Denver Performing Arts Roundup

The upcoming months will be heaven for high culture vultures. There are ballets, symphonies, operas galore, all taking place in Denver’s increasingly renowned performing arts palaces. If there’s any doubt that the Mile High City is a world class cultural metropolis, this fall should put that to rest.

Opera Colorado:
Puccini's Madama Butterfly
Ellie Caulkins Opera House
November 8 - 16, 2008
Opera Colorado takes you to early 20th-century Japan with Puccini's soaring tale of passion, devotion, and honor! Butterfly, the young Japanese bride of Naval officer Pinkerton, gives up her family and culture to be with her husband. When he leaves for America, she waits patiently with their son for three years, only to be devastated when he returns to Japan with an American wife. Faced with a choice between life without honor or death with dignity, Butterfly must make the ultimate sacrifice.
More Info: www.operacolorado.org

 

Colorado Ballet
Newman Center for the Performing Arts
Sept. – Dec.
Kick off the season with a Triple Crown - the stirring combination of three audience favorites, presented in an intimate setting new to Colorado Ballet from September 12-14.

Next up, indulge in the deathless classic ballet, Swan Lake (Oct. 11-26). Love, magic and mystery take flight as our heroine is trapped in the body of a white swan and and evil temptress plots a wicked scheme – this is thought of as one of the greatest ballets of all time and is recommended for both dance connoisseurs and novices alike.

Finally, get in the seasonal spirit with The Nutcracker. When a ballet has been performed for over 100 years and still gives audiences of all ages goosebumps, you know that it’s worth seeing – whether it’s your first time or 20th time. Enjoy this delightful holiday classic from Nov. 29-Dec. 27.
More Info: www.coloradoballet.org

 

Colorado Symphony Orchestra
Boettcher Concert Hall
at the Denver Performing Arts Complex
Sept.-Dec.
It’s a big couple of months for the CSO. GRAMMY® award-winning soprano Dawn Upshaw kicks off the 2008-09 season and makes a special appearance at the Season Opening Gala on Friday, September 12. Then, the CSO begins a multi-year Mahler Cycle this season with performances of Mahler's Symphonies No. 1, "Titan" and No. 2, "Resurrection," as well as Das Lied von der Erde, conducted by Music Director Jeffrey Kahane and Principal Guest Conductor Douglas Boyd. Kahane will lead several Masterworks programs and conduct/perform as piano soloist in Bach's Piano Concerto in D major. Other artists joining the CSO for Masterworks programs include Jonathan Biss, Marin Alsop, Lukas Vondracek, Peter Oundjian, and Bernard Labadie featured in repertoire including Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 21, Tchaikovsky's Piano Concerto No. 1, Mozart's Symphony No. 39, Vaughan Williams' Symphony No. 5, Brahms' Violin Concerto, Bloch's Schelomo and Handel's Messiah.

The CSO will show off their pop chops as well. Award-winning artists Bernadette Peters (Fri. Sept. 26) and Burt Bacharach (Sat. Sept. 27) return to perform with the CSO for back to back One Night Only! performances. CSO Pops concerts on sale in this wave include artists such as the New York Voices (Sat. Oct. 11) and Three Dog Night (Sat. Jan. 3, 2009), as well as tribute concerts showcasing the music of the Eagles (Oct. 10) and Judy Garland (Nov. 7).

CSO goes to the movies this November with Trek: The Concert, celebrating the music of Star Trek (Nov. 1), and Charlie Chaplin’s City Lights (Nov. 15). Also worth catching with the family is the all new A Colorado Christmas (Dec. 12-14), featuring the Colorado Symphony Orchestra and Chorus and the Colorado Children’s Chorale led by Richard Kaufman, with guest artist Gavin MacLeod in a special reading of A Night Before Christmas. There will be five performances of A Colorado Christmas including the Saturday evening live broadcast on CBS4. 
More Info: www.coloradosymphony.org

 

Colorado Children’s Chorale
Boettcher Concert Hall at the Denver Performing Arts Complex
Oct. – Dec.
From the Great Wall of China to Colorado and beyond, 400 magnificent voices of the Colorado Children's Chorale have riveted people to their seats, and then moved them to jitter-bug, bump hips and generally get their groove on. This fall bring the little ones to Coo Coo Cachoo Concert for Kids, a performance by the phenomenal National Tour, Saturday, Oct. 25, 2008 at 11 a.m. And be sure to get tickets for the always fun Christmas with the Children’s Chorale, Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008 at 2 p.m. and Sunday, Dec. 7, 2008 at 7 p.m.
More Info: www.childrenschorale.org

 

Newman Center for the Performing Arts
University of Colorado, Denver
Sept. – Dec.
Acclaimed British actor Michael Pennington, perhaps best known by the American general public for his portrayal of Moff Jerjerrod in Star Wars: Episode VI - Return of the Jedi, brings his show Sweet William to the Byron Theatre on Friday, Sept. 12. This one-man show on the life and works of William Shakespeare intermingles texts from Shakespeare's plays and sonnets with facts and speculations about Shakespeare's life and anecdotes from Pennington's own life on the stage.

On Saturday, Sept. 27, the Newman will host Robert Moses’ Kin Dance Company, a group known breathtaking athleticism, luscious music and compelling poetry

On Oct. 2, Universes, Slanguage features an ensemble of multi-disciplinary writers and performers who create moving, challenging and entertaining theatrical works, the group breaks the bounds of traditional theater to create their own brand of performance. Built loosely around the structure of a subway ride from Brooklyn to the Bronx, Slanguage synthesizes traditional theater with poetry, storytelling, rap, gospel, jazz riffs, bluesy laments, Spanish boleros, and other poetic forms, to paint a rich portrait of the sights and sounds of New York City.

A special appearance by the legendary, 100-member London Symphony Orchestra is up next on Oct. 15 and 16. The assembled throng will offer two performances of Verdi’s monumental Requiem. This spectacular, chilling, and ethereal work will highlight the unparalleled acoustics of Gates Concert Hall and the talents of both the University’s music students and one of the world’s most distinguished choruses.

Buoyant South African music takes center stage on Oct. 28, when the Soweto Gospel Choir comes to Denver. Singing in a number of languages, from English and Zulu, to Xhosa and Sotho, their music stems from traditional African, Western church and gospel music from around the globe. The choir supports their charity Nkosi’s Haven/Vukani (meaning “Arise, do something!”), which distributes cash, food and essential goods in South Africa to HIV-positive children and those orphaned by AIDS.

The Newman Center presents the Aspen Santa Fe Ballet on Nov. 1. Nationally renowned as an eclectic, innovative dance company with a solid foundation in classical ballet, Aspen Santa Fe Ballet has made a lasting impression with a company of versatile, energetic dancers performing a sophisticated repertoire featuring some of the world’s foremost choreographers.

The delightfully challenging Kronos Quartet come to DU on Sat., Nov. 8 for a musical program that is chosen jointly by the artists no more than 24 hours before the performance and might include music from Afghanistan, Argentina, China Ethiopia, Iceland, India, Iran, Iraq, Lebanon, Mexico, Nubia, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Sweden, Turkey, United States and Uzbekistan.

Finally on Saturday, Dec. 6, 2008, Turtle Island Quartet takes you on a joyous voyage through world holiday music, ranging from English carols and 16th century Scottish reels, to Jewish and Hindu songs of Chanukah and India’s Dewali. This Grammy® Award-winning ensemble gloriously fuses the classical string quartet with the adventurous spirit of jazz.
More info: www.du.edu/newmancenter

Get more info on the Denver Performing Arts World here.