Love holiday theater but feel downright nauseated imagining another year of salty Scrooge and pathetic Tiny Tim? Of dancing nutcrackers and Rudolph with his nose so obviously lit by a battery-powered forty-watt lightbulb? Who can blame you? If just one more anthropomorphized tale of redemption or adventure is likely to…
You gotta have music at Christmas, because it ain’t Christmas without it. But you, like most everyone else, have already decided that you might explode if you hear even one more rendition of “Frosty the Snowman,” anywhere, anytime, anyhow. Relax. There are holiday music programs for every taste this time…
Comic books have always been an inspiration to graphic artist/photographer Marc Hughes. “Growing up,” he says, “comics were a big part of my art research. I followed artists and writers through the different books they drew and wrote, and it got me interested in different aspects of art and science…
You’ll never understand Santa until you’ve walked a mile in his boots, so what are you waiting for? Put on his boots — and his hat, suit, beard and various other festive accoutrements — and join up with a bunch of other St. Nicks for SantaCon 08, a Denver Cacophony…
Christmas music is one of the most hallowed holiday traditions for me because it brings all the memories back and provides the soundtrack for new ones. Unlike the rest of the songs I’ve worn out, these retain their magic because I listen to them only a few days a year…
You might be familiar with Barr Lake State Park’s monthly full-moon hikes, but did you know that once a year, the park also hosts a Solstice Moon Hike? Bundle up on the shortest day of the year for this short hike (naturalist Larry Zanetell says it’s about two and a…
“I just thought that The Jerk is one of those films that, as funny and fantastic as it is, to me is kind of a heartwarmer,” explains Keith Garcia, programming director for the Denver Film Society. “Part of the Seeing Double program is looking at two films that share some…
After years of following the skateboarding, BMX and freestyle motocross events of the Summer Dew Tour — the most-watched and best-attended action-sport competition in the world — Breckenridge freeskier Colby West is psyched to compete in the first-ever Winter Dew Tour. “Circuits come and go, and this one I have…
“This year’s Academy Screenings has a powerhouse lineup, not only in terms of directors, but also in terms of actors,” says Aspen Film executive director Laura Thielen. “However, alongside these marquee-value films, we also have films like Soderbergh’s Che, with Benicio Del Toro, or the French film The Class, which…
Tired of all the holiday hoopla yet? If you could use a few moments of sheer escapism from this hectic season, then the Curtis Arts and Humanities Center has just the solution: Cartoons — More Than Just Comics, an exhibit featuring work by Lonnie Allen, Daniel Crosier, Amy Reeder Hadley,…
This time of year can be so draining for everybody, what with the before-Christmas frenzy, so why not find a secular reason to celebrate the season? Here’s a good one for all you beer-drinkers out there: Jax Fish House Denver is celebrating its twelfth anniversary, and hence is offering 12…
It’s a well-known fact of life: Kids will argue with their parents over just about anything. So why not channel that impulse into some constructive co-criticism over a couple of slices of pizza, some soda and two movies? That’s the idea behind the Denver Film Society’s Old School New School…
The so-called green movement posits the idea that humanity could and should limit its impact on the planet. Oh, sure, a lot of it is little more than marketing hype; tract-house developers, for example, who have focused on paving the countryside can claim to be earth-friendly simply because the houses…
Light and Time, in the front of Rule Gallery (227 Broadway, 303-777-9473, www.rulegallery.com) consists of small, wet-plate Collodion print photographs by Mark Sink and Kristen Hatgi that have been propped against the walls. The Collodion process is an early photographic method used by Civil War documentarian Matthew Brady. In a…
An O. Henry Christmas. Amid the cascade of Christmas Carol remounts, Hallmark Card family shows and limp holiday parodies, this musical arrangement of two O. Henry short stories — “The Last Leaf” and “The Gift of the Magi,” created by Peter Ekstrom — is a refreshing option. “The Gift of…
I saw Yasmina Reza’s Art soon after it came out, on a visit to London with my daughter, Anna. Afterward, standing on the platform of the underground, we were accosted by a woman who had glimpsed us at the theater — an abrasive New Yorker — who wanted to know…
Flying saucers just aren’t that scary anymore. Especially after Ed Wood and Mars Attacks, it’s hard to take a threat from a giant Frisbee all that seriously. So what’s an update of the iconic 1951 sci-fi flick The Day the Earth Stood Still to do? In an extremely bold move,…
I hear America singing, and I see…Richard Nixon. Not the man, but the muse: Has any president since Lincoln inspired more movies, TV mini-series and operas? As Nixon’s beetle brows, ski nose and mirthless grin were made for caricature, so his rampant pathology was a gift for novelists and psycho-historians…
For a guide to New Year’s events, check our New Year’s listings at www.westword.com/calendar. WHY I’LL BE GLAD TO KISS THIS YEAR GOODBYE The finalists in our annual essay contest — plus musings from Westword writer Michael Roberts on New Year’s resolutions. First Place I Hate 2008 By Christopher Castellano…
Adam Helms. This solo in the MCA’s Paper Works Gallery is the New York artist’s first museum show anywhere. In his works on paper and in a monumental sculpture that conjures up a shooting blind, Helms explores political themes, especially armed struggle. He takes images of different radical and extremist…
Coloradans looking to capture their Celtic connection this holiday season are welcomed to this afternoon’s Colorado Welsh Society Christmas Tea, featuring Welsh songs, hymns, seasonal readings, music and traditional dances followed by te bach (refreshments). And don’t worry if your Welsh is a bit rusty; many of the events will…
Some think a dove flies over the holiday season: It’s the time of year when we think about peace on Earth and goodwill toward men, and we really mean it. Julie Davis and her friends at the Swallow Hill Music Association picked up on that peace-and-love vibe several years ago…
