Bread and Puppet Theater seems like a Portlandia joke—do you know of any other politically charged puppetry troupe offering an unpaid internship as a gardener’s apprentice?—but its multidisciplinary schtick has its roots in the protest street theater of the 1960s, so prepare for a refresher course in Shit Fucked Up of Late. Just don’t expect Technicolor felt animals who sing about spelling and extol the virtue of cookies as a sometimes food: The ensembles incorporates themes of social consciousness and political subversion into a mix of music, dance, and activist-minded theater that’s parts Brecht, Dalí, and balls-tripping fever dream. Tonight’s performance of The Decapitalization Cabaretwill delve into matters of justice, immigration, and universal health care with musical accompaniment provided by The Decapitalization Accordian and String Ensemble. The spectacle is worth its occasional sanctimony, even if it’s more earnest than a Jim Varney convention.

Bread and Puppet Theater performs at 8 p.m. at St. Stephen’s Church, 1525 Newton St. NW. $5-$15.