STAGE

1942 Christmas from Home

[CLOSES SUNDAY] Drawn from real stories and letters mixed with some great music and period advertisements, the second play in Pat Kruis Tellinghusen’s pentalogy presents a complex portrait of life during wartime that doesn’t shy away from the more sinister aspects of America’s domestic policy. The acting in Tapestry Theatre’s production is uneven, but the swinging band and nifty sound effects alone are worth the price of admission. BEN WATERHOUSE. Hollywood Theatre, 4122 NE Sandy Blvd., 281-4215. 245-6919. 7:30 pm Fridays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 16. $16-$18. All ages. Map

A Christmas Carol

After a five-year run of one-man holiday shows, Portland Center Stage is returning to Dickens with a brand-new, flashy adaptation by Mead Hunter. This special-effects extravaganza has a great cast, an astounding set and an excellent, original score of familiar Victorian carols. I’ve just one quibble: The Ghosts of Christmas Past, clad all in white with glowing red eyes, look more like a band of horrible albino Jawas than time-traveling spirits. Sure, they’ll walk Scrooge through the mistakes of his youth, but only if they can stop on the way back to devour a baby or two. PCS has put together the most impressive of this year’s holiday shows, and the most soul-shakingly terrifying. BEN WATERHOUSE. Portland Center Stage, 128 NW 11th Ave., 445-3700. 7:30 pm Tuesdays-Saturdays, 2 and 7:30 pm Sundays, noon Thursday, 2 pm Dec. 22. Closes Dec. 23. $16.50-$61.50. All ages. Map

arose

[CLOSES SATURDAY] Fever Theater revives its playful show inspired by the works of Brazilian writer Clarice Lispector. Goldsmith Performance Lab, 20 NW 5th Ave., 381-6814. 8 pm Thursday and Saturday. Closes Dec. 15. $10-$15. All ages. Map

As Is

I was surprised to hear that Troy Lakey’s Key Productions had chosen William M. Hoffman’s 1985 drama about the burgeoning AIDS epidemic and its effect on the lives of an infected writer and his loved ones for their second production. It's a tough show to pull off, and just the third directing project for longtime Portland actor Michael Mendelson. It’s a pretty good production, well-cast and competently acted throughout. Mendelson’s direction favors too much melodramatic shouting, but he’s created some very nice blocking and held a few of the script’s more maudlin moments in check. Although David Berkson is somewhat emotionally flat as Rich, a volatile and dying gay writer, Michael Teufel gives a fine performance (when he’s not yelling) as Rich’s former lover and caretaker, Saul. The supporting actors similarly range from decent to good. It’s not a great staging, but certainly above average for Portland, and it’s further proof that Lakey means business. BEN WATERHOUSE. Interstate Firehouse Cultural Center, 5340 N Interstate Ave., 781-3464. 8 pm Thursdays-Saturdays, 3 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 22. $20. All ages. Map

Blood Brothers

[CLOSES SUNDAY] Arts Equity presents Willy Russell’s tragic musical about fraternal twins, separated at birth, who grow up on opposite sides of the tracks. The London production is now in its 20th straight year. The Main Street Theater, 606 Main St., Vancouver., 360-695-3770. 8 pm Thursdays-Sundays, 2 pm Dec. 16. Closes Dec. 16. $10-$24. All ages. Map

Bubco!

