Free for All: The Five Best Free Events in Denver This Week

It's Monday again, but don't despair about a new workweek. Instead, make the most of your ever-dwindling free time. Music lovers, comedy nerds, LGBT activists, aspiring poets and metallurgists alike have a bounty of entertainments in store this week – delights that require nothing more than the will to go. Indeed, all five of the events listed below boast free admission.

CU Chamber Brass Ensemble Concert
Monday, November 13, 7:30 p.m.
Grusin Music Hall
The University of Colorado's music program is the school's gift to classical music lovers, hosting world-class concerts week in and week out, and often several times per day. Though too few CU students take full advantage of Grusin Music Hall's thriving performance calendar, many of the campus venue's events are open to the public. Better yet: They're often free. Join CU's Chamber Brass ensemble for an early evening concert and jumpstart your week with an unbeatable combination of high culture and the low, low price of free. Visit the CU Presents box office page to learn more.

Bronze Pour Demonstration
Tuesday, November 14, 4 p.m.
McNichols Building
Never underestimate an audience's enduring fascination with molten metal. Metallurgists, families and stoners alike will gaze in wonder at Denver Arts & Venues-sponsored bronze-pour demonstration at the McNichols Building on Tuesday, November 14. Join University of Colorado Denver professor of transmedia sculpture Rian Kerrane for a hypnotic – and hot – testament to Ai Wei Wei's bronze sculpture series, “Circle of Animals/Zodiac Heads,” which is gracing Civic Center Park's Sea Lions Fountain until October 2018. Marvel as Kerrane and her students pour molten bronze into a ceramic shell, turning the creation process into an art-form of its own. While you're at McNichols, be sure to check out Wei Wei's companion exhibit, Art & Social Change. Visit the Bronze Pour Eventbrite page to register and learn more.

Jazzetry Night
Wednesday, November 15, 8 p.m.
The Laughing Goat
At this fusion of spoken-word poetry, jazz and lyrical improvisation, ALOC Media and Punch Drunk Press are celebrating one year of shows at Boulder's Laughing Goat coffeehouse. The showcase spotlights an as-of-yet unannounced collective of poets reading their verses, backed by a funky soundtrack provided by Von Disco. Driven by pure inspiration, the braintrust behind Jazzetry hopes this is merely the first of many anniversaries. And don't miss out on Jazzetry's sister show, Punketry, which happens at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, November 14, at Mutiny Information Cafe. Visit Jazzetry's Facebook events page for more details.

The Laugh Night on Earth
Wednesday, November 15, 8 p.m.
Barfly
While Austin-based franchise Alamo Drafthouse has fostered relationships with local comics through the Mile High Movie Roast series, the staff has also curated a fine entertainment calendar in Barfly, an inviting lounge nestled into the bustling new theater. The Laugh Night on Earth, the latest effort from the perpetually busy comedian Zac Maas, is back for another giggle gauntlet showcasing local chuckle-smiths Steven Vanderploeg, Allison Rose and Derrick Rush. With custom cocktails and a rotating roster of 32 different Colorado brews on tap, it's an ideal space to unwind with a drink after a movie, or more important, catch a free show. Unlike at most local comedy events, the jokes start flying promptly at 7 p.m., so organizers recommend arriving early to secure seats. Visit The Laugh Night on Earth Facebook events page to learn more.


The Life and Death of Marsha P. Johnson
Thursday, November 16, 7:15 p.m.
Sie Film Center
Cinema Q, the Gender Identity Center, One Colorado and TransAction/It Takes a Village are convening at the Sie FilmCenter for a special free screening of The Death and Life of Marsha P. Johnson for Trans Awareness Week. A heartfelt profile of the infamous "street queen" of New York City's Christopher Street, home of the Stonewall Inn and an enduring symbol of LGBT pride, the documentary introduces viewers to Johnson's larger-than-life presence and profoundly lasting impact on her community. In 1992, her body was discovered floating in the Hudson River; activists disputed the NYPD's official ruling of suicide. Academy Award-winning filmmaker David France (How to Survive a Plague) explores the suspicious circumstances of Johnson's death, recounting how police inaction spurred righteous outrage. Visit the Sie FilmCenter online to register for free tickets.