Forget ice cream. Discriminating dessert connoisseurs know that gelato is the real hero of summer. “When I got here seven years ago, it was almost impossible to find gelato,” says Simone Parisi, owner of Parisi, a north Denver Italian restaurant and deli that recently added a gelato counter. “It’s definitely…
As comedian Steven Wright once said, “24 hours in a day…24 beers in a case…coincidence?” I think not. There are thirteen weeks of summer left — and thirteen perfect drinks to get you through them. Coincidence? I think not. Here’s to a liquid tour of Denver! Mojito Cuzco Kick off…
While summer days are great for lounging, it’s the hot summer nights that will truly make memories. And nothing heats things up faster than a tacky theme party. Here are four summer evenings that are sure to live on in infamy — and make you the social director for summers…
SAT, 5/29 The universal struggle that women face in trying to balance a career, family and friendship is highlighted in Saints and Hysterics, a new work by local playwright Tracy Shaffer Witherspoon and performed by the Paragon Theatre Company. The play opens tonight with a world-premiere presentation at Denver’s Phoenix…
MON, 5/31 If you’re feeling the need for speed this Memorial Day, get to Bandimere Speedway for the annual Pepsi All-American High School Drags. The showdown is open to high school students between the ages of sixteen and nineteen with a valid driver’s license and a release form signed by…
MON, 5/31 The Shona people of Zimbabwe call the bateleur eagle (a rare native raptor that in Shona religious lore serves as a messenger of the gods) “Chapungu.” It’s no mistake that the name also applies to the contemporary stone art of the nation, a relatively recent cultural endeavor that’s…
During a summer spent studying art history in Florence, I learned to enjoy the Italian lifestyle — long, languid evenings full of rich food, wonderful Chianti poured straight from huge glass jugs, lively conversation with new friends. If you’re seeking such an experience stateside, head straight for a lustful Passione…
SUN, 5/23 “Nobody ruins my birthday except me,” states Leo Kottke via e-mail. The musician, you see, turned 56 on the same day planes crashed into the Twin Towers. And with each anniversary since, Kottke continues to thank his lucky stars. “It’s great to be alive,” he writes. “One year…
SUN, 5/23 Most Playboy centerfolds don’t list getting the shit kicked out of them as one of their hobbies. But most Playboy centerfolds aren’t Mia St. John. The total knockout is getting ready to lay a TKO on Avalon nightclub tonight as part of an all-women boxing card. She’s scrapping…
FRI, 5/21 Opera usually brings to mind a grand spectacle with lavish sets and costumes, supertitles and glass-breaking arias. But in these parts, if you take away all the grandeur, you’re left with a rich pool of vocal talent aching to be heard. Colorado boasts far more fine voices, in…
Sometimes, change is good. At Barry’s On Broadway, which just took over the former home of the Skylark Lounge, neighborhood regulars are already rubbing elbows with hipsters — and everyone’s drinking a Like Elisha ($4.75). Named for the Blake Street Tavern bartender who created the concoction, this smooth shot mixes…
THURS, 5/13 Prepare to be uplifted both spiritually and mentally at this weekend’s encore performance of Mary Lou’s Mass by Cleo Parker Robinson Dance. The historical piece is based on Music for Peace, which was composed by African-American jazz artist Mary Lou Williams for Pope Paul VII in 1969. The…
SAT, 5/15 Stamina is key at the Go Fast 24 Hours of BoulderSThe Run, during which more than 100 runners will race to complete as many 7.14-mile laps around the Boulder Reservoir as possible in 24 hours. “We’re hoping to attract a wide variety of people — those who are…
THURS, 5/13 Who’s had the longest continuous run on Denver television? Russell Scott is first by a big, red nose. As Blinky the Clown, Scott hosted Blinky’s Fun Club, a proudly anachronistic Channel 2 kiddie program, for 33 years. Although Scott has been absent from the tube since 1998, when…
I usually dislike a bar that limits my alcohol consumption. But even I have to admit that, for drinkers like myself who may suffer serious self-control issues after a few cocktails, the Rio Grande Mexican Restaurant’s “Limit 3” margarita policy really does have our best interests at heart. The Cuervo…
SAT, 5/8 Teach your pooch to soar through the air at today’s Colorado Disc Dogs Spring Training Seminar, a hands-on workshop that covers such topics as how to throw a Frisbee for your dog and the rules of the game for canines. “We start with the basics — the correct…
SUN, 5/9 The lot at the corner of Tenth Avenue and Osage Street is about to blossom. But it won’t be an array of flowers that sprouts today. Instead, the west-side neighbors who wanted to fill the site with all the color and flavor of an international marketplace will get…
While numerous nightclubs have sprung up in Denver over the past year, many have already dried up and blown away. But not Lotus: The Union Station discotheque is in full bloom. Brought to us by the owners of the swank Mynt True Lounge and Blue 67, this 10,000-square-foot club combines…
SAT, 5/1 Lola/Sings saetas/The little bullfighters/Circle around her/And the little barber/From his doorway/Follows the rhythms/With his head. These words from famed Andalusian poet Federico García Lorca will echo during The Spanish Muse, a two-day celebration of Spanish poetry, music, art and dance. Flamenco group Ojaleo will provide the msica, along…
FRI, 4/30 People are always telling country rocker Marshall Chapman: “You talk in song titles.” And she does. The thirty-year Nashville veteran, a tough, six-foot blonde of genteel Southern extraction who’s been a cohort over the years of everyone from Waylon Jennings to Jimmy Buffet, is a walking card catalogue…
SAT, 5/1 Wind will rush through your hair and icy water will spray your face at the Rocky Mountain Shootout, a two-day open regatta at the Cherry Creek Reservoir. The boat set embraces such bracing conditions. “The sailing community is surprisingly large here in Colorado,” says Joe Beierl of the…
WED, 5/5 Suavecito’s owner Craig Peña is a flirt. His wife knows it. Everyone knows it. Not that Peña acts on his overtures; he’s just a romantic at heart. A romantic with a long streak of smartass. So when he met Holly Kylberg, Denver’s reigning society “It” girl (see “The…
