Performance has been an insiders' club for audiences since its inception with the Greeks. A fifth wall encloses the audience with performer. When theater and dance has been captured by the camera, it often languishes in places like the New York Public Library at Lincoln Center. Some performances in that library require written permission from their creators in advance to even be seen. Seattle's On the Boards has recorded modern performances and they can be seen by anyone in the world by video on demand. So you could say they break through the fifth wall of performance: audience time and space. Theater company Hand 2 Mouth is arranging showings of select pieces, including tonight, the lyrical Kidd Pivot modern dance work Dark Matters, which will later come to Portland with White Bird. Very beautiful work. By hand2mouththeatre.org 810 S.E. Belmont St., 7:30PM $5
The big Leach Gallery 30 year show, The Shape of the Problem, continues with video by Dinh Q. Lê, The Imagined Country. Lê samples media culture, street culture and just culture. Media culture sampling is much more often than not trivial, but not Lê. Judge for yourself. At Reed's Cooley Gallery www.reed.edu/gallery, in the library building, 3203 SE Woodstock. 5:30-7PM Free
"Wish I Was There" is a universal human sentiment, as is the inspiration of a world of our own making. It's also the theme of an art collaboration by Driscoll Reid and Amy Ruppel. They painted imagined landscapes populated with creatures, outdoors, together, for this show. Opening at Buy Olympia's Land Gallery www.landpdx.com 3925 N Mississippi 6PM-8 Free
Worksound has a group painting show, Identity Paintings, with painters Kate Allred, Jeremy Okai Davis, Gavin Eveland, Luke Fuller, Dorothy Goode, Ruth Lentz, Chelsea Linehan, Elizabeth Malaska, Devon Maldenado and Alexis Sarah Rittenhouse. At Worksound www.worksoundpdx.com 820 SE Alder Map 6PM-10
Reading-Writing is an art show with Abra Ancliffe, Lindsay AuCoin, Derek Beaulieu, Justin Bland, Pat Boas, Sean Joseph Patrick, Carney, Patrick Collier, Carmen Denison, Emily Ginsburg, Anna Gray and Ryan Wilson Paulsen, Sarah Greig, Sydney S. Kim, Sam Korman, Katarina Petrović, McIntyre Parker, Lisa Radon, Helen Reed, Namita Gupta Wiggers and James Yeary. Many of these artists teach at universities or otherwise are facile writers. At Gallery Homeland www.galleryhomeland.org 2505 SE 11th x Division 6PM-9 Free
In the 811 Building
Redux has wire sculptures by Joe Diemer. At Redux www.reduxpdx.com 811 E Burnside
Back in Black is a photo show curated by Chris Moss. At Black Box Gallery www.blackboxgallery.com 811 E Burnside, Suite 212 upstairs 5PM-7:30 Free
Across the street is Half Dozen Gallery. It hatched from the Everett Lofts, then migrated to the East side. They presented a muscular program of minimal energetic visuals and adventurous performance, which they continue in a new basement spot, under Le Pigeon. Tonight they have Harmless Environments by Ellen Jane Michael & Megan Scheminske. The former is inspired by romance novels, the later by artist live work spaces. At Half/Dozen Gallery www.halfdozengallery.com 722 E Burnside (enter on 8th) 6PM-9 Free
There is a small concentration of spots in this part of town, including The Stables, which hosts a live art benefit this evening: SHARE. Artists Mark Warren Jacques, Ryan Bubnis, Timothy Karpinksi, Chase Velarde, Stephanie Benhaim, Morgaine Faye, Lynn Yarne, David Wein, Alec Zemper and Sohaila Adela will be making work for sale to benefit world water projects. At The Stables www.thestablespdx.com. 910 SE Taylor 6PM-11 Free
Project Grow has the Street Art Show with Varinthorn Christopher, Travis Bonneau, Chris Haberman, Walter Lee,
Amy Steel, Amy Bay, Mark Jondahl, Sandy Sampson, many of whom operate in the social practice realm as well as being visual artists. At Project Grow at the Port City Development Center. 2156 N Williams Ave at Tillamook. 6-10PM Free
