Carnal-val

BDSM 101. Female ejaculation. Anal play for beginners. These aren't your typical convention-floor seminar topics. But then again, The Sex Show — an erotic trade and educational show taking place today through Sunday at the Denver Merchandise Mart, 451 East 58th Avenue — isn't your typical convention. "I'd like to think of it as a well-rounded event celebrating human beings as sexual creatures, with an emphasis on education," says show co-owner David Stein. In other words, there will be lots of delightfully naughty stuff going down.

Along with three days of enlightening and titillating seminars, the eighteen-and-older expo features a wide variety of sexy goods and services ("It's a dildo mall, to some extent," jokes Love Slave, a local presenter who will run an educational dungeon at the show) and a main stage featuring fashion shows, adult film star appearances and burlesque acts. To up the erotic ante, a free shuttle bus will run between the show and the Diamond Cabaret and Steakhouse every half-hour. The program wraps up tonight and tomorrow night with performances by Wank Punter, a so-called porn band supported by a (cough) talented team of "backup singers" called the Fluffettes. How educational.

Tickets are $25 per day, or $40 for a weekend pass. For more information, go to www.thesexshow2008.com or call 1-866-713-9484.
Fri., Feb. 8, 5 p.m.-midnight; Sat., Feb. 9, noon-midnight; Sun., Feb. 10, 11 a.m.-6 p.m., 2008