Acting Up

RedLine resident artist Justin Beard laments the lack of performance art in Denver. “Back in 2000, when I first moved here, it seemed like there was a lot going on, with things like Mr. Pacman and Little Fyodor. I was blown away by it, but then it sort of faded...

By Susan Froyd

May 16, 2013

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RedLine resident artist Justin Beard laments the lack of performance art in Denver. “Back in 2000, when I first moved here, it seemed like there was a lot going on, with things like Mr. Pacman and Little Fyodor. I was blown away by it, but then it sort of faded a little,” Beard says. “I think it’s something Denver needs, to help keep the art scene unique and alive.” And sometimes, he realized, a man’s just got to take the situation into his own hands. That’s how PANDA: Performance Art Night Denver came to be. Beard put out a call to his friends in the arts community and pulled together a team of performance volunteers willing to take a chance on something completely different. The first edition of PANDA goes down tonight at RedLine; if it’s successful, he hopes to keep the tradition going.

Even Beard doesn’t know quite what to expect from the ten to fifteen performers who’ve signed up, though he did balk at the idea of presenting another DJ projecting video. Of the rest, he admits, “I have no clue. I’m going to be totally surprised. I just told everyone, ‘I encourage you guys to do whatever you want.’” See what that is from 7 to 9 p.m. tonight at RedLine, 2350 Arapahoe Street; admission is free. “You might like it and you might not,” Beard says, “but come out and experience something different!”
Sat., May 18, 7-9 p.m., 2013

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Susan Froyd started writing for Westword as the "Thrills" editor in 1992 and never quite left the fold. These days she still freelances for the paper in addition to walking her dogs, enjoying cheap ethnic food and reading voraciously. Sometimes she writes poetry.

Contact: Susan Froyd

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