinating experiment. NW Film Center's Whitsell Auditorium, 1219 Sw Park Ave., nwfilm.org. 7 pm. $9.
Heroes and Villains Fest
Kind of like a smaller, chiller version of Comic-Con, Heroes and Villains Fest has panels of actors from across the wide spectrum of nerdy TV shows. At the Portland iteration, there'll be Melinda May from Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D and basically everyone from The Walking Dead. Oregon Convention Center, 777 NE Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., heroesfanfest.com/portland. $45.
Wolf Parade
After a six-year break, Wolf Parade reemerged last year with Cry Cry Cry, and the unhinged chemistry of songwriters Dan Boeckner and Spencer Krug hasn't atrophied one bit. It's brighter, bouncier and more focused than either of the records that preceded it, proving Boeckner and Krug are better together than apart. Crystal Ballroom, 1332 W Burnside St., 503-225-0047, crystalballroompdx.com. 8 pm. $28 advance, $30 day of show. All ages.
Sløtface
With Best Coast's turn toward the dusty realm of alt-country all but a foregone conclusion, the timing feels just right for Norway's Sløtface to snatch the sunny power-pop baton and never look back. Their excellent 2017 album, Try Not to Freak Out, is overloaded with soaring hooks and thrilling dynamics centered around brief moments of introspection that crash headlong into frontwoman Haley Shea's massive choruses. It positions the quartet just one big festival outing away from catching fire stateside, so you better enjoy the wild ride while it's still accessible. The group's cult icon status is sure to be short lived. Bunk Bar, 1028 SE Water Ave, 503-328-2865. 9:30 pm. $12. 21+.