[CLOSES SATURDAY] Spring 4th Productions' inaugural performance of an original play about "pseudo-desperate people seeking the answers to simple questions with the help of an unscrupulous agency." BEN WATERHOUSE. Shoe Box Theater, 2110 SE 10th Ave., 971-244-3740. 7:30 pm Thursdays-Saturdays. Closes Dec. 8. $12-$15. 21+. Map

Celeste and Starla Save Todd and Win Back the Day

[READING] Portland Theatre Works presents a reading of a new play by Francesca Sanders, performed by Laura Faye Smith. Theater! Theatre!, 3430 SE Belmont St., 7 pm Monday, Dec. 10. Free. 21+. Map

Christmas Cafe

[CLOSES SATURDAY] Dessert theater for the holidays by Hope Theater, featuring "Foolish Wiseman," a one-act by Sean Gaffney. The Hinson Annex, 1315 SE 20th Ave., 282-2810. 7:30 pm Thursdays-Saturdays. Closes Dec. 15. $8-$10. All ages. Map

Cinderella

I worry about the young actors-in-training on display in John Monteverde’s production of this Rodgers and Hammerstein made-for-TV musical. Two reasons: They’ve been handed lackluster material with which they’re expected to develop their skills, and then left to hang by a creative team that should know better. There is one standout: 21-year-old Jonathan Swartout as a puppy-dog prince. He has a pleasant voice, too, until the microphone permanently attached to his forehead roars it all out of distortion. Are all singing actors today unable to vocally project in even a space as small as the West End Theater without the aid of blaring head-mics? And why was the fairy godmother (Marilyn Stacey) wigged and dressed like Drew Carey in drag? Will Kari Virding as Cinderella ever stop smiling? STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. West End Theater, 1220 SW Taylor St., 593-2466. 593-2466. 7 pm Fridays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays, 2 and 7 pm Dec. 26-27. Closes Dec. 30. $16-$20. All ages. Map

Conversion Reaction

[READING] LastRites Productions, the maniacs behind "Manos" The Hands of Fate and The Brain That Wouldn't Die, presents readings of 12 scripts about the experience of religious conversion in preparation for a festival of new plays in February. BEN WATERHOUSE. Theater! Theatre!, 3430 SE Belmont St., 7 pm Wednesday, Dec. 5. Free. 21+. Map

Disney's Beauty and the Beast

Northwest Children's Theater remounts last year's popular production. NW Neighborhood Cultural Center, 1819 NW Everett St., 222-4480. 222-4480. 7 pm Fridays, 2 and 7 pm Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays and Dec. 19-20, 24 and 26-27. Closes Dec. 30. $18-$22. All ages. Map

Gone in 60 Sketches

The latest comedy show from the 3rd Floor crams 60 sketches into 90 minutes. BEN WATERHOUSE. El Centro Milagro, 525 SE Stark St., 236-7253. 8 pm Fridays-Saturdays. Closes Dec. 29. $10. All ages. Map

Jacob Marley's Christmas Carol

Public Playhouse presents Tom Mula's behind-the-scenes take on Scrooge's Christmas Eve travels. The CoHo Theater, 2257 NW Raleigh St., 922-0532. 7:30 pm Thursdays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 22. $10-$16. All ages. Map

Mars on Life

[EXTENDED RUN] Susannah Mars is one part old-school diva, one part Martha Stewart and one part indie comedian. It’s a bizarre combination for a “holiday cabaret,” but Mars’ multiple personas bring something for everyone. Sometimes she’s graceful and sublime, perfectly polished in four-inch heels and a well-lacquered hairdo; the next minute she’s prancing around in a potato latke costume, or singing, “For Betty Crocker I’d go gay.” These unabashedly weird moments are the real treat of the show, but Mars brings a refreshing candidness to the more traditional songs as well. A guest artist accompanies Mars during each performance. STACY RIGER. Artists Repertory Theatre, 1515 SW Morrison St., 241-1278. 241-9807. 7:30 pm Tuesdays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 30. $20-$47. All ages. Map

Plaid Tidings

It’s your favorite Christmas show by a ghostly, tartan-clad quartet! BEN WATERHOUSE. Tualatin High School Auditorium, 22300 SW Boones Ferry Road, Tualatin., 620-5262. 8 pm Fridays, 2 and 8 pm Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 9. $19-$26. 21+. Map

