Friday, February 16, 2007

Feb. 18 bourbon tasting & benefit @ Walnut Room

From the Denver Post:

Who knew drinking could feel so good? Knob Creek will present a free tasting of "rare and special bourbons" from around the country, with a small suggested donation to benefit The Woman's Bean Project, which helps women break the cycle of poverty and unemployment through job training. The Walnut Room will provide its famous thin-crust pizza and sandwiches at no charge.

6 p.m. Sunday
3131 Walnut St.
free with $5 suggested
donation
303 295-1868 or thewalnutroom.com

Feb. 19 Free Day @ Denver Botanic Gardens

Monday, February 19 is an SCFD-funded day of free admission to the Denver Botanic Gardens (on York St.). Luckily for us all, the weather is supposed to be mild next week.

Feb. 18 Colo. Singer Songwriters @ Boulder Library

From the Boulder Public Library website:

Sunday, February 18, 4 p.m.

Colorado Singer Songwriters
Rebecca Folsom, Danny Shafer, Dan Sheridan, Ray Smith & Cari Minor

With this program, the Library Concert Series kicks off its first Local Colorado Musicians Songwriters on the Round program. Featured songwriters are Dan Sheridan (Aspen), Danny Shafer, Rebecca Folsom, Cari Minor (all from Boulder) and Ray Smith (Rollinsville).

The kick-off of the program inaugurates a special “local Colorado” CD music section at the Boulder Public Library, which has been built up with significant donations from Albums on the Hill, 1128 13th Street, and Bart’s CD Cellar, 1015 Pearl Street.

Feb. 18 Paul Erhard/Atmic Vision @ CU Boulder

CU Boulder Music Faculty Series

Sunday, February 18, 4:30 p.m.
Paul Erhard, double bass with Atmic Vision

The acclaimed Indian music trio Atmic Vision returns by popular demand for a concert as part of a two-week Indian music residency in the College of Music. CU professor of double bass, Dr. Paul Erhard, Bansuri master Annada Prasanna Pattanaik, and tabla drum wizard Muthu Kumar (both from Bangalore, India) invite you to enjoy their exciting and heartfelt musical blending of East and West. In the words of a 20-year member of Metropolitan Opera Chorus in New York City, “each musician of Atmic Vision is stunning in his virtuosity. This is only the beginning of an even more profound capacity to touch audience members with a pureness of joy I no longer thought was possible.”

Faculty Series recitals showcase CU-Boulder College of Music faculty performances. Faculty Series recitals are held in Grusin Music Hall in the Imig Music Building. Recitals are free and open to the public.

Thursday, February 15, 2007

Feb. 17 BBQ cooking demo @ DPL

Another component of the Denver Public Library's focus on the American South has been the cooking demonstration series. Now this is something I wish we'd known about sooner, as the series is about to end. But when I first told the guitarhero of this Saturday's BBQ demo (free samples!), I had barely finished my sentence before he was saying, "we're there."

Jim 'n Nicks Bar-B-Q
Saturday, February 17, 10:30 a.m. - 12 p.m.
Central Library, Level B2 Conference Center

Recently opened in Aurora at the new Southlands Mall, Jim 'n Nicks Bar-B-Q is the real deal. Their Bar-B-Q pork and beef brisket are made the old-fashioned way, patiently smoked over real hickory wood fires. Their commitment to authentic and southern cooking is evident in every dish from the true southern vegetables to their fried catfish. Everything is made fresh, from scratch, everyday and served in a casual setting that raises Southern hospitality to a high art. Chefs Drew Robinson and Grace Charnow will create the dishes for this cooking demonstration. Recipes and samples included. www.jimnnicks.com.

Feb. 18 Lottery Party @ Boulder Fringe Fest

On Sunday, Feb. 18, the Boulder Fringe Fest will choose the 2007 line-up from all submissions by holding a lottery. In a smart marketing move, they're combining this very administrative task with an everyone-is-welcome party at 7:00 p.m. that will feature local performers. More details here and here.

