MOVIES
Parents have asked when “Miss Potter” would open in Denver, and for good reason. The Renée Zellweger vehicle is a terrific family film, especially for girls looking for a message that they can live their life on their own terms and follow a dream. The movie is finally here, after playing in other cities for some time. Zellweger plays Beatrix Potter, and the film is a delight for anyone who read their young children the Peter Rabbit books over and over again. “Miss Potter” does a nice job of highlighting the author’s unusual childhood and her fight to maintain her artistic vision in spite of the class restrictions and sexist assumptions of old Britain.|Michael Booth
CLASSICAL MUSIC
John Adams, Elliott Carter and George Crumb rank among the most important American composers of the latter half of the 20th century. Rarely heard works by the three will be performed by pianist Christopher Zemliauskas and a group of colleagues at 7:30 p.m. Tuesday as part of the CU-Boulder College of Music’s free faculty series in the Imig Music Building, 18th Street and Euclid Avenue. The program will include Adams’ “Hallelujah Junction” for two pianos with Margaret MacDonald and Carter’s “Three Poems of Robert Frost” with baritone Patrick Mason. 303-492-8008 or colorado.edu/music.|Kyle MacMillan
STAGE
There are several reasons to admire TheatreWorks’ “The Importance of Being Earnest,” not the least of which is that its actors correctly pronounce the word forte (it’s “fort” when referring to a skill). Director Murray Ross elicits outstanding performances from four spectacular leading ladies – Sarah Fallon (Gwendolyn), Jessica Austgen (Cecily), Jane Fromme (Miss Prism) and Ashley Crockett (Lady “Battleship” Bracknell). You might think Oscar Wilde’s satire of manners is about two men – not named Earnest – who claim the name to win two flighty young women who insist on only marrying men of that moniker. But these actresses make it the story of beguiling women of wealth and leisure who control the patriarchal society they occupy despite leading lives of utter insignificance. 7:30 p.m. Wednesdays-Fridays, 2 p.m. and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays, 4 p.m. Sundays through March 18 at 3955 Cragwood Drive, Colorado Springs. $12-$22 (719-262-3232 or uccstheatreworks.com).|John Moore
TELEVISION
A miner’s widow tells “60 Minutes” she’ll continue speaking out against the mining industry’s safety practices, despite personal threats. Melissa Lee’s husband, Jimmy, was one of the six men who died in the coal mines of Harlan County, Ky., last year. Bob Simon conducts the interview tonight at 6 on KCNC-Channel 4.|Joanne Ostrow
VISUAL ARTS
Metropolitan State College of Denver bills its art department as the state’s largest. Its full- and part-time faculty consists of a cross-section of area artists including such notables as Mark Brasuell, Kim Ferrar and Carlos Fresquez. Selections by these artist-teachers are on view in the school’s Center for Visual Art, 1734 Wazee St. The show, titled “Collective Nouns: Art Faculty Biennial,” runs through April 13. 303-294-5207 or mscd.edu/news/cva.|Kyle MacMillan
POPULAR MUSIC
Willie Nelson is known for his exuberant collaborative nature, from Farm Aid to his first big break working alongside Ray Price in the early ’60s as a songwriter and performer – a period that saw him write “Crazy” for Patsy Cline and “Hello Walls” for Faron Young. Now the country legend is touring with his old buddy Price along with Merle Haggard, plus Asleep At the Wheel as the backing band. The Last of the Breed tour has earned high marks from fans and critics. Nelson, Price and Haggard are a potent slice of country music history. They bring their show Monday to the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland and Tuesday to the World Arena in Colorado Springs.|Ricardo Baca
DVDS
“Fast Food Nation” was certainly not a great film, but the reviews of Eric Schlosser’s industry exposé ranged from pans to solid plugs. We found it disjointed and sloppy as a film, but there was enough good material in Schlosser’s book that redeemed at least portions of “Fast Food Nation,” directed by Richard Linklater and out on DVD last week. The most striking scenes go inside a beef slaughterhouse and document a process that is inhumane and inhuman.|Michael Booth
NIGHTLIFE
Discerning clubgoers usually pick The Shelter for its posh, intimate feel, a contrast to deafening mega-clubs Vinyl and the Church or the sweaty dance houses in LoDo. That close-in atmosphere should serve DJ Mark Farina well Friday night when he plays the South Broadway club. A San Francisco downtempo house fixture, Farina got his start in Chicago around the same time as legends Cajmere and Derrick Carter. His music definitely speaks to the feet and backside, but in a less overtly widescreen way than most. 1037 Broadway, 10 p.m. $10, 303-534-0222 or groovetickets.com.|John Wenzel
