Through Oct. 5: The Bright Nights lantern festival is back at Four Mile Historic Park with weekly dates through Oct. 5. This year’s themes showcase “whimsical Farmhouse Flora and Fauna,” where you can “step into a surreal Chinese Dreamland, and dive into an expanded interactive zone full of surprises,” organizers said.

In other words: a walkable, kid-friendly experience with plenty of photo ops, all taking place under 40 or so larger-than-life sculptures. On-site food and treats will be available, and kids can play on swings, try their hands at a panda whack-a-mole and make “a video call with the Cleveland Asian Lantern Festival.” (There are also 21-and-up nights on Aug. 27 and Sept. 17.)

Tickets: $21-$48, with food upgrades available; kids 3 and under free. General park admission is 10 a.m.-4 p.m. and costs $6-$8 (kids 6 and under free). 715 S. Forest St. in Denver. Call 720-865-0800 or visit fourmilepark.org/brightnights for details.

Kirkland Museum goes kid-friendly

Friday: The littlest kids likely don’t appreciate the design brilliance at the Golden Triangle’s Kirkland Museum, but then again, they’ve never really had the chance. The 13-and-up policy was removed in June, however, and on Friday, Aug. 1, Kirkland will host Art Crawl: A Tour for Infants and Their Caregivers to The Kirkland.

Now a part of the Denver Art Museum, the Kirkland joined with DAM and the nearby Clyfford Still Museum to give little kids and their parents a guided tour of the salon-style exhibitions and colorful pieces, which celebrate late artist Vance Kirkland and his Technicolor milieu. The free tour runs 10:30-11:15 a.m. Friday and meets in front of the  Denver Art Museum, 100 W. 14th Ave. Parkway in Denver. Sign up at denverartmuseum.org/en/calendar/art-crawl-kirkland.

Free ‘Goonies’ at Sunset

Tuesday: The ongoing Sunset Cinema Series at the Denver Performing Arts Complex this week turns toward the 1985 coming-of-age comedy/adventure “The Goonies.” Whether you’ve seen it 50 times or not at all, the free event in downtown’s iconic Sculpture Park offers more than just the outdoor screening, with local food trucks, pre-show entertainment from DJ Cyn, movie snacks and drinks (including craft cocktails), and selfie and photo ops.

Doors open at 6 p.m., with the pre-show at 6:30. The film begins at 7:30 p.m., and you should plan to bring your own chairs and blankets. All ages. Register at eventbrite.com and visit artscomplex.com/summer for more details.

‘Moulin Rouge’ at the Buell

Wednesday-Aug. 17: The jukebox musical “Moulin Rouge,” based on the 2001 fantasy-romance by Baz Luhrmann, conjures high-minded ideals while serving up plenty of steamy dialogue and choreography. The touring Broadway version, which triumphed in Denver during its initial visit in April 2025, is a must-see for Broadway fans looking for a visual and auditory feast, as well as some lovely escapism.

The show runs Wednesday, Aug. 6, through Aug. 17 at the Buell Theatre in the Denver Performing Arts Complex. Tickets are available from Denver Center for the Performing Arts for $53.10-$159.30 via denvercenter.org/tickets-events. It takes place at 1350 Curtis St. in downtown Denver.

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“Boulder is tough place to hold events because there’s so dang many of them that you really can’t move into the summer, and you can’t move into the fall either,” said festival co-founder Kathy Beeck, who runs the event along with sister Robin.

Before the world-renowned Sundance Film Festival makes its Boulder debut in 2027, the Beecks have decided to push their 22nd event back to make room for Sundance’s January takeover. BIFF, as the Beecks’ festival is called, has been programmed in March for the past decade or so, and before that took place in February.

Now the festival is shifting into what the Beecks consider one of the only quiet periods in Boulder’s public calendar — April 9 through April 12, 2026 — even if Kathy admitted there could very well be “two feet of snow on the ground” at that time. (The Front Range’s wettest months are usually mid-spring to early summer, according to Colorado State University.)

“A little bit of a shoulder never hurts for film festivals,” Kathy said.

The announcement arrived with a call for submissions for 2026’s BIFF. The festival exhibits new and recently premiered short films, features, documentaries, animation, adventure films, and student films in competition for a number of awards. In March, that included Emmy-winning comic and actor Jane Lynch receiving hers before 600 people at The Boulder Theater, fashion designer Kenneth Cole in attendance with a documentary about his work, Devo co-founder and film composer Mark Mothersbaugh, and others.

