Thomas Steed, owner and financier of Polygamy Productions, has simple things to say about the first installment of his two-part music and sound festival, Illusions in Sound: “People loved it. It was received very well; we got a lot of fan mail.” But there was a hitch: Part one took…

The award-winning play The Lieutenant of Inishmore — written by Martin McDonough of In Bruges fame — is the perfect way to kick of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations if you’re Irish. Even if you’re not, it’s hard to resist this wacky tale of an Irish Liberation Army enforcer and his…

If you’ve always wanted to rub shoulders with the movers and shakers of New York City — or tell a New Yorker cartoonist about one of your hilarious ideas — then head for the high country, because Beaver Creek’s signature funny event, Humor on the Slopes, is back for another…

Even if the mountains aren’t your thing, you’ve just got to love Leadville. Here’s one good reason: The highest incorporated city in North America (elevation: 10,152′) has been holding ski-joring competitions since 1949. Clearly a contender for the world’s weirdest sport, ski-joring involves a horse and rider or a dog…

It might seem a wee bit early to start celebrating St. Patrick’s Day, but there’s a good reason that the Spirit of Ireland music and dance program is taking place tonight, says Sarah Landry, president of the Foundation for Celtic Arts and Studies. “A lot of things go on St…

From a young age, Adolfo Perez Esquivel was taught to respect nature and the world around him; as an artist, his large-scale murals and sculptures grace parks and museums throughout Europe and Latin America. During the military coup that rattled Argentina for seven years, beginning in 1976, Esquivel bravely chose…

What would happen if you took an elite bluegrass mandolinist — who also happens to be an accomplished multi-instrumentalist, playing the violin in jazz groups and a range of instruments with several new-age ensembles — and put him on stage with the only person in the world who can play…

It should come as no surprise to anyone that journalist and activist Mariane Pearl will speak as part of the tenth annual Unique Lives & Experiences lecture series, which focuses on women who showcase the grace and resilience of the human spirit. Many know Pearl primarily as the widow of…

When you’re living with HIV/AIDS, it’s important to take care of your teeth. Issues such as dry mouth (which can lead to tooth decay, gingivitis and gum disease), thrush, swollen glands and more are part of the HIV/AIDS condition, which is why the Howard Dental Center is so important: It…

These days, environmental consciousness and green thinking are where it’s at — and the Sangre de Cristo Arts Center, 210 North Santa Fe Avenue in Pueblo, is at the cutting edge of culture. Six new exhibits at the venue examine art, nature and the environment, all under the banner of…

Food lovers, take note: Denver Restaurant Week begins today, which means that 175 metro-area restaurants are offering multi-course dinners for the very affordable Mile-High price of $52.80 per couple ($26.40 if you choose to eat alone). That amount doesn’t include tax or tip, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a…

I’ve always wanted a team of sled dogs. Just picture it: On those snowy mornings when the highways are jam-packed with skidding motorists attempting to navigate their way to work in a blizzard, my dogs and I would sail swiftly and majestically past the congestion, with me shouting “Mush!” over…

The Boulder International Film Festival is in full swing, and if you haven’t caught any of the innovative, controversial and just plain good movies being offered, now’s your chance to head up to Boulder for a full day of film-loving. The Opening Night Gala and Film, which took place on…

“Valentine’s Day is really the pinnacle of loserness for the beautiful loser,” notes Adam Lerner, executive director of the Laboratory of Art and Ideas in Lakewood’s Belmar complex. “Failure really is a critical dimension. It’s critical of norms of American life, which says that there are certain norms of romance,…

My father was a modern-day gold seeker; he pioneered a method by which seekers can find lodes of ore using water instead of soil. I used to tease him incessantly about his obsession with the precious metal (imagine hearing your daughter cackle, several times a day, “There’s gold in them…

Josh Hartwell worked in two movie theaters growing up, so you can bet that his new play, Contrived Ending, will channel the ups and downs of cleaning candy wrappers and more in a venue for the arts. “It’s about a character who has gone off to film school, and then…

Simon Zalkind, director of exhibitions at the Mizel Arts & Culture Center at the Robert E. Loup Jewish Community Center, is excited about Good Impressions, a collection of American master prints from the 1920s, ’30s and ’40s from the collection of Frederick and Jan Mayer. “Many of the artists have…

Between the popularity of the can-can, the appearance on stage of such performers as Frank Sinatra and Édith Piaf, and the madcap spectacle of director Baz Luhrmann’s 2001 hit Moulin Rouge!, the historic Moulin Rouge cabaret in the Parisian red-light district of Pigalle has fueled the imagination since it was…

Each year, CultureHaus — a social and educational support group of the Denver Art Museum — hosts its signature party and fundraiser. For this year’s bash, the theme is Art of Passion, and CultureHaus has worked hard to create an event that will tantalize all five senses while raising money…

As far as anyone can tell, ski-waxing began in the 1860s in California, when gold-rush miners held impromptu downhill races. They discovered that smearing compounds on the bottoms of their skis helped the equipment slide over snow, increasing their speed. Many early waxes were not actually made of wax —…