Critic’s pick
Zany animator Bill Plympton comes to town
Friday and Saturday. “How can he be so poetic, funny and cruel at the same moment?” director Terry Gilliam once wondered about animator Bill Plympton and his 2008 feature “Idiots and Angels.” Today, Plympton will be on hand for “Bill Plympton: In Your Face,” a screening of “Idiots” and 2010 Oscar-nominated short “The Cow Who Wanted to Be a Hamburger,” thanks to the Ones and Zeros Pixelshow in Broomfield. Friday 8-10 p.m., Mamie Doud Eisenhower Library, 3 Community Park Road. $12-$15; tickets at or 800-838-3006. Saturday, Plympton will conduct a workshop sponsored by the International Animated Film Association-Colorado, 3 p.m., 209 Kalamath St., Unit 7. $25-$35. Register at . Lisa Kennedy
Family Fun
Dogs get their day at Botanic Gardens
Saturday. Bring Fido out to smell the roses at the “Botanic Bow Wow” at the Denver Botanic Gardens. Plant-loving pooches (leashed, of course) and their families can wander around vendor and informational booths, picking up treats and advice. Arrive early for a “doggie and parent” breakfast at 8 a.m., or get primped for a variety of contests beginning at 10 a.m. After the party, humans can run the pup home and return for the afternoon. 8 a.m. to noon Saturday, 1007 York St.; 720-865-3500. Admission is $7 for adults, $4 for kids ages 3 to 12; discounts for garden members and neighbors.
Butterfly Pavilion’s “Bloomapalooza”
Saturday. Learn about the springtime world of plants and bugs at the Butterfly Pavilion’s “Bloomapalooza.” The day begins with a community walk along the pavilion’s nature trail and continues with a day of live music and fun activities. Help plant a garden, release ladybugs and make cool crafts. 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. The Butterfly Pavilion, 6252 W. 104th Ave., Westminster; 303-469-5441. Admission is $8.50 for adults, $6.50 for seniors, $5.50 for kids ages 2 to 12. Westminster residents receive $2 off adult admission with ID.
Travel back in time to Golden’s early days
Saturday. Journey to Golden’s frontier days at Clear Creek History Park’s season- opening party. The park will be abuzz with activity: Blacksmiths will demonstrate their skills, cooks will fire up the old woodburning stove, and egg-toss and pie-baking contests will keep things lively. Wander the park’s collection of buildings from the olden days of Golden, including a one-room schoolhouse and a still-in-use chicken coop. 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Clear Creek History Park, 11th and Arapahoe streets, Golden; 303-278-3557. Admission is free.
Acrobats mark May highlights with show
Saturday. Boulder’s Frequent Flyers have figured something out: May 21 is a bit of a pop-culture holiday. From Charles Lindbergh’s successful flight to Paris in 1927 to the debut of “The Empire Strikes Back” in 1980 and beyond, it’s been a big day — celebrate with the aerial dance troupe’s apprentice company in “May We Fly.” The original show salutes historic moments in music and flight with high-flying feats and acrobatic art. 2:30 p.m. Saturday. The Dairy Center for the Arts, 2590 Walnut St., Boulder; 303-440-7826. Tickets are $12. Kathleen St. John
Comedy
Front Range gets three reasons to laugh
Today-Saturday. A trio of killer comedy shows will hit the Front Range this weekend. Buzzed-about New York comic Dan St. Germain, above, (“Late Night With Jimmy Fallon,” MTV’s “World of Jenks”) will headline Onus Spears’ latest “Huge Comedy Show” at the Oriental Theater tonight. Billed as the first in a series of New York-to-Denver exchanges, the show will feature Denver’s Adam Cayton-Holland, who’s also building some national buzz lately, and Troy Walker (8 p.m., $13, ). Veteran stand-up and NPR regular Paula Poundstone plays Boulder’s Chautauqua Auditorium on Saturday (8 p.m., $25-$42.50, ), while local boy made good T.J. Miller (“How to Train Your Dragon,” “Gulliver’s Travels”) will tape his first Comedy Central special at the Boulder Theater on Saturday (6:30 and 9:30 p.m., for free tickets). Be sure to check out our “Why So Serious?” Q&As with both St. Germain and Poundstone on Reverb ().John Wenzel
Visual art
Sculptures hog the spotlight at Pirate
Today. When Jason Theel first started making his sculptural takeoffs on piggy banks, he thought he would soon exhaust the idea. “But I came to realize the opposite was true — every riff suggested 10 other possible directions I could go,” he said. His latest works in this porcine vein go on view today in a show at Pirate: Contemporary Art, 3655 Navajo St., that runs through June 5. 303-458-6058 or pirateart . Kyle MacMillan
Classical music
Concerts, lectures showcase historic organ
Today-Sunday. To fill the place of its 1938 Kimball pipe organ, which underwent restoration in 2009, St. John’s Episcopal Cathedral, 1350 Washington St., purchased another historic instrument, built in 1869 by the Boston firm of E. and G.G. Hook. The cathedral will celebrate the instrument this weekend with a recital at 7:30 p.m. today by members of the Denver chapter of the American Guild of Organists, and a choral and organ concert at 2:30 p.m. Sunday. In addition, a workshop on the organ from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday will feature two lectures, including one by Boston organ historian Barbara Owen. The concerts are free. 303-577-7717 or . Kyle MacMillan
Mass for Choir and Brass to have world premiere
Today and Sunday. The Colorado Chorale and Village Brass team to present the premiere of the Mass for Choir and Brass by Colorado composer M. Susan Brown. Performances are set for 7:30 p.m. today at St. Paul Lutheran Church, 1600 Grant St., and 3:30 p.m. Sunday at Bethany Lutheran Church, 4500 E. Hampden Ave. $17, $14 seniors and $5 youth. 303-929- 3463 or . Kyle MacMillan
Dance
“The Art of Healing” ends 7dancers season
Through the weekend.Jocelyn Labsan, director of ballet at Cherry Creek Dance and former associate aristic director of the Colorado Ballet, has fought breast cancer for nine months. The struggle inspired “The Art of Healing.” It highlights the season-ending program of 7dancers, a professional company administered by Cherry Creek Dance. Performances are set for 7:37 p.m. today, 3:07 and 7:37 p.m. Saturday and 3:07 p.m. Sunday in the Ricketson Theater at the Denver Performing Arts Complex. Tickets $27, $17 students and $7 breast-cancer survivors. 303-399-8087 and . Kyle MacMillan
Artists exhibit their Internet collaborations
The Internet allows artists across the country to interact and exhibit their work in fascinating new ways.
One such online venture is , begun in 2008 by Carianne Mack Garside of Burlington, Conn. She had the simple yet fertile idea of making a drawing a day and posting each new creation online as it was completed.
A year later, Denver artist Mindy Bray, who knew Garside from graduate school,joined in. In all, more than 50 artists are participating, and in the democratic spirit of the Internet, any others — amateur or professional — are welcome to take part.
To give the initiative broader visibility, Bray has organized a show at Hinterland, 3254 Walnut St., featuring selections shown on the website by seven artists and writers from across the country.
Bray, among the best of a new generation of Denver artists, deconstructs natural and built landscape in unexpected ways in paintings and installations, exploring light and dark and positive and negative space. She is showing 25 5-by-7-inch drawings — quickly executed yet smartly realized works with an appealing freshness and immediacy.
“One Hundred Days: The Online Collaborative” is open 6 to 10 p.m. June 3, noon to 5 p.m. June 11 or by appointment. Free. 720-309-1764 or hinterland . Kyle MacMillan