Feb. 18 Jake Adam York, poet @ DPL

From the Denver Public Library website:

Jake Adam York – Murder Ballads – Author Talk and Book Signing
Sunday, February 18, 2 - 3 p.m.
Central Library, Level 5 Gates Conference Room

Jake Adam York's first book of poems, Murder Ballads, opened a long project, the creation of a poetic memorial for the martyrs of America's Civil Rights Movement, a project York has continued in his newly completed sequel, A Murmuration of Starlings. Join York for a reading of poems from the memorial sequence. A question-and-answer session will follow, for those interested in discussing the memorial poems or the contexts of American and Southern literature out of which these poems emerge. Book signing to follow.

Wednesday, February 14, 2007

recap: Feb. 10 On the Road manuscript @ DPL

How is it possible that I've lived here for as long as I have but only found out last Saturday that, all this time, a Denver Public Library card could have been mine? Unbelievable. I had gotten back into the habit of going to the library a few years ago when we were still living in L.A. Although our neighborhood branch was small and was closed most evenings and Sundays, I had the entire Los Angeles Public Library catalogue at my disposal. And it's a big catalogue.

Having downsized library systems twice since moving to the Denver area -- once to the JeffCo library, and again to our current county -- imagine my amazement, my glee, when I found out on Saturday that a Denver Public Library card is the inalienable right of any and all Colorado residents. I felt almost as if I were Mary Lennox fitting key to lock and stepping into that walled garden for the first time. ("Might I... might I have a bit of stacks, sir?") What I love the most about libraries is that I can be as focused and research-driven as I want to be, or I can indulge in being able to indulge in whatever strikes my fancy. I currently have at home (from my local library) a book on bistro cooking and another on artisanal bread baking just cause they looked pretty, as well as season 2 of "Jeeves & Wooster." (If you're not familiar with the show, just think of Bertie Wooster as the anti-House.)

I only found out about the availability of the DPL card while perusing the brochures at the Central Branch for possible free events. I had walked down from the Denver Center for the Performing Arts between New Play Summit events (recap to follow) to view the On the Road manuscript that went on display the first weekend of January. I wish I'd known in advance of all the activities that surrounded the opening of the exhibit, as it's one of the guitarhero's favorite books and it would have been great to hear some jazz for free, but let's be honest -- that was a snowy weekend and we weren't in the mood to go anywhere.

The exhibit itself is low-key: pretty much just the first 60 feet of that famous scroll, single-spaced, a little tattered around the edges, with some inscrutable editorial marks here and there. This not being the final, published draft, you can catch Allen Ginsburg playing himself in this version, before the name was changed. I think Sal makes it to Denver after about 15 feet of type, and to L.A. another 15 or so feet later. I do not recommend trying to actually read the book in this fashion, as I got a good crick in my neck after just a couple of minutes of leaning to the side over the low glass display case.

The walls of the gallery are hung with some period photos showing Denver in the 1940s through late 1960s, some shots of Kerouac and contemporaries, and a few placards that describe the historical context. Unless you're a die-hard student of the Beats, I don't know that the exhibit itself is worth a trip solely to view it (note that the second 60 feet will go on display Feb. 24). But if you're in the area or at the library for any number of other activities (some of which I've already started listing here), then it's just a very cool -- like, crazy, man! -- thing to see. Although the glass display case wasn't working for me, I think that Kerouac's desire to write uninterrupted resulted in the medium informing the message. Somehow, returning to my old paperback version, with its foreword, page turns, and paragraph indentations doesn't pack the same visceral punch as reading even a few lines of that fantastic, mad, caffeine- and Catholic guilt-fueled stream of consciousness. If I ever read On the Road again -- and I plan to -- I'll try to set aside a weekend with nothing else to do, and try to forget everything I learned in high school about looking for predominant themes and recurring motifs. Kerouac just wrote, so I should just read, my only knod to context some Charlie Parker playing in the background.

Crazy, man.

Feb. 17 "Dora's Musical School Days" @ Starz FilmCenter

The Denver Film Society's Kids First! film series is showing "Dora's Musical School Days" on Saturday, Feb. 17. Again, this looks like a straight-to-video production that's being shown on the big screen, but I know from experience that the little 'uns loves them some Dora. Free showings at 10:30 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.

