Since dogs can’t read, do it for them.
Help Cooper, a Bernese mountain dog, satisfy his curiosity in 15-minute reading sessions at Read to the Dog every Tuesday and Thursday from 4 to 5 p.m. at Camas Public Library, 625 N.E. Fourth Ave., Camas. Readers need to sign up in advance. Read to the Dog will last at least through March 1. 360-834-4692 or www.ci.camas.wa.us/library-events/events.
This isn’t a music festival, but you’ll hear about every instrument onstage in one concert. Festival Brass will make their Battle Ground debut from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Dec. 20 at Northwood Public House and Brewery, 1401 N.E. Rasmussen Blvd., Battle Ground. The seven-piece band, which has become a staple of Northwest holiday music, will perform everything from seasonal classics to popular, modern tunes. The band features two trumpets, a French Horn, two trombones, a euphonium and a tuba. 360-723-0937 or www.northwoodpublichouse.com/events.
After five years running, this recent Portland Christmas tradition will close the curtain with a final performance. Multi Grammy and CMA Award-winning violinist Mark O’Connor with the Grammy Award-winning O’Connor Band will perform An Appalachian Christmas at 7:30 p.m. Dec. 22 at Arlene Schnitzer Concert Hall, 1037 S.W. Broadway Portland; $18 to $105. Mark O’Connor and his band are known for combining folk, bluegrass and classical music to create unique slants on Christmas classics. The band snagged a Grammy this year for Best Bluegrass Album, and the O’Connor Band is a family affair, consisting of Mark, his wife, who plays violin and sings vocals, their son Forrest on mandolin and vocals, and Forrest’s fianc?e Kate on violin and vocals. Two family friends, Geoff Smart (bass) and National Flatpick Guitar Champ Joe Smart, round out the band. 503-248-4335 or www.portland5.com/arlene-schnitzer-concert-hall/events/mark-oconnor-oconnor-band-appalachian-christmas.
When’s the last time you had your funny bone tickled? Don’t wait any longer for hilarity to happen, and instead just watch Portland comedian Alex Avery perform at the Loowit Brewery Stand-Up Comedy Showcase at 8:30 p.m. Dec. 28 at Loowit Brewing Co., 507 Columbia St. Vancouver; free admission. Avery, a native of Vancouver, deploys a signature style based in dark comedy and non-sequitur one-liners. He started performing stand-up comedy during his senior year at Vancouver School of Arts and Academics, and appeared in Portland’s Most Funniest Person earlier this year. 360-566-2323 or www.loowitbrewing.com.
