Artists Theresa Anderson and Rebecca Vaughan have only collaborated on installations in the past couple of years, but the bond they’ve created as women and artists is a powerful one, though they both approach their work in different ways and eventually end up “entangling our artworks with conversations,” as Anderson…
Ken Arkind — American National Poetry Slam champion, poetry teacher and executive director of Colorado’s Minor Disturbance youth slam team — is a man who speaks for his city. Tonight he celebrates the release of Coyotes, a book of poems that he describes as a “rough” collection of work centered…
A controversial figure in China — and a celebrated sculptor, painter and filmmaker across the world — Ai Weiwei embodies the fluidity between the roles of artist and activist. In the documentary Ai Weiwei: Never Sorry, screening tonight in Boulder as part of CU-Boulder’s International Film Series, his simultaneous, ongoing…
While opera and tragedy go hand in hand, the misfortunes of the characters in Carmen, La Bohème and Madama Butterfly might seem tepid to today’s audiences, who’ve been dazed by the horrors of the nightly news. Rather than entombing opera in solemnity and begging audiences to care, Central City Opera…
According to scholar Harold Bloom, William Shakespeare is ultimately responsible for the characterization of the modern human. “His concept is that the change in European culture was created by Shakespeare. He wrote characters that had more depth and ambition and who changed throughout the course of a play,” explains John…
Charlie Miller and Emily Tarquin of Off-Center @ The Jones know well the value of storytelling — and of touching people’s hearts and making them cry or laugh out loud through shared experiences. But their idea of pairing naked stories with such unlikely elements as aerial dancers, puppeteers, actors, music…
There’s a preciseness to Selin Kent’s designs, a defining characteristic that makes the fledgling jewelry-maker’s work immediately recognizable. Kent, a self-described “former academic” who found herself drawn to a more hands-on line of work, produces pieces that display a new side of fine jewelry, as she utilizes materials like champagne…
Lori Callahan, a pillar of the local comedy scene for 30 years passed away last friday. She was 54. The news has sent reverberations of grief throughout the community she was so instrumental in shaping. Callahan provided many new comics with their first road gigs, along much needed moral support in their nascent careers. Always a hit with audiences, Callahan won the respect of her peers with her comedic chops, but won their hearts with her motherly guidance.
That’s why the most fitting tributes to Lori’s life and career have come from the comedians she inspired. Their outpouring of grief on social media only hints at the surface of this devastating loss. Westword asked some comedians to share their memories of knowing Mama Callahan, and have excerpts of others’ heartfelt Facebook posts. We offer our sincerest condolences to her mourning loved ones.
In celebration of International Women’s Day, the Biennial of the Americas, the Women’s Foundation of Colorado and the Denver Film Society are hosting a screening of Blackfish, the film by award-winning director Gabriela Cowperthwaite that’s a psychological thriller with a killer whale at its center — but this is a…
For a cartoonist, having a show on Nickelodeon seems as far-fetched as becoming an astronaut, says Sam Spina. But for the former Denverite who’s currently based in Atlanta, that dream just became a reality through the Nickelodeon Shorts Program. The Xeric award-winning Spina (whose diary comic Spinadoodles was recognized in…
Local filmmaker Brad Stabio created the Denver Actor Project, an ongoing showcase of local actors, to demonstrate the talent that can be found in the Mile High City. The project premiered at the Starz Denver Film Festival last November with a series of six short films, and Stabio hopes to…
Filmmaker Guy Maddin says that watching a movie has more in common with a paranormal séance than meets the eye; he remembers the first time he realized that the French word for a movie screening is “séance,” which translates into “a sitting.” Both activities take place in the dark; both…
Like magic, Mago’s Magic Shoppe at 313 West 11th Avenue has suddenly become a must-see in the Golden Triangle, with its mix of magic supplies, oddities and art. We recently chatted with co-owner and resident magician Max Mago about where art fits into the realm of magic, how he got…
Lauren Violet transforms her love of animals and nature into unique tattoos. Having grown up in Boulder, she takes inspiration from the landscapes that surround her. She has been tattooing for eight years, and currently works at Bound by Design. She is also a painter, and is starting a pet…
I drive by Dandy Dan’s every day on my way home and the sign out front sometimes catches my eye — and not just because it has that weird, glamour-shot image of an interesting-looking woman above the marquee. It’s the message on the marquee that often grabs my attention. Last…
Jackie Barry is making her mark on Denver, with whimsical art appearing on everything from menu boards at Denver Bicycle Cafe to custom beer glasses at Our Mutual Friend Malt & Brew. A barista by day and artist by night, Barry came to Denver hoping to join the art community…
Ed Baierlein founded Germinal Stage in 1973 in a Market Street space, and later moved to a tiny theater on West 44th Avenue, just off Federal Boulevard. Here, for 26 years, he staged an eclectic mix of American and European plays: some experimental, others realistic, some profound and others just…
Conrad Kehn’s Playground Ensemble, known for sharing difficult music from a modern age, is reaching back into the twentieth century canon of contemporary music to present twelve-tone composer Arnold Shoenberg’s dark yet whimsical song cycle Pierrot Lunaire for tomorrow’s Classical Night at Dazzle Restaurant and Lounge. But Playground will further…
The undead rose up on Saturday, March 1 for the sixth annual March of the Zombies fashion show at the Oriental Theater. Spectators enjoyed music from Son Survivor, Postal Holiday, Blue Collar Killers and Death for Breakfast as local artists exhibited their monster-themed work. Ursula Romaine was there to capture…
Hollywood’s elite weren’t the only ones all dolled up last night. Guests got plenty gussied up for the “Gayest Oscar Party Ever,” held at Hamburger Mary’s during the Academy Awards ceremony. The event benefited Off-Center, and featured a rainbow carpet, a gown contest and more. And photographer Brandon Marshall was…
You can find art all over town — not just on gallery walls. In this series, we’ll be looking at some of the local artists who serve up their work in coffeehouses and other non-gallery businesses around town. For a first on this First Friday, pop (pun intended) into Ryan…
Over the weekend, cosplayers from around the region gathered at the Animeland Wasabi convention for an Asian pop-culture jubilee, with costumes, concerts, animation and 24-hour gaming provided through partnerships with the Colorado Cutthroat Connection and National Video Game Association. Photographer Danielle Lirette caught the spirit of the con in the…
