Go for Tuesday, May 12: Second Tuesday, Willis Earl Beal, Leonard MIodinow

Concerts

Stephin Merritt of the Magnetic Fields, 8 p.m. Aladdin Theater, 3017 SE Milwaukie Ave., Portland; $25 through Ticketfly, 877-435-9849 or www.ticketfly.com. www.aladdin-theater.com

Nightlife

The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion, 9 p.m. Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E. Burnside St., Portland; $18, for ages 21 and older. 503-231-9663 or www.dougfirlounge.com

Peter Brotzmann, William Parker, Hamid Drake Trio, 8 p.m. Mississippi Studios, 3939 N. Mississippi Ave., Portland; $12 to $15, for ages 21 and older. 503-288-3895 or www.mississippistudios.com

Scott Law, 6 to 8 p.m. The Grant House, 1101 Officers Row, Vancouver; 360-906-1101 or www.thegranthouse.us

Willis Earl Beal, 9:30 p.m. Holocene, 1001 S.E. Morrison St., Portland; $8 to $10, for ages 21 and older. 503-239-7639 or www.holocene.org

Theater

“4000 Miles” presented by Artists Repertory Theatre. 7:30 p.m. Morrison Stage, 1515 S.W. Morrison St., Portland; $41 to $56; $25 for students. 503-241-1278 or www.artistsrep.org. For more details, see the go: friday page.

“The Lion” presented by Portland Center Stage. 7:30 p.m. Ellyn Bye Studio at the Gerding Theater at the Armory, 128 NW Eleventh Ave., Portland; $40 to $55; $25 for students and youth. 503-445-3700 or www.pcs.org. For more details, see the go: friday page.

Words

Leonard MIodinow, “The Upright Thinkers,” 7:30 p.m. Powell’s Books, 1005 W. Burnside St., Portland; 800-878-7323 or www.powells.com

“Poetry from the Interior: William Stafford and Miguel Hernandez,” 7 p.m. An evening of prose and poetry inspired by American poet William Stafford and Spanish poet Miguel Hernandez, who both found inspiration in the natural world. Presented by Los Porteños. Literary Arts, 925 S.W. Washington St., Portland; free. www.facebook.com/pdxPortenos

Museums

Mark O. Hatfield Historians Forum Lecture, 7 p.m. Best-selling author, Pulitzer Prize winner Rick Atkinson, will speak about his “Liberation Trilogy,” a narrative history of the liberation of Europe in World War II. First Congregational United Church of Christ, 1126 S.W. Park Ave., Portland; $25 to $75, $10 for students. 503-222-1741 or www.ohs.org

Attractions

Second Tuesday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Visitors can enjoy the Oregon Zoo for just $4 per person every second Tuesday of the month. Ages 2 and younger are free. Oregon Zoo, 4001 S.W. Canyon Road, Portland; 503-226-1561 or www.oregonzoo.org

Dancing

Country line-dance lessons, 6:30 to 8 p.m. Fishers Grange No. 211, 814 N.E. 162nd Ave., Vancouver; $4. No partner or experience is required. Led by instructors Tom and Kathy Peters. 360-521-8360.

International Folk Dancing, 3 to 4:30 p.m. Marshall Center, 1009 E. McLoughlin Blvd., Vancouver. Learn different folk dances. No partner or experience needed. 360-487-7050 or www.cityofvancouver.us/parksrec