Let’s just agree up front that there’s no shame in skipping a game that’s being played by one team you don’t care much about and another that you actively despise. So what else is there to do this Sunday, to take advantage of the smaller crowds? Lots of things — but let’s start with these seven.
Drinks first, then food. Gotta lay an alcoholic base.
Erica Firment at Flickr
On any average Sunday, you’d be hard-pressed to find a seat at a good brunch place in the late morning, especially at city favorites. This week, you should have no problem, but choose your purveyor of all things omelets, waffles and burritos carefully: nothing with too many big-screen TVs, and definitely not anything kid-friendly, either. You want a place with bottomless mimosas and a Bloody Mary bar, and hours that stretch late into the afternoon. Brunch is one of the great joys of Sunday, so take advantage now, while most of the people who normally crowd these places are either running to Argonaut or Googling the recipe for seven-layer dip.
Steven sometimes played God at the office, too.
denvercenter.org
No, not some sort of poetic justice happening to the New England Cheatriots; we're talking about the hugely popular play at the Garner Galleria Theater. Steven Burge (full disclosure: He’s a Westword alum) took on the lead role in late January and will continue through April 8, but there’s no better time to get out and support the arts than when the Great American Football and Nachos Bacchanal is going on.
5. Run the SuperBowl 5K
Or, you know, walk — like the rest of us casual participants. In any case, this is one of the few ways for a true Broncos fan to still celebrate the home team: Not only does registration get you entered into a drawing for two pre-season Broncos tickets, but you’ll get that warm and fuzzy feeling when you stay loyal to your team. And you’re done well before noon, so you can spend the rest of the day playing Madden 17 and eating Doritos straight from the bag.
That's not empty space; that's room for imagination.
Aranami at Flickr
Denver has more than its share of beautiful libraries, from the smaller Carnegie branches (Woodbury, Smiley, Park Hill and others) to the downtown Michael Graves-designed modern Central Library. If you haven’t visited your local library (or have never seen some of the branches), do yourself the favor while crowds are relatively sparse: Celebrate both literature and architecture.
Keep reading for more ways to avoid the Super Bowl.
3. Catch Star Wars and the Power of Costume
If you’ve been putting off seeing the out-of-this-world exhibit devoted to all things Star Wars at the Denver Art Museum, now is the time to let the Force move you. True, the Venn diagram inclusion of people who know who shot first and those who can name the Broncos' first Super Bowl quarterback (Han Solo and Craig Morton, respectively) might not be that large, but chances are good that tickets are only going to be harder to get as the end of the show draws near. Or maybe not. Difficult to see. Always in motion is the future.
2. See a Movie at the Sie
The Sie FilmCenter is one of Denver’s cultural gems, and on Super Bowl Sunday it teams up with another of Denver’s great institutions: its Colfaxian neighbor the Tattered Cover bookstore. For a mere $1 (leaving plenty of scratch for popcorn and wine!), they’re presenting the 1966 Czech film Closely Watched Trains, described as “funny, absurdist, and finally devastating.” Which also describes all those Super Bowl commercials we’ll be talking about on Monday.
SNL Funhouse - Christmastime for the Jews from Bix Pix Entertainment, Inc. on Vimeo.
1. Sympathize with the Jewish Christmas ExperienceFor your consideration: Sometimes we all just have to shrug and go out for Chinese food.
