Symphony pays tribute to King at Boettcher

The Colorado Symphony and the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Colorado Holiday Commission invite you to a free annual celebration of Dr. King’s life and legacy as a leader, visionary and pillar of the civil rights movement, to be held Jan. 13 at Boettcher Concert Hall in the Denver Center for the Performing Arts downtown.

Now in its 25th year, this community concert recognizes individuals and organizations that embody King’s dream of equality, peace, service, and social justice. New this year, the Colorado Symphony will be joined by Denver’s Flobots, a hip-hop ensemble that uses music as a tool to ignite awareness, action, and positive change.

Hosted by TV personality Tamara Banks, the program will be conducted by Scott O’Neil and will include symphonic selections by Beethoven and Dvorak as well as African-American composers Brian Keane and George Walker. In collaboration with the full orchestra, the Flobots will perform orchestral arrangements of their music, with original arrangements by Tom Hagerman of DeVotchKa, commissioned by the Colorado Symphony.

The winners of four Humanitarian awards, as well as the Menola Upshaw Lifetime Achievement Award winner, will be honored during the program; all honorees are nominated and selected by the community and overseen by the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Colorado Holiday Commission. The concert is part of a weeklong celebration of Dr. King’s work as well as a call to community action. For a complete list of events, visit www.drmartinlkingjrchc.org/.

Tickets to this free concert are available at the Blair-Caldwell African American Research Library, 2401 Welton St., and the Colorado Symphony box office in the Boettcher Concert Hall at 14th and Curtis streets. For details, visit www.coloradosymphony.org.The box office is open from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday-Friday; noon to 6 p.m. Saturday; and two hours before every performance.

A ticket is required for admission. All seating is general admission on a first come, first-served basis and a ticket does not guarantee a seat.

Yummy mi

Get your bacon on with Bourbon & Bacon Fest presented by the Colorado Pork Producers Council, Jan. 24 at the McNichols Civic Center Building, 144 W. Colfax Ave.

It will be the second annual gathering of specialty bourbons and whiskeys from distilleries, both large and small, all paired with bacon. New this year is a First Taste Ticket, which gets you an extra half-hour of savory treats and seductive bourbons.

Bourbon & Bacon Fest will showcase some of Colorado’s whiskeys and bourbons such as Buffalo Trace, Fireball and 1792. The event also will host samples from area restaurants including Westminster’s Kachina Southwestern Grill, Sunnyside Burgers and Gigis Cupcakes.

The Bourbon & Bacon Festival will have several ticket options. A VIP ticket at $ 95 will give you dibs on everything in the festival for a full hour before general admission and includes entrance to a catered VIP area with exclusive beverages and buffet. A First Taste ticket at $ 55 will allow entrance to the festival 30 minutes before general admission. General admission tickets are $ 45 for 3-5 p.m. tastings. Tickets are available here. 

For more information, visit the webiste or Facebook page.

Lannie’s stays lively

January marks the ninth year of operation for Lannie’s Clocktower Cabaret, the charming nightclub in the basement of the historic D&F Clocktower, 1601 Arapahoe St., and if you haven’t been, go.

Lannie Garrett, our hometown chanteuse, hosts a variety of entertainment supporting diversity in our community and organizations raising money for worthy causes.

January highlights include:

Garrett performs in her new show, “Swing Sets,” featuring the After Midnight Band playing Benny, Basie and Beyond. Opens at 8 p.m. Jan. 10 and continues on Saturdays.Burlesque on Broadway: Top Hats and Tassels Revue opens at 8 p.m. Jan. 9.

Sneak peek to February:

Lannie Garrett’s Valentine Show — Swingtime in the Rockies at 7 p.m. Feb. 14.The Vagina Monologues — fundraiser for The Gathering Place — Feb. 15 and 16.

D Note no more

D Note, the venue that rocked Olde Town Arvada for 12 years, played its last note on Jan. 3. Owners Dave and Mernie Rosenberg, who bought the family-friendly club from the DeGraff family in 2013, are calling it quits, according to Westword.

According to the story, “Dave Rosenberg says they fell behind on rent and told the landlord they’d catch up by the year (end), but the landlord ‘decided there were other people more interesting to have in there other than us,’ says Rosenberg. ‘So they pulled our lease. That’s the way it goes.’

“‘It’s a tough business,’ Rosenberg adds. ‘We tried to do right by the bands. It’s just that Olde Town is changing a little bit. I don’t know if it’s a good thing that we’re getting out but we’ll find out down the road.'”

Rosenberg blamed in part the light rail construction that has all but wiped out parking in Olde Town. “‘Two years, when construction’s all done, when that train’s running, I have a feeling it will be really nice, but for the next two years it’s going to be a tough time in Olde Town.'”

The Seen

Seen on the Oakland Raiders sideline during the Dec. 28 game against the Denver Broncos at Sports Authority Field at Mile High: “Glee” actress Naya Rivera, whose brother, Mychal Rivera, is a tight end for the Raiders.

Overheard

Eavesdropping on a man visiting Denver from New York opening Christmas presents: “Wow, with all this candy, I’ll have diabetes by the time I get back home.”

Penny Parker’s “Mile High Life” column gives insights into the best events, restaurants, businesses, parties and people throughout the metro area. Parker also writes for Blacktie-Colorado.com. You can subscribe and read her columns (Monday, Wednesday and Friday) at www.blacktie-colorado.com/pennyparker. She can be reached at penny@blacktie-llc.com or at 303-619-5209.

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