Thursday March 3 Lend an ear: Every comic has his shtick, and for Iowa boy Jake Johannsen, it's the convoluted story--the intelligently bizarre version. Johannsen, who will ruminate on subjects ranging from fleas and extraterrestrials to the vagaries of relationships, seems to be a standup version of Gary Larson's Far Side, proof that more than corn grows in the Iowa heartland. With an HBO special and a role in Alan Rudolph's upcoming film Mrs. Parker and the Round Table under his belt, Jake drops in, beginning tonight, at the Comedy Works, 1226 15th St. in Larimer Square, for three funny nights. Call 595-3637 for showtimes and reservations.
Jung at heart: Local phenomenon Clarissa Pinkola Estes, the psychoanalyst/author of the bestselling Women Who Run With the Wolves, knows her archetypes. A self-described cantadora, or Latina keeper of the old stories, she uses old myths and tales to explore and explain the human psyche. In a unique thirteen-week performance series, Theatre of the Mind, beginning tonight at 7:30 p.m. and continuing weekly through May 26, Estes will weave her narratives, poetry and archetypal Jungian psychology into an informational and entertaining tapestry covering a number of fascinating topics, from story-as-medicine to the significance of erotic life. Enroll for the series, which takes place at the Divine Science Church, 1400 Williams St., by calling 443-5858; the phone-in registration fee is $156.
Friday March 4 Rightful Eires: It's hard to keep the good stuff a secret--perhaps that's why the Swallow Hill Music Association packs them in whenever Altan comes to visit. Lovers of traditional Irish music flock to see this group, cream of a lyrical crop that begins with the Chieftains and ends with Clannad. The Green Linnet recording artists appear tonight at 8 p.m. in Swallow Hill's neighborly stretching-out venue, the Cameron Church, 1600 S. Pearl St. To reserve tickets--and you will want to--call 777-1003.
Motor city: For those who see their cars as more than mere transport, there's the Tri-State Auto Show, opening today and featuring an eye-popping display of customs, classics, hot rods and more, all commingling under the roof of the Colorado Convention Center, 700 14th St. You'll see everything on wheels here--from exotic Ferraris and Lamborghinis to the same, sweet old Fifties Schwinns you used to find under your Christmas tree. And if that doesn't satisfy the child in you, there's always the Tiny Town Steam Locomotive, coming in from the cold for a while. Hours today are 4 p.m. to midnight; the show continues from noon to midnight tomorrow and from noon to 9 p.m. Sunday. Admission is $8 ($2.50 kids 6-12, under 6 free).
Boulder and wiser: Boulder is a happening place for the arts this weekend, thanks in part to five downtown galleries that have banded together for a Visiting Artist Series Introduction Show with a weekend-long opening reception beginning tonight from 6 to 9 p.m. and continuing tomorrow from noon to 5 and Sunday from noon to 4. Participating galleries include the Boulder Arts and Crafts Cooperative, Handmade in Colorado, the MacClaren/Markowitz Gallery and Montgomery House, all on Pearl St. in Boulder, as well as the Mountain Shadows Gallery, down the street on Spruce. Exhibits will showcase work by the Boulder Potter's Guild and Philadelphia Clay Studio, Israeli artist Moshe Monzon and a number of local artists. For details call 444-9116. Meanwhile, the Boulder Art Center, nearby at 1750 13th St., will hold an opening, also from 6 to 9 this evening, for a pair of wonderful photography shows--James Balog: Anima and Joel-Peter Witkin: Selected Works. Featuring Balog's sophisticated studies of humans and chimps and Witkin's explorations of the thin line separating beauty from the taboo, the show will hang through May 1. Call 443-2122.
Saturday March 5 Liberal translations: In a field more crowded than the one that greeted the Pope at Cherry Creek Reservoir, one comic lady stands up head-and-shoulders above the rest. She's Marga Gomez, a member of a bundle of minority groups--mainly Latina and lesbian--who rose through the comedy ranks in San Francisco to gain national acclaim for her hilarious autobiographical monologues. She performs tonight under the banner of Not for Republicans: An Evening of Comedy at the Mercury Cafe, 2199 California St. Tickets to the 7:30 p.m. show are $12; to reserve yours call 443-5858.
Base desires: For some folks, no amount of football, basketball or Olympic figure skating snits will do. It's baseball they crave--the green grass, the crack of the bat and the faint promise of things to come. Even fans need to get in shape. The boys of summer begin to flex their muscles this week with the opening of spring training, and you can pull down the brim of your cap, pull up a chair and tune in to KWGN-Channel 2--to watch the Colorado Rockies vs. San Francisco Giants, live from Hi Corbett Field in Tucson. The first televised Rockies game of the season, this practice round starts at 1:05 p.m. today. And remember, opening day is April 4 at Mile High Stadium.
Sunday March 6 Fully orchestrated: Music takes away the pain, we suppose--one reason why the annual Symphony Run in City Park is so popular with the fleet of foot. Whether you participate in the 10K Full Note Run, the 5K Half Note run or the Quarter Note 1K Fun Run, all beginning at 8 a.m., you'll be able to catch your breath afterward to the strains of the Colorado Symphony Orchestra Brass Quintet tootling in the Park Bandshell from 9:30 to 10:30 a.m. Registration begins at 7 a.m.; the race-day entry fee, which entitles you to the usual T-shirt and refreshments (provided here by the Great Harvest Bread Company), is $20 ($10 seniors and children). Or call 741-3587 for preregistration information; the advance adult fee is $16.
Earthen delights: The ceramic arts get a yearly boost when the Foothills Art Center puts on its annual juried Colorado Clay exhibition--a far-reaching showcase marked by changing textures and sculptural ingenuity. Among the works on display at 809 15th St. in Golden are first-place winner Skeff Thomas' organic, airy vessels, Andrew Baird's take on the San Ildefonso black-on-black pottery, and modeled figures by Diane Sullivan and Wesley Anderegg. The show, which opened last week, stands through March 27; see it today from 1 to 4 p.m. or between 9 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Saturday. For more information call 279-3922.
Monday March 7 Home improvments: One monthly visit that isn't a drag happens tonight at 8 p.m., when the local improv comedy group 4 Chairs, No Waiting takes the stage at Herman's Hideaway, 1578 S. Broadway. It wouldn't hurt to spend a Monday evening being zany now, would it? The Chairs promise to smash someone's knee and deny it in Gaelic. Who knows where they'll take it from there. Find out for yourself; call Herman's at 778-9916 for details.
Tuesday March 8 Seeing wed: Author John Nichols simply delighted readers with his book The Milagro Beanfield War, a seriocomic Southwestern cult favorite that later became a truncated but entertaining film. Nichols, whose latest novel, Conjugal Bliss: A Comedy of Marital Arts, takes a wicked bite out of the institution of marriage, will discuss the new book today at the Denver Women's Press Club, 1325 Logan St., from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Then it's on to the Tattered Cover Book Store, 2955 E. 1st Ave., for a reading and autographing beginning at 7:30 p.m. For additional information about the DWPC talk, call 388-6640; for more details about the reading, call the Tattered Cover at 322-7727.
