The Boulder Theater: Art Deco jewel hosts latest acts
Published: Mar 23, 2009
The Boulder Theater's striking Art Deco exterior and neon marquee mark it as a historic landmark, one of Boulder's oldest and most visible. But inside the entertainment is as new as today's most popular music acts and films.
Having opened its doors in 1906 as the Curran Opera House, the Boulder Theater perhaps ranks as the town's most popular events venue. Its calendar offers a wide selection of music acts and films that consistently draw big crowds, often with lines going around the block.
When you walk inside the Boulder Theater, you may feel as if you're transported to another time: The decor and the fixtures strongly recall the glamour of 1936, when the theater was updated and expanded. But for decades, patrons have come to enjoy the latest entertainment. The theater has featured such top acts as Tori Amos, B.B. King, Arlo Guthrie, Blues Traveler, Branford Marsalis and Johnny Cash.
Actor Chevy Chase recently took part in the Boulder International Film Festival, an event hosted primarily at the Boulder Theater. In addition to watching Chase perform at the Valentine's Day gala, attendees had the opportunity to see Academy Award-nominated short films in both narrative and documentary categories.
The National Public Radio weekly music show "etown" is taped before a live audience a the Boulder Theater.
There's even a chance you might glimpse the theater's resident ghost, George. George Paper managed the theater in the 1920s, and legend has it that after his death in a lighting accident, he began roaming the theater, stealing light bulbs and even protecting the premises from burglars. George is considered a friendly specter, and his name graces the adjoining restaurant.
Boulder Theater has events most nights of the week. Ticket prices run from $15 to $50, depending on the event. Seating typically starts an hour before events, and half an hour before movies.
- by David Zindell, Denver Reporter for HelloMetro
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