Ten More Things to Do in Denver (and Beyond) This Weekend

While today will see plenty of precipitation, it's raining events, too, with a new festival in Boulder and Earth Day celebrations continuing through the weekend. And after a delay because of cold weather, Elitch Gardens will open for the season (despite more cold weather).

See our lineup of free events here. Now, keep reading for more worth the price of admission:

LunaFest Music and Arts Festival
Through April 28, 4 p.m to 2 a.m.
DV8 Distillery, 2480 49th Street, Boulder
LunaFest promises to break the mold for music festivals. An array of stages will spotlight a range of artists including RY X, Boreta and Swaylo, as well as magic, sound healing, roaming performers and more. Learn more and get tickets here.

5 Point Adventure Film Festival
Through Sunday, April 28
Carbondale
The seventeenth annual festival promises inspiring films, special guest and engaging community events for adventure enthusiasts. Highlights include world premieres like Moving Mountains, recipient of the inaugural Wading for Change BIPOC Filmmakers Grant, and Mirasol, Looking at the Sun, offering a poignant reflection on land and water use in the West. Find the complete schedule here.
The Empire Strips Back
Through Sunday, April 28
The Brighton, 3403 Brighton Boulevard
Judging by the number of metal bikinis that appear on social media every Halloween, à la Princess Leia in Return of the Jedi, it would appear that many of us have formed some sort of strange erotic connection with the Star Wars franchise. An Australian burlesque show, The Empire Strips Back, has been taking full advantage of that development, storming Earth's performance spaces with an empire of sexy Twi'leks, Wookies and Mandalorians. Finally closing after a run that started in February, the production has all of your favorite characters and creatures performing dance numbers, pyrotechnics and, yes, an extremely creepy full-sized Jabba the Hutt. Tickets are $54 to $129, available at feverup.com.

Fight for Air Climb
Saturday, April 27, 8 a.m.
Coors Field, 2001 Blake Street
The American Lung Association's Fight for Air Climb, a stair-climb fundraiser, returns to Coors Field. Climbers of all levels will take on the steps throughout Coors Field — a total of 1,200 — to raise awareness for lung health and clean air. There's also a “Climb Your Way” option for those who can't be there in person. Learn more here.

Elitch Gardens Opening Weekend
Saturday, April 27, and Sunday, April 28, 10:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.
2000 Elitch Circle
The snow postponed the opening of the amusement park by a week, but it opens to the public this weekend! Get the details here.
Paint & Sip: Spring Floral Watercolor Workshop
Saturday, April 27, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The Source Hotel, 3330 Brighton Boulevard
Even if it's raining outside, you can celebrate spring inside. Jessica Fraser of Baby Jess Art is hosting a watercolor flower-painting workshop! She'll supply the cotton rag paper and watercolor supplies and pens; you bring the creativity. (A mimosa compliments of The Woods could help.) Reserve your $60 spot and register here.

Enérgeia: Bright Unbearable Realities
Saturday, April 27, 8 p.m.; Sunday, April 28, 2 p.m.
Dairy Arts Center, 2590 Walnut Street, Boulder
Prepare to be dazzled by Frequent Flyers' newest show, Enérgeia: Bright Unbearable Realities, which combines projection, inventive aerial apparatus and transformative set design. With guest creator Issac Endo, a Boulder native who is queer and Japanese-American, this collaboration promises to really take flight. Get tickets here.

La Primavera Festival: A Celebration of Spring
Sunday, April 28, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.
Marjorie Park, Museum of Outdoor Arts
The season kicks off at Marjorie Park with the inaugural La Primavera Festival: A Celebration of Spring, inspired by the Gaelic Beltane celebration as well as European May Day. The lineup includes a pancake brunch, Maypole dancing, live Celtic music by Spinphony, and a variety of family-friendly activities, as well as the public debut of Lonnie Hanzon’s newly reimagined Cabinet of Curiosities and Impossibilities permanent installation during the festival. Tickets are $30, or $75 for a family four-pack; get info here.

Queer Seder
Sunday, April 28, 3 to 6 p.m.
JCC Denver, 350 South Dahlia Street
Queer Seder is a combination of Passover traditions with readings, songs and prayers that honor and uplift the  LGBTQIA+ community. Local rabbis and LGBTQIA+ leaders will commemorate hard-won freedoms and reflect on the ongoing journey toward equality. Tickets are on a sliding scale; get them here.

Emma
Through Sunday, May 5
Wolf Theatre, Denver Performing Arts Complex
Are you a Jane Austen fan? You don't need to be to know that adaptations of the nineteenth-century author's work, from Clueless to Pride and Prejudice and Zombies, aren't hard to come by, at least on streaming services. But this is the first time that award-winning playwright Kate Hamill's adaptation, Emma, an irreverent take on the classic novel from 1815, has come to Denver. Watch Emma Woodhouse make matches for her friends and acquaintances in a whirlwind of misadventures in this production at the Denver Center. Tickets are $40-$97; get them here.

Plan ahead:

SeriesFest
Wednesday, May 1, through Sunday, May 5
Sie Film Center, 2510 East Colfax Avenue
The festival returns for a tenth year with a full slate of in-competition screenings, industry panels, special events and network premieres, in addition to closing night at Red Rocks with headliner Hasan Minhaj. Get the schedule and more details here.

Do you know of a great event in Denver? We'll be updating this list through the week; send information to [email protected].