Filmmaker Byron Hurt was watching Black Entertainment Television one day and noticed that all of the hip-hop music videos had the same formula — nice cars, cash money and plenty of hos backup-dancing in bikinis. That moment led to Hurt’s exploration and criticism of hip-hop culture: He examined the violence,…

It’s that time again — time for teams of four people from around the world to pool their resources and prepare to attack a twelve-foot-tall, twenty-ton block of machine-made snow. Their mission? To change the block into a work of art in a mere five days, using only their ingenuity…

Colorado has caught Civil War fever, a direct result of the Forever Free: Abraham Lincoln’s Journey to Emancipation exhibit’s stop in our fair state. Now you can beef up your knowledge — and your personal library — at the Civil War Book Sale, taking place today from noon to 5…

Those with brown thumbs might think January is a tad early to plan a garden. But the scarcity of water in Denver makes forethought a crucial component of successfully growing flowers, grass, you name it. That’s why the Denver Botanic Gardens, 1005 York Street, is opening its doors for the…

Jen McMillan is a woman on a mission to bring back the symbols of rebellion and authority-bucking that have been co-opted, corporatized, cleaned up and recycled into mainstream American culture — thereby completely losing the I-don’t-give-a-rat’s-ass edge that made those symbols great in the first place. That’s why she’s opened…

“Synergy” is one of those corporate words used to express the idea that two heads (or companies, or subsidiaries) are better than one. The people at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science, 2001 Colorado Boulevard, believe education works that way, too: The new exhibit, Engineer It!, and IMAX feature,…

Willy Wonka must’ve had a brother. That’s the only explanation for Ned Archibald, executive pastry chef for Keystone Resorts, and his Chocolate Village. In its eleventh year of yumminess, the village consists of 2,500 pounds of chocolate formed into a miniature alpine community. Archibald reuses the same Village pieces year…

It’s hard to find words to describe the blowout at the Mercury Cafe tonight. It’ll be a culinary delight, what with the all-night dining available from 5:30 to 10:30 p.m. — and the background music will be live, provided by Local Color, David Nereson, Ron Tomasic, Molly Zackary and Joe…

That Norwegian Trygve Bauge left some strange — and cold — things behind when he departed for Norway. His grandfather, Bredo Morstoel, is cryogenically frozen and stored in a Tuff Shed in Nederland, which inspired the town’s Frozen Dead Guy Days festival. Bauge also founded the Polar Bear Plunge, a…

I was thirteen the first time I saw the IMAX screen. I walked into the theater, ready to watch Africa: The Serengeti with my classmates and immediately felt overwhelmed by the vast ocean of white. I tried to picture how many regular movie screens could fit into this monstrosity and…

Boulder is the quintessential healthy-living city in a healthy-living state. But how, exactly, did it get that way? And why are so many natural-food companies based in Boulder? The answers lie in the past. The museum’s current exhibit, Tea to Tofu: Boulder’s Natural Food Phenomenon, includes lectures by a variety…

Some people might say that including a countdown on my MySpace page of the days, hours, minutes and seconds until July 13 — the day that Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix hits movie theaters — is a little obsessive, particularly for a 25-year-old. Those same people might…

“The show is a spoof on the cosmetic company that gives away pink cars,” reveals Michael Parker, director of the Murder Mystery Players. “It’s a meeting of all the superior leaders of the company. They are to crown the next omnipotent grand superior leader, and during the evening’s events, the…

“Tamales are kind of a traditional holiday fare in the community,” says El Centro Su Teatro’s John Kuebler, “like the equivalent of ham or turkey.” So it only makes sense that Su Teatro decided to combine its inaugural Tamale Festival with this year’s holiday play, The Miracle at Tepeyac, which…

Be afraid. Be very afraid — but before you fire up the fear factory, take some time to think about what, exactly, should terrify you. Vox Feminista’s Oak Chezar explains: “We’re supposed to stay in fear. We’ve traded all our freedoms for security, we’ve gotten rid of the Constitution and…

Holiday celebrations can pretty much be placed in two categories: the “this-is-my-favorite-time-of-year” fetes, during which people swill eggnog and sing the same holiday carols over and over and over again; and the “holidays-are-just-an-excuse-for-corporate-America-to-make-money” non-events, where gift buying is vehemently opposed and Christmas trees are hated on with a vengeance. But…

Ski resorts are grooming their runs and revving their chairlifts. Boarders are waxing their rides and testing their boots and bindings. It’s official: The season of sliding down mountain slopes and catching mad air has returned. But believe it or not, there are people who live in Colorado and have…

When the St. Julien Hotel ballroom was in need of a custom holiday revue show, Kim Franco was the obvious person to talk to. The former Cabaret Diosa singer and dancer didn’t hesitate in her decision to create a ’30s-era extravaganza with the Naughty and Nice Holiday Revue. “We have…

The second annual Bough House fundraiser, which benefits the Rocky Mountain Children’s Law Center, has “stepped it up a lot,” according the RMCLC’s Sara Payne. The 29 artists who have interpreted the modern holiday tree will offer up their works a for silent auction at tonight’s holiday party, which takes…

“Many religions today have kind of lost their passion,” says Denise Barnes, the one-woman band behind monthly Kick-Ass Peace Prayer Gatherings at the Mercury Cafe. “Part of the idea is just to wake things up a little bit; God must be really bored, too. One of the rules is ‘Do…

“We never put anybody on stage unless they’re a home run,” asserts Carol Givan, co-owner of Castle Rock’s Theatre of Dreams Arts and Events Center. She’s that proud of tonight’s performers, the Handsome Little Devils, featuring real-life brothers “Handsome” Mike and “Devil” Dan. After touring Japan, Europe, Mexico, Canada and…

The Nutcracker has got to be the most-performed holiday production in the history of mankind. In the Denver/Boulder area alone this year, ballet aficionados can enjoy no fewer than seven — yes, seven — different Nutcrackers, each affiliated with a different ballet/dance company, including a one-night-only performance by the Moscow…