Family fun
The circus comes to town
Today-Sunday. Traditional circus. Catch a glimpse of circus as it once was when the Zoppe Italian Family Circus sets up at Mile High Marketplace. Featuring a brand-new, one-ring tent, the Zoppes perform in a traditional style with one story binding all the performances together. Nino the Clown stars, as usual, along with Tosca the Equestrian Ballerina, acrobats, dog performers and more. 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. tonight; 1 p.m., 4 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturday; 1 p.m. and 4 p.m. Sunday. Mile High Marketplace, 7007 E. 88th Ave.; 303-289-4656. Admission is $3 to enter the Marketplace, plus $10 for circus admission. Kids age 11 and younger are free with a paying adults. Go to for more information. Kathleen St. John
This is hot!
Saturday-Sunday. Pepper fest. Prepare for cooler days to come by getting a blast of heat at the Lakewood Chile Harvest Festival. Local green chile mavens battle it out at two green chile cook-offs, one each day — Saturday’s chile is traditional, while Sunday’s theme is “Think Outside the Pepper.” Live music and dancing celebrates Hispanic heritage, including performances from Aztec dancers, a classical Spanish guitarist and Latin-jazz band. Kids can keep busy with crafts projects while grown-ups tour art demonstrations and exhibits. And of course, green chiles will be roasting all day for visitors to take home for winter warmth. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. Lakewood’s Heritage Center, 801 S. Yarrow St., Lakewood. Admission is $5 for adults, $2 for kids ages 3 to 12. Visit to learn more. Kathleen St. John
Night riders
Saturday. Bike party. Take to the streets for the first-ever Exempla Good Samaritan Boulder Nites Classic. The family-friendly bike ride winds around Boulder, covering 9 miles total. Begin and end the race at the 29th Street Mall, where plenty of treats await riders: massages, music, food and drink. The evening cruise benefits the PLAY Boulder Foundation, the City of Boulder’s Youth Services Initiative, and Boulder Parks and Recreation’s EXPAND program. 7:30 p.m. Saturday. Start/Finish at the 29th Street Mall, 1710 29th St., Boulder. Registration is $30 for adults, $25 for seniors age 60 and older, $15 for kids under 12. A family rate is available for $75. For more information and to register, visit . Kathleen St. John
Where are you from?
Saturday. Bike along. Celebrate Colorado’s European-Americans at the third annual European Festival in Highlands Ranch. More than 20 countries are represented at the gathering, from east to west, including Latvia, Poland, Norway, Spain and Ireland. Vendors will peddle arts and crafts, plus lots of tasty food from all over Europe. Grab a seat on the lawn, and catch a variety of music and dance performances, too — Hungarian grooves from Magyarock, Scottish dance from the Rocky Mountain Highland Dancers, German party music with Tanzkapelle and more. 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. Saturday. Civic Green Park, 9370 Ridge- line Blvd., Highlands Ranch. Admission is free. Learn more at . Kathleen St. John
Dead or alive
Saturday. Creepy party. Explore Central City’s past and present at the 22nd annual Cemetery Crawl, followed by the opening of Gilpin County Arts Association’s 2010 Members Art Exhibit and Sale. The afternoon starts with guided tours of Central City’s Masonic Cemetery, complete with costumed actors portraying the real-life settlers buried there. Afterward, crawlers will gather at Washington Hall to check out works by Central City’s current residents, plus live music, food, beer and wine. Cemetery crawl: 2-4 p.m. Saturday. Art exhibit hours: 4-7 p.m. Saturday. For cemetery crawl, meet at the Central City Opera parking lot, 124 Eureka St., Central City, for a free shuttle to the Masonic Cemetery. Art exhibit located at Washington Hall, 117 Eureka St., Central City. Tickets are $12 for adults, free for kids age 12 and younger. Buy $10 advance tickets by calling the Gilpin County Historical Society at 303-582-5283. Kathleen St. John
Pop music
A new, interesting John Mayer
Wednesday. Guys with guitars. Yes, John Mayer is a weird guy. His crass-and-crude interviews are among the most entertaining in pop music. Yet his music is as safe as it gets — slow, melodic, plodding jams for the ladies. Mayer in 2010 is something he wasn’t a year ago. He’s now a pop culture oddity, a tabloid enigma, a man who is celebrated for his tell-all interview in Playboy as much as he is ridiculed for the controversial ink. We knew he was a bad boy with a sometimes- brilliant sense of humor. Now we know he’s a kiss-and-teller, and that almost excuses his not- always-interesting music for the masses. Mayer headlines Red Rocks on Wednesday, with Owl City in support. (“Fireflies,” anyone?) Tickets, $62.50-$84.20, are available via . Ricardo Baca
Visual art
Tut, unplugged
Today. Egyptian art. “Untitled,” the Denver Art Museum’s popular series of monthly after-hours events, is an informal, alternative way to enjoy the institution’s offerings. This month’s edition from to 6 to 10 tonight carries a King Tut theme, with such activities as an olfactory tour of ancient Egypt with perfumer Dawn Spencer Hurwitz and “Colorado X: Case Files of the Paranormal,” a look at the King Tut curse. Best of all, student attendees can enjoy special two-for-one admission to the museum’s Tut exhibition. The rest of the “Untitled” festivities are free with regular museum admission. 720-865-5000 or . Kyle MacMillan
Personal space, public show
Ongoing. Installation. Just a week remains to take in Rebecca Vaughan’s “Personal Locator Beacon,” an installation paying homage to love at the Emmanuel Gallery on the Auraria campus. Twinkling LED lights and whirring fans commingle with white-lace flowers, pink electric wire and aluminum ladders in this sensory environment. The work remains on view through Sept. 3. Summer hours are 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and noon to 4 p.m. Saturdays. Free. 303-556-8337 or . Kyle MacMillan
