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Beyond Telluride

ed. note: Our friend, Ben Clark sends along this post and link to Ski the Himalayas video.

Ski the Himalayas is now in it's third season of online "making of" podcast episodes born out of Ski the Himalayas' first two feature length documentary films available this year on Dish Network and Comcast Xfinity VOD and Pay Per View. Look for Ski the Himalayas 2 on Dish and Comcast Xfinity on May 1st. We climbed a peak and survived an avalanche, those were just two instances along the way... 

Trimming through hours of footage captured across three different expeditions after having lived them, the depth of gratitude for the experiences we've had and continue to plan is astounding.  We are thankful and we are moving forward with two more Himalayan expeditions this year.  Two more films and two more seasons of making of episodes.  Who knows how many ski turns and ice tool swings that equates to, we hope it is a lot. This spring we will dispatch from the Ganesh Himal, stay tuned at www.skithehimalayas.com

27 March, 2011 /
[click "Play" to hear Susan's interview with Flair Robinson]

 

Flair Robinson Telluride local Flair Robinson is aptly named. She is a woman with a flair for art; her medium is the ancient art form of mosaic. On April 1, Flair joints a global group of mosaic artists who have generously donated 126 original works to an online auction to benefit Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF). The bidding runs through April 27.

Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) is an independent international humanitarian organization which unites direct medical care with a commitment to bearing witness to the plight of the people it assists. MSF includes a network of 27,000 doctors, nurses, logisticians, water-and-sanitation experts, administrators, and other qualified professionals who deliver emergency medical assistance to people affected by armed conflict, epidemics, malnutrition, natural disasters, or exclusion from health care in nearly 60 countries. The organization had boots on the ground in Haiti and is now active in Japan.

21 March, 2011 /

by Tracy Shaffer

Though the subject of Lynn Nottage's play Ruined might seem like a reason to stay away, the latest offering by Denver Center Theatre Company puts my recommendation in the 'run-don't-walk' category. I attended last night's first preview, so this is not an official review (nor am I a critic), but the powerful production deserves to be seen so I thrust myself out on a limb here to give you time to plan your evening.

Set in a cheery brothel in the war-torn Democratic Republic of the Congo, themes of violence, rape, genocide and the demoralizing exploitation of women, are balanced with a shocking levity that is testament to the human spirit.The entire cast is in fine form, led by the powerful performances of Kim Staunton and Harvey Blanks. There is an unmatched intimacy and ease between these two, having appeared together in Raisin in the Sun, Radio Golf, Gem of the Ocean, The Madwoman to name a few. Tallia Brinson, Joy Jones and Daphne Gaines are exquisite as the women of the brothel whose stories lend the script its brutal core, while the band of soldiers are brutish and violent, the actors have miraculously managed to make them... well, charming would be going too far.

21 March, 2011 /

[click "Play" to hear Susan's interview with Beth and George Gage]

 

Tim DeChristopher He was a guest at the 30th and 31st annual Mountainfilm in Telluride in 2008 and 2009. We are talking about Tim DeChristopher, who not only draws outside the lines, he steps over them. He is the man who came to be known as "Bidder 70."

While at Mountainfilm, journalist Alex Chadwick conducted one of his 50-cent interviews with Tim. In those four minutes, Tim recounted the events leading up to and through his arrest. (You can find the interview at: http://player.vimeo.com/video/20626810?title=0&amp%3Bbyline=0&amp%3Bportrait=0&amp%3Bcolor=ffffff.)  Now Telluride locals and award-winning filmmakers George and Beth Gage are telling Tim DeChristopher's full story, a jumping off point for the larger stories of civil disobedience and climate change.

20 March, 2011 /
[click "Play", John Wontrobski talks with Susan about the event and his background as a chef]

 

Rico Hotel Publication It's tough to connect the dots: a Telluride Deputy Marshal, a nonprofit dedicated to ending interpersonal violence in the greater Telluride community, St. Patrick's Day, and, well, Shepherd's Pie, but here's the story.

