For close to twenty years, the LIDA Project, Brian Freeland’s experimental theater group, has been both a deliberately collaborative effort and the spawn of Freeland’s own unique vision, and the model has worked well for the company. Even when Freeland took a sabbatical in 2010, LIDA continued to take Freeland-style…
Reading is about more than following a narrative or learning facts; it can also be a profound shared experience that culminates in a better understanding of ourselves and each other. In that spirit, welcome to the Westword Book Club, a weekly feature celebrating the books that inspire Denver artists
With Cars, Cards and Carbines, author Travis Heermann is aiming to bring some fun back into the world of speculative fiction. The forthcoming anthology — aiming for a December 2014 release and currently seeking funding via Kickstarter — is primed to do just that with a series of action-packed stories…
We discuss weather in this state (and on this blog) a lot. If you’ve ever made small talk with a stranger here, then you know that weather is a hot topic, especially now that Mother Nature — or global warming, depending on what you call it — has decided to…
Over the weekend, Boulder’s Avery Brewing celebrated everything Coloradan and crafty by throwing CrAft & CrAfts, an event that combined equal parts of shopping and quaffing. While shoppers browsed, Avery also tapped a special strawberry-infused Strawberry Wit Belgian-style white ale just for the occasion. Drink in these photos by Kenneth…
Beekeepers in More Than Honey.This year saw its share of incredible documentaries, but in 2013 the stand-outs are films that help flesh out the way we see the world. Below are fifteen docs we suggest seeing, from the grisly to uplifting. Click on the name of the film to read…
#29: Chris Loffelmacher Chris Loffelmacher is a guy who makes things happen and a man of grand passions; somehow, the two traits meld perfectly in his programming for the Denver Public Library’s Fresh City Life series. Loffelmacher’s obsessions — everything from old movies and knitting to high fashion and everything…
This holiday season, the heathen’s tree of Denver comedy is stocked with gifts for every kind of chuckle fan. Denver and its surrounding area are blessed this December with a live paranormal podcast recording, a rare post-90s Bill Bellamy sighting, a visit from High Times 2009 Stoner of the Year, family-friendly entertainment, and Rory Scovel, whose singular comedic flair needs no further adjectives. Fortunately for people on a holiday gift-buying budget, many of these shows are free, and even the most expensive tickets are a comparatively cheap $25.
BolderLife, an organization fueled by various filmmakers, artists, actors and educators, believes that art should not be put on the back burner. And this week, it’s turning up the heat with the BolderLife festival, which showcases various talents in the film, theater, education and arts sectors in the metro area…
The Rocky Mountain Auto Show brought both classic and modern cars to the Colorado Convention Center from November 29 to December 1. The event, now in its 17th year, featured a live auction as well as dozens of auto-related vendors. We were there to capture the show. Keep reading for…
KG Karmichael has just published her new book, Breck the Floppy Eared Husky, with illustrator John Rose. Technically, the book is labeled middle grade, which means it’s for the twelve-and-under demographic. But if there’s anything The Hunger Games and Stargirl have taught us, it’s that even the most grown-up grownups…
As the world goes more and more paperless, so does the art world, too: It’s easy to post imagery online, and while coffee-table books are becoming expensive dinosaurs, exhibit catalogs are forever on the Internet. It was appropriate, then, for Philip J. Steele Gallery curator Cortney Lane Stell to document…
Brent Podosek wants to make you laugh — but he wants to get you drunk first. The local comedian’s new showcase at The Lobby every Tuesday at 7:30 p.m. aims to not only share some jokes but kick the keg. Podosek is the father and host of Kick the Keg…
Sleeping away from home is scary. Hotels hotels, motels and other temporary sleeping arrangements can be full of bed bugs, meth residue and sketchy-ass neighbors — and when you step out of real life and into the world of horror movies, you can add murderous ghosts, zombies and psychotic clerks…
If Black Friday did a number on your wallet, you can still keep yourself entertained this week in Denver. There are plenty of things to do that won’t cost a cent — from a horror flick to a Chanukah celebration to a free comedy open mic. Did we miss a…
On January 30, the second annual Westword Whiteout will kick off Denver’s 2014 fashion season at the McNichols Building. The evening — which raises funds for the American Transplant Association — will include live music, specialty vendors, classic cocktails and some of the city’s top designers in a signature runway…
The fourth annual Victorian Holiday Home Tour kicks off tomorrow, November 30, inviting visitors to get an intimate look at some of central Denver’s oldest and grandest homes. A tradition that has fast become a local favorite, last year’s event featuring local mansions saw more than 800 people through the…
Buying gifts for the holidays can be daunting. You battle other shoppers for an unbeatable deal and stand in mile-long lines — and sometimes the gift receiver doesn’t like the present anyway. For those who would prefer to buy something thoughtful that gives back to the community, or make a…
Baby, it’s cold outside, which is all the more reason to stay inside and concentrate on cool, geeky activities all month. Once Christmas gets here, you’ll probably be too busy playing with your shiny new Xbox One or Playstation 4 to get out of the house much, but until then,…
The holiday shopping season begins in earnest on this nasty day after Thanksgiving, and though Small Business Saturday is tomorrow, it doesn’t mean you can’t keep right on shopping local and handmade — now and all year long. And how can you resist, anyway, with all of these alternatives still…
Headed for the hills to make the most of the four day weekend? Yeah, us too. Beaver Creek, Steamboat, and Crested Butte all opened for the season today; Aspen Mountain, Snowmass, and Telluride open tomorrow, and Purgatory and Howelsen Hill open this weekend. Read on for some tips on where…
This week, we’re covering all things hipster in Denver: best bars to run into them, best restaurants to eat with them, and now, best stores to shop with them. From do-it-yourself creative spaces, locally-made apparel, geeked-out workshops, and antique oddities, the Denver hipster scene is alive and well on all…