Roger and the Cave Monster

This disappointing first effort from Portland Ensemble Theatre Company was probably intended to be an edgy romantic comedy with a profound theme or two. That's what the boy-meets-subterannean-wild-child plot indicates, anyway. But playwright Craig Jessen can't choose a voice and stick with it, and the whole thing comes across as a triple-length episode of Two and a Half Men. Stay away. BEN WATERHOUSE. Theater! Theatre!, 3430 SE Belmont St., 544-6650. 8 pm Thursdays-Saturdays, 2 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 23. $12-$15. All ages. Map

Rose City Vaudeville

A wide-ranging variety show in the spirit of the Gay Nineties. The first Gay Nineties. BEN WATERHOUSE. Hippodrome, 315 SE 3rd Ave., 7 pm Thursday, Jan. 31. $15-$20. All ages. Map

Salad Days

An original production about “growing up in a high-pressure society,” created in a workshop setting by Oregon Children’s Theatre’s Young Professionals program. BEN WATERHOUSE. Oregon Children's Theatre Young Professionals Studio Theatre, 600 SW 10th Ave., 228-9571. 7 pm Fridays, 2 pm Saturdays-Sundays. Closes Dec. 9. $5-$10 suggested donation. 21+. Map

Sometimes Toilet Water

Billed as “a kids’ show written mostly by kids and performed mostly by grownups,” Sometimes Toilet Water is Curious Productions’ latest undertaking, an introduction to improv-style comedy for the very young. BEN WATERHOUSE. The CoHo Theater, 2257 NW Raleigh St., 380-3516. 2 pm Saturdays. Closes Dec. 22. $5-$10. All ages. Map

Streamers

David Rabe’s laid-back comedy about race and sexuality in the army at the beginning of the Vietnam War is—oh, Christ, what was that? Did he just.... Oh, so much blood! Why? Why? Yeah, this is one bizarre script, which starts with a slashed wrist and ends with a prolonged scream, but there’s some great material in between. Sowelu’s production makes excellent use of the Back Door Theater’s concrete confines, but the acting is frustratingly uneven, ranging from excellent to embarrassing. One of the former is Nasir Najieb (Roger), a truly excellent actor whose Portland performances are altogether too rare, and who almost carries the show on his own. BEN WATERHOUSE. The Back Door Theater, 4319 SE Hawthorne Blvd., 8 pm Thursdays-Saturdays, 4 pm Sundays. Closes Dec. 15. $12-$15. 21+. Map

The HollyTones... On Ice!

The Portland trio is back for its eighth season of cheery cabaret. BEN WATERHOUSE. Wilf's Restaurant, 800 NW 6th Ave., 223-0070. 223-0070. 7:30 pm Tuesdays and Wednesday, Dec. 19. Closes Dec. 19. $15. All ages. Map

Who Stole My Dead Husband?

Lou Pallotta’s Italo-sploitation family dinner theater, starring Jim Caputo. Madison's East Wing, 1125 SE Madison St., 800-966-8865. 7:30 pm Fridays-Saturdays. Open-ended run. $64-$69, dinner included. All ages. Map

CLASSICAL

A Baroque Christmas at Trinity

Nobody else in town dares touch the corner of repertoire that Eric Milnes' period band and chorus, Trinity Consort, lay their hands on. In this case, it's the too infrequently heard French Baroque sacred music of Rameau and Charpentier, full of color and drama. The Consort chamber choir (this writer included) and a top-rate international orchestra of period players are joined by the radiant soprano Laura Heimes and Chilean tenor Rodrigo del Pozo under Milnes' direction from the keyboard. Oh yeah: a pretty sweet wassail party (punch-’n’-pie) after, too. STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, 147 NW 19th Ave., 222-9811. 7:30 pm Saturday; 3:00 pm Sunday. $15-$40. 21+. Map

Beethoven Piano Cycle: Final Concert

Pianist Eldred Marshall completes his marathon of Beethoven's complete piano sonatas with this, his last of eight Portland concerts. STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. Community Music Center, 3350 SE Francis St., 823-3177. 8 pm. Free. 21+. Map

