Ten More Things to Do in Denver Today (and Beyond)

Fall is here in full force, with harvest festivals and early Halloween events. But it’s not too early to start planning for spring!

For more entertainment opportunities, see our lists of current art shows as well as four free things to do around town (and beyond). Now keep reading for ten events and attractions all worth the price of admission:

Saints, Sinners, Lovers, and Fools: 300 Years of Flemish Masterworks
Opening Sunday, October 16, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Denver Art Museum, 100 West 14th Avenue Parkway
Saints, Sinners, Lovers, and Fools is an extraordinary opportunity to follow the development of Flemish art through 300 years of corresponding European history. A DAM collaboration with the Phoebus Foundation, which contributed a 120-painting package including work by Hans Memling, Jan Gossaert, Jan and Catharina van Hemessen, Peter Paul Rubens, Jacob Jordaens and Anthony van Dyck, to name a few, the blockbuster exhibition will run through next January on the second level of the Hamilton Building. Admission to the ticketed exhibition ranges from free to $25; museum admission is included in the price. Find out more here.

Denver Orchid Society Show and Sale
Sunday, October 16, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Mitchell Hall, Denver Botanic Gardens, 1007 York Street
There are around 28,000 currently accepted species in the plant family Orchidaceae, and while not all of them are generally cultivated, that’s still a lot to learn if you decide to begin collecting. Get a quick lesson at the Denver Orchid Society Show and Sale — that’s where the experts are, ready to chat about a flower more exotic than your usual daisy. Then take an expert’s advice and buy a healthy starter orchid on the spot. The show is included in the DBG gate admission, $11 to $15 (free for members and children ages two and under); purchase tickets here.

Stories on Stage: Stone Animals
Sunday, October 16, 2 p.m.
Su Teatro Cultural and Performing Arts Center, 721 Santa Fe Drive
Virtual option: Thursday, October 20, 7 p.m. (viewable indefinitely)
Stories on Stage focuses on one story this time around: “Stone Animals” by crossover YA author Kelly Link. The tale of a perfectly normal family that moves to a new suburban home, it’s been described as Lynchian (as in David Lynch), with the strangest things happening to them in a strangely normal way. Actors Jessica Robblee and Chip Persons will channel the characters and their odd adventures during the dramatic reading. Learn more and find tickets, $24, here.

Phamaly, Vox Vergere
Sunday, October 16, 2 p.m.
The People’s Building, 9995 East Colfax Avenue, Aurora
Any show performed by Phamaly will capture the audience’s heart, but when the company lets it all hang out for its Vox project performances — a collection of sketches and short plays written by Phamaly members about navigating life with disabilities — it will not only grab the heart, but also engender lots of laughs. And the audience just might leave the theater with newfound empathy — the kind that people can really use. Vox Vergere opens for an eight-show run that continues through October 23; find a schedule and tickets, $20 tonight and $30 thereafter, here.

Sir András Schiff, Pianist
Sunday, October 16, 4 p.m.
Gates Hall, DU’s Newman Center
Sir András Schiff returns to Friends of Chamber Music to open the 2022-23 Piano Series. One of the most celebrated pianists of our time, as well as a renowned conductor, lecturer, and teacher, Sir András brings masterful and intellectual insights to his performances; the program will include the music of Beethoven, Mozart and Schubert. Find out more here.

ConSensual Circus, We Are All Dead: an immersive horror experience
Sunday, October 16, 7:30 p.m.
Enigma Bazaar, 4923 West 38th Avenue
We’re living in an immersive world today, but Halloween has always been somewhat immersive as we understand the term now, with haunted houses, ghost tours, the telling of scary stories around the fire and walking in the dark with hundreds of masquerading zombies. The group ConSensual Circus, already in tune with the concept, hopes guests will flock to Enigma Bazaar to confront their fears in a show that somehow includes burlesque, magic tricks, film, music, spooky cocktails and a limited-edition NFT for every ticket-holder. Tickets are $60 here.

Doors Open Denver
Sunday, October 16
All over Denver (and online)
Presented by the Denver Architecture Foundation, Doors Open Denver features 24 in-person tours that celebrate educational and cultural campuses across Denver, as well as 24 virtual tours of unique and significant sites across the Front Range. The virtual tours are free and available 24/7 during DOD; the Insider Tours take place on Saturdays and Sundays and include — but aren’t limited to — looks at the Denver Zoo, the Denver Performing Arts Complex, the University of Denver and the Auraria Higher Education Center. Tickets for in-person tours are $25 for DAF members and $30 for non-members; virtual tours are free. Get all the details here.

Rescued Animal Snuggles and Pumpkin Donation Drive
Sunday, October 16, 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m.
Broken Shovels Farm Sanctuary, 8640 Dahlia Street, Henderson
A large segment of the menagerie of rescued animals at Broken Shovels will follow you anywhere for a taste of pumpkin. That means it’s their season, and all those calves, lambs, piglets, goat babies and water buffaloes are counting on you to bring on the jack-o’-lanterns (no carving necessary), though they will be stored in the farm’s treat stash. Meet the caretakers and share snuggles with the animals, and know that your $20 ticket fee will provide medical care, feed and supplies for Broken Shovels’ wards. Get information and tickets, $20, at Brown Paper Tickets. Can’t make it? The sanctuary is hosting a charity auction on November 5 (info here).

Swap & Sip
Sunday, October 16, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Town Hall Collective, 525 Santa Fe Drive
Check out Town Hall Collective, the new mixed-use bar and event venue on Santa Fe Drive, and change out your closet, too, at a Swap & Sip that includes a DIY upcycle station to dress up your new clothing finds. The convivial event is also a make-new-friends mixer, courtesy of Emily Hope Dobkin’s Meet Cart, which shares games and activities that get complete strangers working together. Bring a bag of clothes to swap or pay a $5 donation at the door to get in; RSVP at Eventbrite.

and plan ahead:

Potlikker Pop-Up: Short Films and Small Bites
Tuesday, October 18, 7 p.m. (doors at 6 p.m.)
MCA Denver at the Holiday Theater, 2644 West 32nd Avenue
The MCA’s got something for everyone tied into the museum’s major fall exhibition, The Dirty South. Learn everything you ever wanted to know about Black cooking in the South at the Potlikker Pop-Up at the Holiday Theater, a night of food documentaries with filmmaker Joe York and a talk on Southern eats by culinary scholar Adrian Miller. If that makes you hungry, don’t worry: Small bites of Southern cuisine by Mississippi Boy Catfish & Ribs will keep your hunger at bay. Admission ranges from $5 to $20 at the online MCA Denver Shop page.

Laugh for Good: A Night of Standup Comedy and Salsa
Wednesday, October 19, 8 p.m. (doors at 7:30)
Raices Brewing, 2060 West Colfax Avenue,
Rebeca Trejo hosts a benefit comedy show with Albert Han, Sammy Anzer and Darius Dinkins, along with headliner Miriam Moreno; 100 percent of the profits will go to relief efforts in Puerto Rico. Tickets are $20, find out more here.

Do you know of a great event in Denver? We’ll be updating this list through the weekend; send information to editorial@westwordcom.