#75: Conrad Kehn The opening sentence of Conrad Kehn’s professional bio kind of says it all: “Conrad Kehn is a composer, improviser, performer, educator, writer and artist.” But that’s the glib definition of a guy who, under the skin of his basic vita, is hellbent on spreading the joy of…
Chuck Sink, who died on April 12, just six weeks shy of his ninetieth birthday, was one of the greatest mid-century modernist architects to have worked in Denver. Born in 1923 in Indiana, he was first exposed to modernism at age ten, when he attended the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair…
Georgia O’Keeffe. Georgia O’Keeffe has been done to death — on greeting cards, calendars and posters. That’s why it’s easy to forget that in the first half of the twentieth century, she was one of America’s most significant early modernists. And with her husband, Alfred Stieglitz, she crusaded for the…
An ostensibly feel-good French-Canadian comedy about artificial insemination gone awry, Ken Scott’s Starbuck mainly makes you feel like taking a shower. The protagonist is a hapless forty-year-old Montreal bachelor named David (Patrick Huard, resembling a younger, hunkier Daniel Auteuil, without the wild-eyed intensity), whose life is turned upside down when…
The meek shall inherit the Earth,” somebody said once — probably Truffaut. Two pictures into his thrilling career, writer-director Antonio Campos seems determined to show us that that might not be anything to celebrate. Campos’s feature debut, 2008’s Afterschool, was essentially one part Blow Up to three parts Rushmore-as-psychological-horror-flick. While…
Daniel Lugo (Mark Wahlberg) believes life has cheated him. Doesn’t America promise riches and luxury to people who deserve it? He’s worked hard to build his body into a hulking knot of muscles; success should follow. But Lugo — the lead in Pain & Gain, Michael Bay’s neon-noir ode to…
Though he’s long been among the most recognizable celebrities in the world, Tom Cruise has always seemed vaguely irritating, like the popular kid at school everybody secretly dislikes. His is an odd sort of fame: Globally recognized but rarely acclaimed, he remains more reliably bankable than nearly any other actor…
Just as Mad Men charms its viewers by using sex, drugs, snappy banter and pretty people to make heavy topics (sexism, racism, dreams diffused) palatable, the editors of Mad Men, Mad World trust that some TV glamour will get readers interested in digesting academic theories. It’s not wrong. Full of…
When Michael Haneke’s sobering end-of-life drama Amour premiered at Cannes last May, many critics reflected on the presence of a shared cultural legacy. Its stars, Emmanuelle Riva and Jean-Louis Trintignant, evoked the iconography of the New Wave, the once-young faces of Hiroshima mon amour and My Night at Maud’s now…
In The Client List, Lifetime’s pseudo-steamy take on the world of sensual massage, Jennifer Love Hewitt plays a struggling housewife who takes a rubdown side job in order to support her kids after her husband disappears. The show, which jumps from scenes of Hewitt pleasuring executives to her dancing with…
Getting in shape is never easy. But if you need extra motivation to exercise, how about running from a hungry, undead predator in the Vampire 5K? “People always say they’d never run unless they’re running from something,” says race co-founder Scott Jones. “And what better to run from than a…
The Denver Art Museum’s monthly after-hours event will sizzle with electricity tonight, energizing its adult audience with interactivity and sparkling lights. The centerpiece of Untitled #56 (Current), notes DAM educational program manager Jaime Kopke, is a collaboration between the musicians of Musica Sacra and DAM Fuse Box artists Annica Cuppetelli…
Today marks the grand opening of RTD’s West Line, serving the West Colfax corridor from Union Station in downtown Denver to the Jeffco Government Center in Golden. Rides will be free all day not just on the West Line, but on the entire light-rail system, and community celebrations are planned…
Dive into a world of sky pirates, menacing cephalopods and bustier-clad lasses in Queen Victoria’s Floating Garden of Secrets and Natural Wonders, the world’s first full-length steampunk opera. Set in a dystopian future, the show tackles issues such as climate change while mashing up influences from Jules Verne to Gilbert…
“If you are a composer in this area, there are not a lot of opportunities to hear your music played,” says Conrad Kehn, founding director of the Playground Ensemble, a chamber group dedicated to modern music, especially by living composers. So in 2007, the act started the Colorado Composers Concert…
Anthony Jeselnik has made a career out of playing the asshole – and over the years, his comedy has only gotten darker. “I’ve spent the past two years looking for my ex-girlfriend’s killer,” Jeselnik says on his current album, Caligula. “But no one’ll do it.” In addition to his biting…
Ballet Ariel’s newest offering, The Birth of Rock and Roll, tells the story of a traveling musician. But rather than travel from town to town, this musician travels through time periods. “In each era, he changes into a different style of musician,” explains artistic director Ilena Norton. “Each of the…
An ’80s throwback dance party collides with fashion-forward style tonight at Paninaro Rewind, a couture showcase in an Italian-disco setting. Playing off Disko Paninaro, Tony P’s weekly Saturday-night shindig, Fashion Denver will bring the work of a dozen local designers directly to the dance floor. It will be the culmination…
In the last year, the Denver Art Museum’s taken us on a rollercoaster ride of exclusives and firsts, with the Yves Saint Laurent and van Gogh blockbusters at the forefront. And the thrills aren’t stopping any time soon: Next up is Georgia O’Keeffe, whose work — remarkably, given her stature…
Sisters on the Fly is one of those phenomena that make American life more interesting: It’s a colorful, nationwide group of women who like to get together for vintage-trailer retreats, decorating their Airstreams and canned-ham rolling houses with Americana murals and sharing such old-fashioned traditions as Dutch-oven cuisine. The latest…
When the clock strikes midnight in Colorado tonight, history will be made: For the first time, all committed couples will be able to apply for civil-union licenses. In celebration of this equitable landmark, One Colorado will be throwing a Civil Soirée to prepare for the historic moment. “We’re really excited…
Combining music and comedy is a juggling act that most event organizers would rather avoid. But the Greater Than Collective has tackled this cultural juggernaut head on — not only with its label (which includes bands and standups), but also with its monthly showcase, the Greater Than Social Club, at…