Britten's A Ceremony of Carols

There is one piece of holiday music so perfect that it doesn't ever seem to cause the exaggerated groans or gnashing of teeth associated with announcements of yet another Messiah (groan!) or Nutcracker (gnash!). It's Benjamin Britten's haunting and ineffably beautiful little cantata called A Ceremony of Carols. In an instrumentally spare setting for boys' choir and harp, Britten wrings out substantial color and feeling: Listen to the exquisitely brief solo "That Yonge Child" and try not to weep. Portland's Belle Voci Women's Ensemble (Margaret Green, conductor) tries their hand at the work and other seasonal carols, with Jeff Parsons at the harp. STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. St. Mary's Cathedral, 1716 NW Davis St., 228-4397. 8 pm. $10-$15. 21+. Map

Christmas Revels 2007

The 2007 Revels edition sounds like it's pitched somewhere between Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas and Tim Allen's The Santa Clause. Which is to say, it sounds pretty effing awesome. Expect some of the usual (carol singing, hearty amateur acting) and a healthy dose of the unusual (capering ghosts, a haunting English castle). Scottish Rite Center, 1512 SW Morrison St., 332-2714. 7:30 pm Thursday-Friday, 1 and 7:30 pm Saturday, 1 and 5 pm Sunday. $7-$32. 21+. Map

Glory of Christmas

With every spray of coloratura and soaring vocal line, J.S. Bach's Singet dem Herrn simply radiates joy. The Oregon Repertory Singers are maybe a touch on the heavy side to be singing this lithe work, but they sing marvelously under Gil Seeley's sharp direction and are always worth a listen. German, Swedish and other international flavored carols bring up the rear. STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. St. Mary's Cathedral, 1716 NW Davis St., 228-4397. 2 pm Sunday; 7:30 pm Sunday-Monday. $20-$33. 21+. Map

Gospel Christmas

The Oregon Symphony raises the roof in a raucous gospel holiday shout-fest. Guest conductor Charles Floyd leads the Symphony—abetted by the silver-throated Northwest Community Gospel Chorus—in one of the orch's best annual concerts. Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 SW Broadway., 248-4335. 7:30 pm. $25-$80. 21+. Map

Holiday Gift of Music

Portland's beloved Tears of Joy theater troupe steps up with new puppets for Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf; local actor Bill Barry is the narrator. Portland Columbia Symphony Orchestra plays a grab-bag of Christmas orchestral standards, with a new work by Brad Mersereau, Christmas Carol. STEPHEN MARC BEAUDOIN. First United Methodist Church, 1838 SW Jefferson St., 234-4077. 7 pm Friday, Dec. 7. Call 503-234-4077 for reservations. $5, children and seniors free. 21+. Map

Holiday Gift of Music

Portland's beloved Tears of Joy theater troupe steps up with new puppets for Prokofiev's Peter and the Wolf; local actor Bill Barry is the narrator. Portland Columbia Symphony Orchestra plays a grab-bag of Christmas orchestral standards, with a new work by Brad Mersereau, Christmas Carol. Sam Barlow High School, 5105 SE 302nd Ave., Gresham., 674-5600. 3 pm Sunday, Dec. 9. Call 503-234-4077 for reservations. $5, children and seniors free. Map

Let Us Adore Him

What is it with Mormons and choral music? Salt Lake City's Mormon Tabernacle Choir has been setting the bar for some years on the massed choir forces front. Now Portland's Mormons are getting into the game. Say hello to the Portland Mormon Choir and Orchestra, and for their third annual Christmas concert they're offering "holiday favorites, upbeat crowd-pleasers, a little taste of Christmas in Russia and much more." All we could ever want more is one of Mitt Romney's hottie sons (Matt, preferably) to complete the package. Skyview High School, 1300 NW 139th St., Vancouver., 8 pm. 533-7004. $10. 21+. Map

