See our list of free things to do here, and our guide to the first weekend of August's art events here. Now keep reading for ten more things to do worth the price of admission:
[margins.] conference and festival
Sunday, August 7, 8 a.m. to 4 p.m.
McNichols Building, 144 West Colfax Avenue
Denver author, activist, leader and educator Suzi Q. Smith is the director of the literary conference [margins.],but the committed group it takes to produce an event this size comes together from all across the nation. Its diverse members are writers, editors, publishers, teachers, booksellers and anyone else with ties to the art of words. The three-day fest is a place to mix, to learn, to instruct, to share work and celebrate work by others, with a tight schedule of readings, workshops, panels, films, open mics and discussions, and reasonable registration fees. Learn more and register for in-person or virtual attendance here.
58th Annual Colorado Scottish Festival
Sunday, August 7, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Citizen’s Park, 5401 West 22nd Avenue, Edgewater
The St. Andrew Society of Colorado is hosting the 58th annual Scottish fest, with pipe bands, Highlands games and competitions, dancing, historic re-enactments, whiskey tasting, vendors and more. Weekend pass is $25 adult, $15 kids; day pass is $15 adult, $10 kids. Find out more here.
Sunday Funday Polo Tailgate Party
Sunday, August 7, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Denver Polo Club, 6359 Airport Road, Sedalia
The USPA Regional President’s Cup Finals are the starring attraction at today's Sunday Funday event at the Denver Polo Club. For just $45 a car, spectators can park and party directly next to the action, watching the games from the sidelines while tailgating, or mixing and mingling at the club’s field-side cocktail bar. Find out more here.
Meow Wolf Vortex Outdoor Festival Experience
Sunday, August 7, 1 to 11 p.m.
The Junk Yard, 2323 West Mulberry Place
The Vortex is ready to swallow you and hundreds of other music fans at a new outdoor venue called the Junk Yard, which more or less describes what the lot was before Meow Wolf grabbed it up for its three-day summer festival. Considering the source, the king of immersive and interactive everything, you know Vortex will be more than just great music: Expect hands-on art installations, surprise performances, costume-o-rama and whatever else you can dream up. Find pricing levels and tickets here, and more information here.
Puerto Rican Nocturne
Sunday, August 7, 2:30 p.m.; run continues through August 21
Bug Theatre, 3654 Navajo Street
Denver playwright Jon Marcantoni’s historical social justice drama Puerto Rican Nocturne — based on the 1978 Cerro Maravilla murders of two activists by police in Ponce, Puerto Rico — was about to hit the stage in a production by the Colorado Springs company THEATREdART in March 2020, when the possibility of a world premiere was shut down by COVID. But life has lobbed Marcontoni a second chance, with a cooperative hand from IDEA Stages, Sasquatch Productions, Control Group Productions and the Bug Theatre. That’s where it opens for a two-week run, with a BIPOC cast. Tickets are $10 to $50 here.
Frequent Flyers Aerial Dance Festival Showcase
Sunday, August 7, 2 p.m.
Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut Street, Boulder
The Frequent Flyers Aerial Dance Festival gets down to the nitty-gritty this weekend with showcase performances by an international cast of aerial geniuses specializing in bungee, aerial fabric, trapeze, hoop, invented apparatus, rope, cyr wheel and other high-flying dance disciplines. And yes, it’s extremely rare to see this many top performers on one stage at one time. Tickets are $24 to $28 at the Dairy Arts Center online box office.
Rockin' Dyslexia
Sunday, August 7, 4 to 7 p.m.
Leopold Brothers, 5285 Joliet Street
This spirited new night includes music by Blu Chance and Chris Daniels and the Kings as well as two cocktails and a sampling of Leopold Bros. spirits. Tickets (21+ only) are $70, and all proceeds go directly to the Vertical Skills Academy, which helps children with dyslexia. Find out more here.
Laser Fantasy
Daily, 4:15 p.m.
Gates Planetarium, Denver Museum of Nature & Science, 2001 Colorado Boulevard
At long last, laser shows are returning to Gates Planetarium, matching light displays showcasing music by favorite pop stars or referencing TV cult shows like Stranger Things. Music from the Netflix hit will kick off Laser Fantasy’s new summer-through-winter run on Friday night, along with Led Zeppelin, the Beatles and Dark Side of the Moon shows scheduled for separate time slots. Turn on, tune in and drop out, but first get tickets. Timed-entry museum admission is required, with an additional charge for Laser Fantasy tickets, ranging from $8 to $14. Fair warning: Tickets are going fast; try to get yours here.
Long Strange Trip Drive-In Screening
Sunday, August 7, doors at 6:30, movie at 8 p.m.
Rec Center parking lot, Snowmass Town Park
Head for the hills to picnic, dance and celebrate "the days between" Jerry Garcia’s birth (August 1) and death (August 9) at this Aspen Film showing of the groundbreaking documentary Long Strange Trip, which follows the Grateful Dead. GA tickets are $40 per vehicle; find out more here.
One Night Stand
Sunday, August 7, 7:30 p.m.
Vintage Theatre, 1468 Dayton Street, Aurora
One Night Stand Theater invites you to experience the ups and downs of parenthood with an evening of short plays and stories about mothers, fathers and their children. “The theme of our last One Night Stand Theater production was sex, so it makes sense that our next show is about parenthood,” says James O’Leary, One Night Stand Theater’s artistic director. “The parenting plays and stories we’re featuring in this show run the gamut from silly and lighthearted to tragic and regretful.” Tickets are $10; get them here.
Do you know of a great event in town? We'll be updating this list through the weekend; send information to [email protected].
