Not just a festival.
A homecoming.
A heartbeat.
A whole new tradition for Portland.
PDX N8V FST is Portland’s Indigenous performing arts festival celebrating Native music, dance, art, and food. Native-led and community-driven, the festival brings together artists and audiences from across Turtle Island and beyond, creating space for culture to be shared, honored, and lived out loud.
We’re here to gather, to celebrate, and to remind Portland: we’ve always been here — and we’re just getting started.
PDX N8V FST is a celebration of Indigenous sound and spirit – who we are, where we came from, and where
we’re headed.
UPCOMING EVENTS
UPCOMING EVENTS
With preparations being made for the inaugural PDX N8V FST in 2026-2027, the 2025 SERIES pilot features four allies already presenting Indigenous artists in their seasons and building an audience for Indigenous performance.
July 31, 2025
6:00-7:30 pm
Main Stage
Esther Short Park
Vancouver, Washington
Pamyua
Pamyua at vancouver Arts & Music festival
Vancouver Arts & Music Festival is a free community festival with three outdoor stages, local art vendors, a juried art exhibition, family activities and world-class musical performances, transforming Esther Short Park into a playground of creativity, July 31st through August 3rd.
Clark College Foundation brings Inuit Soul group Pamyua (pronounced bum-yo-ah) from Alaska to kick off the Festival, performing their unique blend of tribal funk and Inuit soul - a sound that fuses traditional Yup’ik drum dancing and songs with gospel, R&B, jazz, and funk.
Festival Welcome and Kickoff at 5:00; Pamyua performance at 6:00.
Sponsored by: Clark College Foundation
Vancouver Arts & Music Festival presented by: Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and the City of Vancouver
The Untitled Native Project — Live at PICA
The Untitled Native Project — Live at PICA is a night in three parts: history, storytelling, and conversations. Part one features Oregon and Portland history from David Harrelson and Anthony Hudson. Part two puts a spotlight on Native artists living, working, creating in the Pacific Northwest, with perspectives from Amber Ball (Dakubetede, Shasta, Modoc, Klamath), Leland Butler (Grand Ronde/Siletz/Yurok), Olivia Camfield (Mvskoke), Woodrow Hunt (Klamath, Modoc and Cherokee), LaRonn Katchia (Warm Springs/Wasco/Paiute), Steph Littlebird (Kalapuya, Chinook), and Kanani Miyamoto (Hawaiian). Part three concludes the evening with a conversation with Trevino Brings Plenty and the artists about their perspectives and the future of Native arts and cultures.
This performance will be livestreamed on PICA’s YouTube channel.
Please visit pica.org/tba for updates.
September 7, 2025
7:30 pm
Portland Institute for Contemporary Art
15 NE Hancock Street
Portland, Oregon
October 24-25, 2025
Patricia Reser Center for the Arts
12625 SW Crescent Street
Beaverton, Oregon
December 5, 2025
6:00-7:30 pm
Main Stage
Esther Short Park
Vancouver, Washington
YORK THE EXPLORER at The reser
“York the Explorer” is a groundbreaking folk opera that amplifies the extraordinary story of York, the enslaved Black man who accompanied Lewis and Clark on the Corps of Discovery expedition, yet whose contributions have been largely forgotten by history. Based on historical accounts and set to an innovative score that blends folk, classical, jazz, hip hop, and reggae, York the Explorer celebrates an unsung American hero whose skill and bravery helped map a nation. The opera also honors the indigenous nations who were displaced by the expansion of the United States, acknowledging the complex legacy of westward exploration.
York the Explorer‘s book and music are composed by GRAMMY®-nominated producer Aaron Nigel Smith, with lyrics co-written by Pulitzer Prize-nominated journalist Dr. Renee Mitchell. This compelling musical work illuminates York’s remarkable journey of self-discovery and determination as he navigates a complex role in the expansion of the American territory.
Featuring Julia Keefe as Sakagawea
Event Times
Kalani Pe’a
kalani Pe‘A: Hawaiian Christmas @ the reser
Kalani Pe‘a’s “Hawaiian Christmas” is a celebration of the warmth and special “aloha” of the Holiday Season, sharing much-loved songs from both western and Hawaiian roots. A four-time Grammy winner in the Regional Roots category, Kalani is a not-to-be-missed charismatic performer with a gorgeous voice, powerful presence, and joyful appeal. His shows also include the local hula talents of some of the top dancers in the region.
The first Hawaiian performer presented at Lincoln Center’s American Songbook (his New York City debut and it sold-out), he returned for a weeklong engagement at Carnegie Hall’s Music Explorers Program. Recognized by his Hawai‘i peers at the Na Hoku Hanohano (Hawai‘i’s music awards) Awards, he has won five awards to date, including the coveted Male Vocalist of the Year and honoring his songwriting skills with Song of the Year. His Na Hoku wins include accolades for his Christmas music: Christmas Single of the Year in 2021 and his Purple Hawaiian Christmas CD in 2022.
A fluent Hawaiian speaker described as “Hawaiian contemporary soul”, Kalani’s dynamism and charm, vocal brilliance, and range of songs from Hawaiian to R&B has brought him to the forefront of Hawaiian music for both traditionalists and a new generation.
February 15, 2026
7:00 PM Ellyn Bye Studio Portland Center Stage at The Armory 128 Northwest 11th Avenue Portland, Oregon
Tiziano Cruz
Wayqeycuna (argentina) @ boom arts
Just as Andean women weave their quipus [textile artefacts made of ropes and knots] as memorials, the Argentinean artist Tiziano Cruz takes the path back to his childhood to reconnect with his community.
Based on archival work, the piece proposes a reflection on how racial hierarchies and structures of domination operate in a world in which neoliberalism violently devastates cultural, vital, and collective traces.
Wayqeycuna is the last piece in the trilogy Tres Maneras de Cantarle a una Montaña in which the artist articulates, through a series of poetic gestures, his childhood memories of the interior of northern Argentina with political manifestos on the art market and class privilege.
Wayqeycuna is performed in Spanish with English subtitles.
U.S. premiere from Argentina!
Audience Award Winner, Zurich Theater Spektakel 2024!
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
THANK YOU TO OUR SPONSORS
The 2025 SERIES pilot of PDX N8V FST is made possible by Portland’s James F and Marion L Miller Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Thank you for believing in this idea for the future of PDX.
And our PARTNERS, area ally organizations who lead the way in ensuring all voices in our community are heard:
Thank you all!
