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Culture

by Tracy Shaffer

Denver starts to rock, the season of new beginnings. The town is warming up for the summer nights to do what Denverites do best— hit the streets! Not long after the ski slopes close, concert venues open: for the next five months, music will waft through our city’s all too thin air. Picnics in the park, treks up to Red Rocks: I can almost hear the clickety-clack of Prada sandals as the charge of the Botox Brigade hits the patio at Elway’s.  Kicking it off this Saturday is the 7th annual Five Points Jazz Festival at 27th & Welton Street.

Long before Denver welcomed the likes of Matt Holliday or the Birdman, Duke Ellington, Charlie “Bird” Parker and Billie Holiday roamed the streets of Five Points, frequenting the jazz clubs and speakeasies that tarted up the streets. Sitting down for coffee with Denver Office of Cultural Affairs Public Programming Coordinator, Gina Rubano, the talk was all that jazz and how the festival pays tribute not only to the rich cultural heritage of the Five Points neighborhood, but to modern day jazz icons as well.
20 May, 2010 /

Image-2 Dragontattoo Telluride's Nugget Theatre is screening four films for the week of Friday, May 21-Thursday, May 27, including a Telluride Film Festival presentation of "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo."

In "Furry Vengeance" we learn that nature may fight back against real estate developers. It may help to remember that this movie is aimed at kids, and the humor may not be too sophisticated, but it's had decent box-office. (Rated PG)

20 May, 2010 /

A new feature on Telluride Inside... and Out is a regular Tuesday post by Sam Bush, one of Telluride's favorite musicians. Last week was the opening of this series, a Doers column with Sam, a podcast interview with Sam by Susan, and a video from Sam Bush TV.

This week's article is not quite that elaborate, but includes a video from SBTV. The video will be a weekly part of TIO's coverage, and we at Telluride Inside... and Out appreciate the opportunity to help spread the gospel according to Sam. The following is a description of this week's video from Sam's organization:

"On this week's episode of Sam Bush TV, we're revisiting the Circles Around Me CD Release party (which, coincidentally, was also Sam & Lynn Bush's 25th wedding anniversary) at Sound Emporium Studio, in Nashville, TN the spot where most of the CD was recorded.

18 May, 2010 /

37th_TFF_poster_final 2 The Telluride Film Festival (September 3-6, 2010), presented by National Film Preserve LTD., is pleased to announce Pixar Animation Studios’ Ralph Eggleston as the 37th Telluride Film Festival poster artist. Eggleston will lend his talent to create the Festival’s official poster. He will also create a second special edition poster to be unveiled closer to the big weekend.

Eggleston plans to attend the 37th Telluride Film Festival to present his poster designs to the public and hold a poster signing for Telluride Festival guests. The UCLA School of Theatre, Film and Television plans a special reception to honor Eggleston at that time.

14 May, 2010 /

Therunaways_smallteaser Diaryofawimpykid_smallteaser Telluride's Nugget Theatre is showing three movies the week of Friday, May 14-Thursday, May 20. Must be the mountain is officially closed.

First up is "Diary of a Wimpy Kid" (rated PG), another story about a smart kid who gets no respect. The subject has been done many times, but the audience reviews for this one have been positive, and Roger Ebert gives it a thumbs-up. Could be fun.

"The Runaways" tells the story of the all-girl 1970s rock band. It's rated R for language and sexual situations. Expect plenty of rock 'n' roll.

Thelosers_smallposter "The Losers" (PG-13) is an action flick. A special forces team is sent into the Bolivian jungle, there is an insider villain bent on world turmoil, and the group has to stay invisible and stick together to survive.

See below for showtimes, and the Nugget website for trailers and reviews.

13 May, 2010 /
[click "Play" to hear Erika Gordon speak about Sunday at the Palm]

3rd.childrens.fest.11x17 Telluride Film Festival’s “Sunday at the Palm” presents 3rd Annual Children’s Film Fest: "Best of the Chicago International Children’s Film Festival." The celluloid celebration takes place at Telluride's Palm Theatre on Sunday, May 10, 4 p.m. The  program is FREE and the running time is just over an hour.

The SHOW is a compilation of shorts from the Chicago event, also referred to as the “Cannes for kids.”  Roger Ebert of The Chicago Sun Times described the collection as “one of the greatest movie treasures.”  Titles include CONFECTION (USA, 4 min), DOMO-KUN AND THE EGG (Japan, 5 min), LUKA (Ireland, 3 min), THE MANTIS PARABLE (USA, 8 min), THE MAGIC LION (Canada, 7 min) plus other magical shorts. The films are appropriate for all ages.

13 May, 2010 /
[click "Play" to listen to Sam's conversation with Susan]

In Telluride, he is royalty, but please, hold the drum rolls and cornets. The instrument of choice for Sam the Man, King of Telluride, is the diminutive mandolin. Throughout his 30+ year career, by ignoring orthodoxy, Sam Bush did as much as anyone since Bill Monroe to put his instrument on the map. The way he dug in, plucked and strummed, and never mind what he played, added new power and syncopation to the mandolin's percussive chops. Sam's harmonic vocabulary continues to cross musical boundaries, fusing the instrument's more traditional sounds with jazz, rock, blues, funk, and whatever other sounds entered his busy head.

Sam Bush is a trailblazer and Doer #367.

11 May, 2010 /
Unknown In March, a woman came to Telluride to talk about her son. One person in particular did more than listen. Jen Julia, director of Sheridan Arts Foundation's Young People's Theater company, followed Mary Shepard's example turning words into action. On Wednesday, May 12, 6 p.m., members of the SAF Young People's Theater high school acting group, Julia's "company," perform a staged reading of "The Laramie Project,"  a play based on the events surrounding the murder of Judy's son Matthew Shepard.

On October 7, 1998, Matthew Shepard was discovered bound to a fence in the hills outside Laramie, Wyoming, savagely beaten and left to die, an act of brutality and hate that shocked the nation. Judy Shepard's response was to turn personal tragedy into an international crusade, creating The Matthew Shepard Foundation to promote tolerance and diversity. Moises Kaufman & Co. created a play to honor Matthew's memory and advocate justice for all.
10 May, 2010 /
5-10 TFF poster Telluride Film Festival Cinematheque, a collaboration between the internationally renowned Telluride Film Festival and the five-star Wilkinson Public Library, is a vehicle for film lovers in the greater Telluride community to watch and discuss great films year 'round. Thanks to programming genius of Festival co-director Gary Meyer, the grand finale of the winter season in the "All About Food" series is the critically acclaimed "Big Night," (1996, 107 minutes). The event takes place Monday, May 10, 5:30 p.m. for the pre-show reception and 6 p.m. for the screening.

"Big Night" is a delicious tale of mouthwatering food and boiling passions. The story is built around a belt-popping pig-out at a Jersey trattoria which can't get no respect. The engaging dramedy revolves around two brothers in the pursuit of the American Dream.

09 May, 2010 /

Tea Leaf Green and Cornmeal are joint headliners for a post-PHISH party at Telluride's historic Sheridan Opera House. Shows are August and August 10, 11 p.m. Tickets go on sale at sheridanoperahouse.com at NOON on Saturday, May 8 and will ONLY be on sale at...

07 May, 2010 /