On March 17, 5 – 9 p.m., John Wontrobski, Telluride Marshal and board member of the San Miguel Resource Center, is Guest Chef at the Argentine Grille in Rico. The special menu John put together for that night includes Lamb Shepherd's Pie served either with oysters on the half shell –  or a salad and vegetable (greens for St. Patrick's Day) and Irish soda bread (also in honor of the holiday). The entree is priced at $25 and half the proceeds from the meal go to – and here's the punch line – the San Miguel Resource Center.

15 March, 2011 /

Prince-beta-062-300x233 Esperanza Spalding's first Telluride appearance was 2007 for Winter Jazz. Those of us who know Telluride Jazz Celebration's impresario Paul Machado know the man has an eye for the ladies. His special gift is to catch rising stars before they have reached their zenith: violinist Regina Carter, guitarist Badi Assad, chanteuses Diana Krall, Jane Monheit, and Lizz Wright to name a few of Machado’s picks early in their careers.

The story of Esperanza Spalding is a rags-to-riches-tale, an American dream come true, because a smart single mom recognized she had  a gifted daughter who thought – and played – out of the box. Years later, the jazz bassist/singer has clearly earned the respect of her peers. And one of her major fans happens to be President Obama. Last night, Sunday, February 13, Esperanza took the Grammys by storm, winning Best Artist, trumping popsters Justin Bieber and Drake, plus bands Mumford & Sons (Telluride Bluegrass Festival, 2010) and Florence & The Machine.

14 February, 2011 /

 Students from the 2010 Snowshoe Overnight brave the elements at 11,000 Ft. February 10, 2011 Telluride Institute's Watershed Education Program (WEP) is launching the first annual Nucla Middle School Snowshoe Overnight this week from February 10th to 11th!  WEP will be conducting this program in...

10 February, 2011 /
[click "Play" to hear Tracy speaking with Bruce K Sevy]

 

 

by Tracy Shaffer

CNPS-web.sflb It's that time of year again! Writers and artists, actors, directors, agents and theatre buffs from around the country will descend on Denver next week for the Colorado New Play Summit. Denver Center Theatre hosts it's sixth annual playwright lovefest, February 10-12, with staged readings of new works by commissioned playwrights and scripts submitted for inclusion. This year marks the return of two "rock star" writers, Octavio Solis and Michele Lowe, along with Lisa Loomer, Samuel D Hunter, Lloyd Suh and a commissioned piece by Denver's award-winning Buntport Theatre. The white hot Octavio Solis, who brought us the glorious "Lydia" in 2008, brings the much anticipated script, Cecilia Marie, to town for a staged reading and the equally scorching Michelle Lowe has her "Map of Heaven" on the Denver Center boards for its world premiere production. Ms. Lowe won the 2010 Francesca Primus Prize for her previous Denver debut, 2009's Inana.

06 February, 2011 /
[click "Play", Lawrence de Bivort discusses current Middle East affairs with Susan]

 

 

Lawrie & Sus Outside the Telluride bubble, the New Year came in with a bang. Waves of unrest that began in Tunisia and spread to Lebanon, Egypt, Jordan and Yemen suggest the old order from might be ending.

In response to these seismic shifts in the global landscape,Telluride's five-star Wilkinson Public Library invited long-time (20 years) Telluride local Lawrence de Bivort to share his perspective on the Middle East. It is an opportunity for Telluride locals and guests to hear from the horse's mouth: in a career spanning 40 years+  years, de Bivort has worked as a consultant and policy maker on the Middle East to the Beltway, including to the White House, where he currently advises on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

De Bivort's talk, "What in the World is going on in the Middle East?," takes place Tuesday, February 1, 6 – 8 p.m. in the Library's hyperactive Program Room. Among the timely questions de Bivort plans to address:

30 January, 2011 /