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Lindsay Costello

Lindsay is the Portland Mercury's staff writer, covering all things arts and culture. Send arts tips and pictures of birds to lindsay@portlandmercury.com.
Posted inDo This, Do That

The Mercury’s Do This, Do That: July 14–20

How often can you view a shark dissection and listen to ambient music in a sun-dappled garden in the same week?
Avatar photoAvatar photo Lindsay Costello and Mercury Staff

We’re back! This week, the Crystal Ballroom becomes a portal for both shark innards and Y2K-era heartbreak—who knew such a mash-up was possible? A Ghanian highlife legend and Pattie Gonia’s environmental drag will keep things particularly sparkly, too, and Moment’s garden gathering of experimental musicians offers a soothing sonic balm. But before that, Ari Aster’s […]

Posted inDo This, Do That

The Mercury’s Do This, Do That: July 7–13

Outdoor parties, an AANHPI market, and a dog-friendly bike ride signal that summer is alive and kicking.
Avatar photoAvatar photo Lindsay Costello and Mercury Staff

If you’re anything like us, you spend the non-summer seasons of the year wistfully planning everything you’re going to do once July swings around. Coast trips, reading All Fours outside, lounging at a rooftop bar with a cute little beverage—it’s all valid. But here is a hard truth you might not be fully appreciating yet: […]

Posted inAlbum Review

Album Review: Swinging’s Debut Album Is a Drift Worth Following

My Bed Is A Boat is a lush, emotionally exacting release from the Portland band.
Avatar photo Lindsay Costello

As part of a design contest for students who attend the local after-school music program School of Rock, nine-year-old Jeju painted a field of blue. In the center, a yellow rectangle swims, along with the title of Swinging’s new release, My Bed Is A Boat, in capital letters. The winning cover feels conversant with the […]

Posted inMovies & TV

Second Run Portland: Days of Heaven Glows Again in 35mm

Plus, a queer twist on yakuza inheritance and Chantal Akerman’s mother-daughter meditation hit Portland screens this month.
Avatar photo Lindsay Costello

It’s no secret that Portland is a film town. We’re lucky to have a constellation of independent cinemas and DIY programmers keeping the big screens weird, smart, and surprising. But too often, the most interesting films disappear beneath a steaming pile of streaming services and endless reboots. Second Run Portland is a new film column […]

Posted inDo This, Do That

The Mercury’s Do This, Do That: June 30–July 6

This week: Wu-Tang Clan, ceviche, queer cinema, and a friendly reminder not to traumatize dogs.
Avatar photoAvatar photo Lindsay Costello and Mercury Staff

One of your most important missions this week is to find a copy of the Mercury‘s 2025 Queer Guide, but that’ll take you what, a few minutes? That leaves you with roughly 10,076 minutes to fill. Read on for why you should spend at least a few of them listening to hip-hop revolutionaries, watching comedy sets […]

Posted inQueer Guide 2025

Do This, Do That: Queer Events Until Pride and Beyond

The gayest-looking queer bike rides, dance parties, and community events on our calendar this Pride season.
Avatar photoAvatar photoAvatar photo Lindsay Costello, Nolan Parker, and Suzette Smith

Portland’s Pride season is loooooong. And this new list of parties, art shows, bike rides, history exhibits—and more—is similarly shaped 😉. The parade may be in July, but we’re queer all year round. Ongoing: Outliers and OutlawsCommunity & Activism  Did you know Eugene was once dubbed a “lesbian mecca”? Oregon Jewish Museum and Center for […]

Posted inDo This, Do That

The Mercury’s Do This, Do That: June 23–29

This week: nachos, rock history (the geological kind), and a band name we regret Googling.
Avatar photoAvatar photo Lindsay Costello and Mercury Staff

Welcome to the Mercury‘s Do This, Do That! Not that we think we’re the experts or anything (okay, we definitely think we’re the experts), but our new round-up of the week’s best arts and entertainment events should make filling your calendar just a smidge easier. Expect nachos galore, cinematic poetry, a dairy-fueled bike ride, the […]

Posted inCulture

Introducing the Portland Mercury’s New Staff Writer, Lindsay Costello!

She birdwatches and plays hammered dulcimer in her spare time.
Avatar photo Lindsay Costello

Hi, everybody! I’m Lindsay Costello, and I’m excited to introduce myself as the Portland Mercury’s new staff writer. I love covering all things arts-related for the Merc, and couldn’t be happier to take on this role.  I moved to Portland from central Florida in 2014 and attended the Oregon College of Art and Craft, where […]

Posted inQueer

Even More! 2025 Pride Events: Bingo, Disco, and a Horny Gay Teen Comedy That Does Not Quit

Also, queer Asians celebrate at a wife-and-wife owned wine bar and Wonderwood Springs hosts Ye Olde Gay Faire!
Avatar photoAvatar photoAvatar photoAvatar photo Nolan Parker, Suzette Smith, Lindsay Costello, and Janey Wong

Everyone knows Portland Pride starts in June—despite the parade kicking up zir heels in July. Pride is already here, and the Merc is keeping a rolling calendar of event picks you might love. In this installment: a dedicated meet-up for queer Asians at a wife-and-wife owned wine bar, bingo from Tomorrow Theater’s ORIGINAL bingo queen […]

Posted inTheater & Performance

Profile Theatre’s Mother Russia Finds Humor in Collapse

Lauren Yee’s farce blends slapstick, surveillance, and Soviet nostalgia, but its critique of capitalism stops short of a fresh indictment.
Avatar photo Lindsay Costello

It’s 1992, and two young Russian men are mid-worship of a Filet-O-Fish sandwich. They fall to their knees and claim massive, moaning bites with sexual fervor.  “How is it so soft?” one marvels. “Is this what capitalism tastes like?” Lauren Yee’s Mother Russia, the final play in Profile Theatre’s 2024–25 season deep dive on her […]

Posted inBooks/Magazines/Comics

Where To Go for the Second Annual Portland Book Week

From silent reading sessions to bookish tattoos, PBW maps out a literary treasure hunt across the city.
Avatar photo Lindsay Costello

Only in its second year, Portland Book Week already feels like a fixture. Launched by Powell’s Books and the Cascade Booksellers Association, the ten-day literary celebration makes one thing clear: If you think you’ve hit every bookshop in the area, well, you probably haven’t.  From June 6–15, more than 60 bookstores across Portland, Vancouver, and […]

Posted inFood Issue 2025

Process Over Product

Artist Meech Boakye on decay, labor, and food as a gift.
Avatar photo Lindsay Costello

Meech Boakye’s lush, organic, and often edible artworks find their footing in floral, fungal, and microbial relationships. The Portland-based artist, originally from Winnipeg, views these relationships as “armatures for learning how to be in a community.” This leads them to share everything from abundant “digital gardens” and recipes for nettle rennet and fig sap cheese […]

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