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Andrew Jankowski
Posted inTheater & Performance

My Perfectly Valid Objections Airs the First Date Anxieties of Trans and Cis People

Portland playwright Mikki Gillette depicts the minefield trans women navigate, specifically while dating cis men.
Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

Within the last half decade, shows like Pose and Euphoria have presented relatable, swoon-worthy—even realistic—romances between transgender and cisgender people. But despite those successes, there’s still a wealth of ways cis people can accidentally (or intentionally) insult trans people, even when attempting to woo their affections. Portland playwright Mikki Gillette’s new work, My Perfectly Valid […]

Posted inFood and Drink

A Lick of Scents

Salt & Straw’s new taste-enhancing fragrance collaboration with local perfumers Imaginary Authors.
Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

Depending on your fine dining haunts, you’ve probably been on the receiving end of a restaurant pepper mill and an offer to grind. Now the craze of culinary perfume spritzes is also slowly, but surely making its way across—or lingering in a fine mist above—our plates. Aromatic dining adjustments are not unwelcome. In many ways, […]

Posted inPickathon

Our Favorite Moments of Pickathon 2022

GZA, Sampa the Great, copious quantities of UFOs, and much more!
Avatar photoAvatar photoAvatar photoAvatar photo Andrew Jankowski, Bryson Fisher, Jenni Moore, and Suzette Smith

Returning after a two-year pandemic hiatus, Pickathon 2022 felt even more like a labor of love than it had in recent years. The fest confirmed that volunteer numbers were low, and Friday saw a short-lived parking crisis, which was eventually solved thanks to a neighbor’s additional lot.  Though many things about the farmbound fest stayed […]

Posted inBooks

Kevin Sampsell’s Creative Chopping Block

I Made An Accident collects darkly humorous collages from a celebrated Portland author
Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

Author Kevin Sampsell is a known face at most Powell’s books readings—but for the past seven years he has also fostered a passionate found media collage practice.
A new book from Kevin Sampsell collects seven years of the Portland author’s found media practice. Arts writer Andrew Jankowski calls it “a jubilant celebration of bizarre, jarring, and defiant imagery.”

Posted inMovies & TV

Portland Queer Icons Jumping from Stage to the Screen: Jinkx Monsoon, House of Ada, and More!

Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

House of Ada on Legendary JOHN JOHNSON / HBO MAX There’s no denying the city has acquired a weird reputation. Where once Portland was a place people visited to sup on vegan delights and buy bird-adorned keepsakes, it has—for the past few years—gained a different notoriety. But our girl’s character is primed for a comeback, […]

Posted inQueer Guide 2022

Portland Queer Icons Jumping from Stage to the Screen: Jinkx Monsoon, House of Ada, and More!

Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

There’s no denying the city has acquired a weird reputation. Where once Portland was a place people visited to sup on vegan delights and buy bird-adorned keepsakes, it has—for the past few years—gained a different notoriety. But our girl’s character is primed for a comeback, thanks partially to her most glamorous nightlife performers showing her […]

Posted inTheater & Performance

Legendary Recap of Episodes 1-3: Portland’s House of Ada Struts Onscreen as Fairies, Then Frogs

Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

House of Ada’s frenzied poison frog mating ritual Photograph by John Johnson/HBO Max Are you invited to a HBO’s Legendary screening tonight, but you don’t know what happened in the first three episodes? Do you want to root for Portland’s House of Ada as the belles of the ball, but haven’t gotten someone else’s HBO […]

Posted inTheater & Performance

House of Ada to Represent Portland’s Ballroom Culture Scene on Season 3 of HBO’s Legendary

Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

The promotional poster for Legendary Season 3, featuring members of House of Ada. Top row, left to right: Vanity Ada, Papi Ada, Virgo Ada; Bottom row, left to right: Sophora Ada, Babi Ada HBO, courtesy of House of ada Portland is about to, once again, shine in the national eye. That light is sparkling on […]

Posted inTheater & Performance

In The Queers, Mikki Gillette Writes Real, Unflinching Stories about the Transgender Experience

Avatar photo Andrew Jankowski

Juliet Mylan as Ally (left) and Naomi Jackson as Lisa (right) in The Queers COURTESY OF FUSE THEATRE ENSEMBLE There are no fantasy heroes in Mikki Gillette’s work. And hardly any glamour. “A person at a reading said, ‘I’m glad you aren’t just writing the noble transgender character,’” Gillette told the Mercury. “And inside I […]

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