Family fun
Put some swing into it
Through Sunday. Lindy hop, anyone? Lace up those saddle shoes for the fourth annual Rocky Mountain Balboa Blowout, a three-day swing- dancing contest, clinic and concert. Kids are welcome to join the fun. Live music and dancing nightly, and the blowout features Laura Keat and Jeremy Otth from “Dancing With the Stars.” After the kids go to bed, night owls can keep swingin’ until 4 a.m. The fun runs 9 to midnight tonight and Saturday. Denver Turnverein, 1570 Clarkson St. Admission $25 for adults, free Friday for kids age 14 and younger. Saturday’s dance is $5 for kids. Also 6:30 p.m. to midnight Sunday at the Rox Room, second floor of Lodo’s, 1946 Market St. Admission that night is $15 for adults, free for kids. More at . Kathleen St. John
Boogie with the bugs
Saturday. Get your buzz on. Get into the groove at “BugaRhythm,” a funky party at the Butterfly Pavilion. The day features live performances, including a piece by Westminster’s Ballet Nouveau Colorado, and lots of sweet tunes provided by Radio Disney. Kids can learn about the music of invertebrates: hissing cockroaches, singing crickets and dancing butterflies. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The Butterfly Pavilion, 6252 W. 104th Ave., Westminster; 303-469-5441. Admission is $8.50 for adults, $6.50 for seniors age 65 and older, $5.50 for kids ages 2 to 12. For more information, including a full schedule of events, visit . Kathleen St. John
Buffalo Bill’s 165th
Sunday. Time for a party. You’re never too old for a birthday party, not when you’re Buffalo Bill Cody. Celebrate the legendary showman’s 165th birthday at the Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave. The festivities begin when a group of Buffalo Bill lookalikes cut the cake; afterward, guests can roam the galleries and visit with costumed volunteers. Noon to 3 p.m. Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave, 987 1/2 Lookout Mountain Road, Golden; 303-526-0744. Admission is free. Learn more at . Kathleen St. John
Model planes displayed Saturday.
Go aeronutty. Airplane fans will go sky-high at the seventh annual Rocky Mountain Aeromodeling Expo at Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum. The show brings together model-airplane hobbyists demonstrating the daredevil feats and craftsmanship of their mini planes, along with other aeronautical activities. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Wings Over the Rockies Air and Space Museum, 7711 E. Academy Blvd.; 303-360-5360. Admission is $9 for adults, $8 for seniors age 65 and older, $6 for kids ages 4 through 12. . Kathleen St. John
Eclectic arts
The poetry of the city
Tonight and Saturday. Free verse. Local poet Charly “The City Mouse” Fasano has a way with words. “I’ve been all over Chicago, and there’s nothing like being on Colfax,” Fasano said recently. “The most bizarre things happen there. When I-70 was built, Colfax was left behind like an abandoned child, and it’s been acting out like an abandoned child ever since.” Fasano isn’t trying to be poetic. It just happens. He will celebrate his return to Colorado by displaying a collection of his films, animation, Polaroid photographs, linocut and woodblock prints at the Phoenix Gallery, which sits in the basement of 3 Kings Tavern. Musical accompaniment will be provided by various noteworthy Denver musicians, and Fasano will also perform a number of poems from his forthcoming book, “Next Analog Broadcast.” The readings and displays are free. More info: . And read our full interview with Fasano on Reverb: . Eryc Eyl
A bangin’ metal show
Saturday-Sunday. Music and metal. Don’t be fooled by the pedestrian title “The Aluminum Show.” The touring stage production isn’t a bland industry convention but rather a stage show that creatively employs all things aluminum (specifically, reclaimed materials from industrial factories) in its pursuit of family-friendly entertainment. Much like “Stomp” and “Blue Man Group,” it incorporates deftly timed music, dance, humor and elaborate lighting — and must be seen to be fully appreciated. $15-$50. 8 p.m. Saturday; 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. Sunday. Buell Theatre. 303-893-4100 or . John Wenzel
Classical music
Hear “Responsoria”
Friday and Saturday. Choral music. Ars Nova Singers celebrate the 400th anniversary of Carlo Gesualdo’s “Responsoria,” a masterpiece of the late Renaissance. The Boulder-based chamber choir will perform the work at 7:30 tonight in St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral, 1350 Washington St., and 7:30 p.m. Saturday in St. John’s Episcopal Church, 1419 Pine St., Boulder. $20, $15 seniors, $10 students, $5 youth. 303-499-3165 or arsnova . Kyle MacMillan
Kantorei’s preview
Saturday. Choral music. Denver-based Kantorei is one of five community choirs chosen to appear at this year’s national conference of the American Choral Directors Association. It will offer a preview of that performance during a concert at 7:30 p.m. at Augustana Lutheran Church, 5000 E. Alameda Ave. Highlighting the Augustana Arts program, in collaboration with the Musica Sacra Chamber Orchestra, will be Ralph Vaughan Williams’ “A Serenade to Music.” $20, $15 seniors and students. 303-388-4962 or . Kyle MacMillan
Choirs join symphony
Friday. Choral music. The Colorado Chorale, Alpine Chorale, Colorado Christian University choirs and seven of the state’s top high-school choirs — more than 300 singers in all — join the Aurora Symphony for a performance of Carl Orff’s famed “Carmina Burana.” The first of two performances is set for 7:30 at Mountain Range High School, 12500 Huron St., Westminster. $17, $14 seniors and $5 youth. 303-873-6622 or aurora , or 303-929-3463 or . Kyle MacMillan
Left-handed complement
Saturday and Sunday. Symphonic music. The title of Leon Fleisher’s recently published autobiography, “My Nine Lives: A Memoir of Many Careers in Music,” says a great deal about his extraordinary career as a leading pianist of the past half-century. Fleisher, who lost the use of two fingers on his right hand at age 36, will join the Colorado Symphony in a piece long associated with him — Maurice Ravel’s Piano Concerto for the Left Hand. Performances are set for 7:30 p.m. Saturday and 2:30 p.m. Sunday in Boettcher Concert Hall. $32-$80. 303-623-7876 or . Kyle MacMillan
