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SEE: A Beautiful Noise
Neil Diamond fans, rejoice—A Beautiful Noise, the jukebox musical featuring music from the iconic catalog of the Jewish Elvis himself, is at the Keller for a run of shows directed by award-winning filmmaker Michael Mayer. With an inspiring book by veteran playwright Anthony McCarten and dazzling choreography by Steven Hoggett, A Beautiful Noise guides the audience from Diamond’s humble beginnings playing rock clubs and bars through his rise to legend status, blowing the roofs off concert stadiums worldwide. Keller Auditorium, 222 SW Clay St., portland5.com. 7:30 pm Wednesday–Friday, 1 pm Thursday, 2 and 7:30 pm Saturday, 1 and 6:30 Sunday, through Jan. 11. $50–$300. All ages.
GO: Leslie Liao
Standup comedian, actress, and writer Leslie Liao’s deadpan humor is mostly rooted in her experiences as a single Chinese American woman living in Los Angeles, but her style, like her punch lines, is also broad and evergreen, offering a set that’ll send the whole room up—not just the single, Chinese American ladies from L.A. in the front row. Take their lead and catch Liao’s rising star before she goes supernova and ditches our second-tier market road gig for the bright lights of, ahem, Seattle. Helium Comedy Club, 1510 SE 9th Ave., portland.heliumcomedy.com. 7:30 pm Thursday, 7 and 9:15 pm Friday, 7 and 8:30 pm Saturday, Jan. 8–10. $30–$42. 21+.
GO: Oasis Ensemble: Impressions
Winter malaise got you in your feelings? Transform your inner landscape with the Oasis Ensemble for an afternoon of vibrant soundscapes accompanied by immersive, experiential elements designed to heighten the orchestral adventure to swoony, breathtaking levels. This concert, Impressions, will premiere The Enchanted Garden by living Italian composer Roberto Piana, then move backward through time to the late 19th century with works by Debussy, Ravel and Poulenc. Featuring flutist Dawn Weiss, cellist Austin Bennett and guest pianist Andrew Cannestra. Lincoln Recital Hall, 1620 SW Park Ave., Room 75, oasisensemble.com. 7:30 pm Friday, Jan. 9. $10–$30. All ages.
SEE: Dog People
Dog People is a pet enthusiast–themed sketch show written by Michael Zimmer and Sofia Sullivan, and directed by Jason Rouse, that unpacks and examines humankind’s complex, often ridiculously hilarious relationships with their dogs. Expect pet psychics, vet logistics, new trick trainers to old trick treats, woven into the banal comedy of the day-to-day odd behaviors that come with being the best friends to man’s best friend—a weird ancestral wolf we somehow bred into both pugs and great Danes. Kickstand Comedy, 1006 SE Hawthorne Blvd., kickstandcomedy.org. 8:30 pm Friday, Jan. 9. $15–$24. 21+.
GO: Rose City Rollers Season Opener
Portland’s iconic roller derby season kicks off Jan. 10 with bouts between Break Neck Betties and Guns N Rollers, and Heartless Heathers vs. High Rollers. If you’re new to the sport (or the city), this is a chance to acquaint yourself with one of Portland’s most beloved pastimes, as well as the badass community that supports it—and if you’re already an established booster, good on you. Let’s scream about it together at the season opener. The Hangar at Oaks Park, 7805 SE Oaks Park Way, rosecityrollers.com. 5:30 pm Saturday, Jan. 10. $22–$35. All ages.
GO: O-Shogatsu Fest
O-Shogatsu is the most important holiday in Japan, celebrated throughout the week and ending on Jan. 11 with a festival celebration for the community featuring traditional decorations and activities. Portland Japanese Garden invites the Portland community to visit and enjoy traditional O-Shogatsu festivities, including family-friendly activities, decorations, and performances. Guests can also admire kadomatsu, traditional arrangements of pine, bamboo, and plum branches made by the garden’s staff, as well as Edo Kotobuki Jishi, the celebratory traditional lion dance of Tokyo, performed by Shishimai Kai. What better way to kick off the Year of the Fire Horse? Portland Japanese Garden, 611 SW Kingston Ave., japanesegarden.org. 10 am Sunday, Jan. 11. $16–$22. All ages.
SEE: The Oldest Profession
Comedian Kaytlin Bailey visits the Clinton Street Theater to offer a new angle on the world’s oldest profession—aka hooking—by weaving lecture, standup, art history, and lived experience into a memorably fast-paced, hourlong solo show that delivers a unique, contemporary perspective on streetwalking, escorting, whoring, and all manner of hoe shit in general. Clinton Street Theater, 2522 SE Clinton St., cstpdx.com. 5:30 pm Sunday, Jan. 11. $15–$30. 21+.
SEE: ★ (Star)
The long-awaited reopening of PAM’s Whitsell Auditorium kicks off with ★—a cosmic journey through the history of film. This experimental film by Austrian structuralist Johann Lurf takes on an audacious and ever-expanding subject: the stars of cinema. Not movie stars, but the stars in the night sky—pinpricks of light against darkness, excerpted from films beginning at cinema’s dawn and continuing to the present day, in a project planned to expand yearly. The epic, ever-growing piece will be free and looped throughout the day, inviting audiences to gaze at the night sky and connect cinema past and present. Whitsell Auditorium at the Portland Art Museum, 1219 SW Park Ave., portlandartmuseum.org. 10 am Sunday, Jan. 11. Free–$27. All ages.
