Wetting Ourselves Over the Moisture Festival at Hales Brewery
Drop your cynicism at the door and get ready for childlike, wide-eyed delight. The Moisture Festival, now in its fifth year, has the same friendly feeling as the Oregon Country Fair. No surprise, since the festival's founders are long-time performers there. Each evening is a true variety show, with an eclectic mix of unpretentious performers who jump onto the stage and let their talent amaze us, rather than relying on lights and set. Cirque-du-fancy-pants-Soleil this is not. In many ways, it's better.
We get our popcorn for one dollar and a Hale's beer for a mere $4 and settle back to watch the action. It's easy to say there isn't a bad seat in the house, because you never know if an act is going to stay on the elevated stage or if an aerialist’s trapeze is going to swing down in the middle of the aisle for a performance that feels thrilling right over your head.
Like traditional variety, the acts are all over the map. Friday's line-up includes comedy, juggling, sound effects, opera, clowning, a capella, and a boogie woogie pianist. Unlike traditional variety, all of the acts are good. The Red Wine Sisters—a pair of goofily clucking, opera-singing comediennes—impress us with their gorgeous, mellow voices. Then, a high school Japanese teacher/juggler making his Moisture Festival debut, wows the audience with "how'd he do that?" tricks using a Diablo and a simple set of juggling balls. The strangest talent of the night is Zip Code man, whose talent is this: you give him your zip code, he tells you where you're from and if there are any good restaurants in the area. It doesn't sound blog-worthy, but we spend most of the act whooping and cheering in amazement.
Photo: The Aerialistas by Mark Gardiner
The most jaw-dropping act of the evening is Ricochet, an aerialist duo made up as twisted versions of Pierrot and Pierette. The woman is also a contortionist who, at one point, covers her eyes with her feet by swinging her feet over her head in a backbend. They pop out of a tiny trunk and artfully tell their story, while twisting and dangling off each other on the tissu.
The evening is hosted by the hilarious Armitage Shanks of Circus Contraption and Mme Zazou, who couldn't quite keep up with Armitage's quipping. You know you'll enjoy the Moisture Festival when you're willing to be led in a seventh inning stretch with 200 other people all tromping in place like zoo animals while Shanks sings a song about pink elephants. Don't hold back, just let yourself go there.
The variety portion of the Moisture Festival runs until April 13th at Hale's Brewery, with different acts and hosts every night.
