Happy (White Album) X-Mas!

Last week I was treated to the best thing going on in December in Portland. My dear friend Lara Michell, a wonderful musician and angelic singer in the Nowhere Band (a collection of local Portland talent) gave me a comp ticket to see the Nowhere Band and the vaudeville-style Wanderlust Circus, perform the White Album in it’s entirety. This was their 4th annual tribute to the miracle that is the Beatles’ White Album. The event was held in the star-spangled Alberta Rose Theater, a jewel-box of a venue.  The evening extravaganza offered the unmatched songs of the Beatles’ story-filled White Album (you know them--Blackbird, Dear Prudence, Sexy Sadie) as performed by the electric and magnetic members of the Nowhere Band, appropriately dressed in shades of white. The band was tight, Lara Michell rocked Martha My Dear, and the eye -popping performances by Wanderlust’s troupe were unforgettable. They included the mesmerizing acrobatic Troupe Kazum, the phenomenal aerial dancers AWOL,an insane trick roper named Leapin’ Louie, a Monk Mime doing crazy tricks with swords, jugglers, and much more.   The Master of Ceremonies, William Batty, is the elegant and eloquent frontman and circus co-founder, Noah Mickens who made the audience (at least this member) feel as though we could make the world a better place if we agreed to do our part. If you know what’s good for your soul, you will make plans to see next year’s White Album Christmas at the Alberta Rose. I’ll be there in the front row!