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Chimp Champ

Primate pal Jane Goodall inhabits Denver.

A A A Comments By Julie Dunn Thursday, Mar 20 2003

Researcher extroardinaire Jane Goodall, who has studied chimpanzees for more than four decades, will distill her expertise this weekend at two events: The Roots & Shoots Discoverystage show for kids and their parents, in Boulder; and the opening of Discovering Chimpanzees: The Remarkable World of Jane Goodall, at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.

Michael Neugebauer

Jane Goodall and friend monkey around.

Details

2 p.m. Saturday, March 22
Macky Auditorium, CU-Boulder campus
$12.25-$18.25, 303-786-7030, www.mavenproductions.co m

Discovering Chimpanzees: The Remarkable World of Jane Goodall,
Friday, March 21, through Sunday, June 8
$6-$9
Denver Museum of Nature and Science, 2001 Colorado Boulevard
303-322-7009, www. dmns.org

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"We're hoping to ignite and inspire young people and their parents," says Nona Gandelman, a spokeswoman for the Maryland-based Jane Goodall Institute USA. "To show kids that learning through the natural world and the animal world can be fun."

Geared toward ages six and up, the 75-minute interactive Roots & Shootsfeatures a sing-along and a teen question-and-answer panel with Goodall, who will also teach kids how to walk and talk like chimpanzees. "The whole purpose of Roots & Shoots is to create informed citizens, and the best place to start is with young people," says Gandelman. "The kids love to be involved. It empowers them while also teaching them." The show will be followed by a book signing with Goodall.

And while the forests of Tanzania are thousands of miles away, starting Friday visitors will be able to wander through the new 6,000-foot DMNS exhibit on Goodall, which includes a re-creation of her original research-station tent in Gombe National Park and a chimp forest, among other things. "It's a really interactive exhibit," says Julia Taylor, a spokeswoman for the museum, which will house the travelling exhibit until June 8. "You can even crawl into a chimp's nest."

In conjunction with the exhibit, the IMAX Theater will screen Goodall's new film, Jane Goodall's Wild Chimpanzees, and the museum will present an ongoing series of lectures and events with scientists and filmmakers.

"There is so much that we can learn from Jane and her studies," says Taylor. "It's important to help spread her message to the next generation."