Saddle up
Through Jan. 25. The return of the National Western Stock Show also marks the return of RiNo bar Number Thirty Eight’s Bison Days series. The sixth annual run of concerts boasts another lineup of barnburners to raise money for Make-A-Wish Colorado, including nationally touring country singers Josh Gracin (Friday, Jan. 16), Adda Boyd (Wednesday, Jan. 21) and Eric Paslay (Friday, Jan. 23). The venue is also hosting a rodeo afterparty on Saturday, Jan. 17.
Doors open at 6 p.m. and shows begin at 7. Tickets are $15 in advance and $20 at the door, 3560 Chestnut Place in Denver. Chef’s Table dining experiences with meats from Centennial Cuts and whisky pairings from Pendleton Whisky are available before each concert for $100 per person. Visit for tickets and more information.
Dive into “Mixed Messages”
Friday-Saturday. Immersive entertainment may not be the buzz-phrase it once was, but that’s a good thing. Denver’s pioneering scene can focus on its designs instead of chasing corporate funhouses and touring exhibits about dead painters. Case in point: “Mixed Messages,” an immersive video, sketch and theater show from production group and indie-pop duo The Impliers that begins the moment audience members walk into the Highland’s historic Bug Theater.
They’ll be “immediately pulled into a mind-bendingly surreal streaming service, The Impliers TV, where a hidden, unseen hand flips through rapid-fire sketches, music videos and offbeat commercials,” producers wrote. “Characters then cross the line from screen to stage, echoing stories of modern love and miscommunication, before a final twist reveals who is truly watching … .”
The cast includes award-winners from the Denver Fringe Fest, national radio voices, and MTV and Adult Swim veterans. Shows at 7 p.m. on Friday, Jan. 16, and Saturday, Jan. 17, at 3654 Navajo St. in Denver. Tickets are $25 via .
Music for protest
Sunday. Colorado musicians have a habit of supporting nonprofit and justice-minded creative causes, and that extends to our current moment of political turmoil. Using music to confront and protest social issues has long been a goal of the hip-hop collective Flobots (they of 2007’s platinum single “Handlebars”), so it makes sense that Flobots emcee and educator Jamie “Jonny 5” Laurie and his brother Paul Laurie (founder of the Invisible City venue and public programmer for Cookie Factory’s art gallery) joined forces to present “No Enemies: Call and Response.”
The free, all-ages workshop, taking place 2-5 p.m. on Sunday, Jan. 18, at Cookie Factory, is geared toward “coming together for a timely public event centered on music, community, and creative resistance,” producers wrote. Bring an open mind — and ears. 425 W. Fourth Ave. in Denver. RSVP at .
Big (really big) movies
Through Jan. 25. You don’t have to visit a chain movie theater to get your IMAX fix: Denver Museum of Nature & Science is currently running a quartet of short-ish titles that are absolutely worth seeing on its giant Infinity Theater screen, which was updated and relaunched in 2023. The cutest is “Sea Otters: A Wild Family Adventure,” which “takes you on a captivating coming-of-age adventure of a growing sea otter,” but there ares also a pair of 3D features in “T.Rex 3D” and “Animals Kingdom 3D,” along with the 2D “Ocean Paradise.”
Tickets, $7-$10, do not include general admission to the museum at 2001 Colorado Blvd. in Denver, which is required unless it’s the final showing of the day. GA tickets are $21-$26, and they’re worth it for exploring the museum before or after the screenings. Open 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily, and until 9 p.m. on most Fridays. Call 303-370-6000 or visit for more.