DANCE

Do Jump! for the Holidays

On the eve of Nutcracker season, Do Jump! sends up the original seasonal ballet in Divided We Fall, a comic combination of acrobatics and acting, music and dance—look for Aaron Wheeler-Kay’s new tap piece at this year’s installment. In the other half of this annual holiday show, the "actorbats" offer At Such a Dizzy Height, in which director Robin Lane puts Marc Chagall paintings in motion with aerial dance and circus arts, layered with video. Keep an eye out for flying set pieces (participating jugglers the Vanillatown Vaudevillians are highly suspect in this regard) and your ears open to the live klezmer accompaniment from members of Klezmocracy. HEATHER WISNER. Newmark Theatre, 1111 SW Broadway., 248-4335. 3 pm Sundays Dec. 23 and 30; 7:30 pm Thursdays-Saturdays, Sundays Dec. 20-22, 26-29. $25-$29. 21+. Map

George Balanchine’s The Nutcracker

Oregon Ballet Theatre stages one of the oldest American versions of this holiday chestnut: George Balanchine’s dazzling creation for New York City Ballet, featuring the Dewdrop Fairy and (spoiler alert!) the magically sprouting Christmas tree. Dancers don’t always love The Nutcracker—one friend, cast for many years in the taxing Chinese tea version, calls it "The Buttcracker"—but audiences always do, and countless ballet careers have been launched from so many starry-eyed tots picturing themselves in tulle and tiara, whirling through the enchanted Land of Sweets. HEATHER WISNER. Keller Auditorium, 222 SW Clay St., 248-4335. 222-5538. 7:30 pm Wednesday-Friday, 2 and 7:30 pm Saturday, 1 pm Sunday (1 and 5 pm Dec. 23), noon Monday. $10.50-$120. All ages. Map

Luciana Proaño

While the rest of the entertainment world struggles with a surfeit of holiday sweetness, Proaño charges ahead with Chaski, a multimedia performance piece based on—no, you haven’t heard this one before, unless you’re Peruvian—the Incan Andean relay runners who once traversed that country’s jungles and mountains to deliver messages. Set to JB Butler’s original score, a pastiche of Afro-Peruvian, Andean, Indian and free jazz rhythms, Chaski uses running as a metaphor for the relentless surge of modern life. Proaño is the lone dancer in this contemporary piece; to convey the natural world of her subjects, she’ll perform in a costume of pelican feathers, against a bamboo-leaf screen and an atmospheric video of running water. HEATHER WISNER. Conduit Dance Ballroom, 918 SW Yamhill St., Suite 401., 221-5857. 977-0620. 7 pm Thursday-Saturday, Dec. 6-8. $10-15. 21+. Map

Rennie Harris Puremovement

Hip hop for the mind—and body. See full review, here. HEATHER WISNER. Portland State University, 1825 SW Broadway., 725-3000. 8 pm Thursday-Friday, 2 and 8 pm Saturday, Dec. 6-8. $16-$26. All ages. Map

The Nutcracker

It’s nutty, all right, how this holiday chestnut has been roasted over the years. Matthew Bourne’s Nutcracker! unfolds in a Dickensian orphanage; Mark Morris set The Hard Nut in the swinging ’60s; Donald Byrd jazzed up his Harlem Nutcracker with a big-band score; and Key West’s Paradise Ballet recently staged an underwater version in a mangrove swamp, rating a making-of documentary in the process. There is a feminist version, an all-tap version, a Southwest version with a Prickly Pear Fairy—the list goes on. In local versions, however, tradition prevails: Mount Hood Ballet Theater offers a straightforward production. HEATHER WISNER. Hudson F. Lasher Performing Arts Center at Reynolds High School, 1698 SW Cherry Park, Troutdale., 667-6698. 7 pm Friday, Dec. 7; 1 and 6 pm Saturday, Dec. 8. $10. 21+. Map