Tuesday, February 13, 2007

Feb. 17-18 Panel Discussions @ Boulder Film Festival

The Boulder International Film Festival is happening Feb. 15-18, 2007, and there are a couple of free events associated with it. The first, a Filmmakers' Panel, is on Saturday the 17th, and the Confessions of a Film Critic panel on Sunday the 18th will feature pretty much every local critic you can think of.

Feb. 17 Appalachian clogging workshop @ DPL

The Denver Public Library's focus on the American South continues this weekend with an Appalachian clogging workshop on Saturday, Feb. 17 at 2:00. It's free, but registration is required; visit the website for more info.

Feb. 14-17 365 Days/365 Plays @ Dairy Center

This week's set of plays in the 365 Days/365 Plays cycle are being presented by madhause at The Dairy Center for the Arts in Boulder.

Week#14
February 14th, 16th, 17th at 8:00pm
February 15th at 2:00pm
The Dairy Center for the Arts
East Theater, 2590 Walnut Street

FREE ADMISSION

Monday, February 12, 2007

recap of Feb. 9 yoga class @ Samadhi Center

Finally, yoga!

On Friday, Feb. 9, I attended a new class at Samadhi Center for Yoga that I learned about via their e-newsletter. In Fall 2005 I was much more diligent about trying to establish a yoga practice and was sampling some different studios around Denver, mainly taking advantage of the new student discounts that most studios offer. Samadhi offers an unlimited one-week pass for $20 (if I recall correctly) for new students, a great value even if you only attend two classes in that week.

But, as we all know, I am not in the market to pay for yoga classes these days as much as I'd like to, and I don't think I practiced at all in 2006 (The Year of the House). Even though I'm woefully out of shape, I made a special effort to attend this free introductory class at 7:15 on Friday -- yes, I am physically and mentally weak, but one thing I've always liked about Samadhi is the openness and support of the teachers and students. Samadhi may attract a largely young and attractive crowd, but I've seen people of all shapes, ages, and flexibilities there, not to mention more men and yogis of color than found at some other studios.

The new class is Shakti yoga taught by Lara Catone, and is being billed as a blending of vinyasa yoga and exploratory dance. (I couldn't find anything about it on the website, and I've deleted the e-newsletter already, so I hope I'm getting this right.) While the description of the dance component did make me think of "free form jazz exploration" for just a second, I also know that you only get out of exploration what you put into it. And God knows, we grown-ups only get so many opportunities a week to let our freak flags fly, so you need to take every chance you get.

The larger studio at Samadhi was packed by the time class started -- at least 35 people, maybe more. Lara led us through 90+ minutes of traditional asanas and sequences interspersed with guided explorations of the space around us, all set to a great mix of music. In all seriousness, it's a crime that most of us only use our bodies to sit, lie down, or walk, considering the range of motion available to the vast majority of us. Whereas on most Friday nights I just veg out in front of the TV, this was a fun way to get some exercise and do a bit of meditation but still feel like the weekend had arrived.

Om shanti shanti shantihi, indeed.

Feb. 14 "To Sleep with Anger" @ DPL

This month the Denver Public Library's Film at Central Cinema Club is focusing on the theme of Black Images in Film. On Wednesday, Feb. 14, "To Sleep with Anger" starring Danny Glover will be screened at 2:00 p.m.

Feb. 14 Paul Erhard/Atmic Vision @ Broomfield

The CU in Broomfield World Music Series continues on Wednesday, Feb. 14 with a concert featuring a fusion of Indian classical music.

February 14: Paul Erhard and ATMIC Vision present “Across the Seas”

Paul Erhard, Associate Professor of Double Bass at CU-Boulder, performs internationally as a soloist and is one of the world’s only double bass soloists exploring the use of the bowed double bass in Indian Classical music. Join him and his double bass-flute-tabla group, ATMIC VISION, for an exotic musical journey across the seas.

Feb. 14 Free Day @ Denver Zoo

Wednesday, February 14 is an SCFD-funded day of free admission to the Denver Zoo.

Note that the next free day at the zoo isn't until October, so grab your sweetie(s) and make a day of it now!

Feb. 13 "Suddenly Last Summer" @ DPL

On Tuesday, Feb. 13, the Denver Public Library continues its Southern Gothic film series focusing on adaptations of the works of Tennessee Williams by showing "Suddenly Last Summer" at 6:30 p.m.