The 2025 BIFF, which took place March 13-16 this year, featured 68 films from 18 countries, “many special appearances,” according to Beeck, and a 20% increase in ticket sales, with 16 sold-out screenings. She declined to name specific revenue numbers, ticket sales or attendance, but said more than 25,000 attended in total. She also said that film submissions and films that programmers sought out for the fest increased 14% over last year.

That’s a sign that Sundance, at least at the moment, hasn’t dampened enthusiasm for what has long been the city’s biggest film festival. If anything, the attention from the Sundance announcement in March has drawn more film interest to town, Kathy said.

“(BIFF) is attracting more and more filmmakers who are feeling like it’s really the place to screen, so we’re excited about the next year,” she said. “This year was our best year for everything — like, wow! — and frankly, we’ve continued to build due to a lot of word of mouth from filmmakers who attend.

“We just hope that we can get the word out with the date change, and that people will continue to come to BIFF even if it’s a little bit later,” she added.

Find information and entry deadlines for festival submissions at biff1.com/filmmakers.

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Friday-Saturday: The third annual Tennyson Street Fair begins on Friday, July 18, this year with the inaugural Berkeley Beer Festival from 5 to 8 p.m. on north Denver’s Tennyson Street, between 39th and 43rd avenues. Fifteen Colorado breweries will be in attendance, including Call to Arms, Westbound & Down, New Terrain, Cerebral, Gravity and The Empourium. Tickets to the beer fest, which also includes live music, are $25.

Events at the family-friendly, farmers market-style fest start again on Saturday at 11 a.m. when more than 100 area businesses will set up alongside food trucks and live music. All events are free except the beer festival. (Bring your own mat for outdoor group yoga from 11 a.m. to noon. The festival winds down at 8 p.m. Get information at tennysonstreetfair.com.

Get punked

Friday-Sunday: Punk In The Park returns to Denver for a three-day run, July 18-20, at the National Western Stockyards. The outdoor jam will feature performances from Bad Religion, Descendents, Dropkick Murphys, Pennywise, Streetlight Manifesto, Circle Jerks and many more. Altogether, there will be 40 bands on two stages across all three days (check the schedule for details). Single-day tickets start at $90 while three-day passes start at $145 at punkinthepark.com.

The festival also includes a craft beer festival from noon to 3 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday for an additional $15 per day. Food will also be available for purchase from food trucks and vendors. The National Western is located at 5004 National Western Drive in Denver.

Orchestral maneuvers in the dark

Saturday-Sunday. It doesn’t get any more real than having the epic musical score (not to mention the jump-scares) from “Jurassic Park” played by a live orchestra while you watch the film on a big screen. Go back in time by 65 million years for Jurassic Park in Concert with the Colorado Symphony, at the Boettcher Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m. on July 19 and at 2:30 p.m. on July 20.

“The film will be projected in HD on four giant screens,” the CSO said, with the full symphony orchestra performing John Williams’ entire score. Tickets, which start at $19.20 and go up quickly from there, and information are available at coloradosymphony.org/tickets.

Rock out

Sunday. Yacht rock — those classic, catchy 1970s and ’80s tunes that evoke romance, chill vibes and, of course, the seas — has experienced a resurgence in recent years, though “resurgence” may be the wrong word. Because the soft-rock ballads of bands like Hall & Oates, Toto and Christopher Cross never really went away. You can relive the glory of music at Diebolt Brewing’s Yacht Rock Party, which takes place from 1 to 5 p.m. on Sunday, July 20.

In addition to the jams spun by DJ Copter, Diebolt will also be serving oysters on the half shell and other seafood from the Shuck Brothers to “make you feel like you’re cruising the coast,” Diebolt said. While there is no dress code, boat shoes, flower shirts, captain’s hats, and leisurewear are strongly encouraged. “Sway the night away with a beer in hand and the wind in your hair.” Diebolt Brewing is located at 3855 Mariposa St. in Denver.

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Rebecca’s list

Tamara’s list

Joe’s list

Rebecca Kivak

Tamara Dunn

Joe Baress

Welcome to a special bonus episode (Parts I and II) of the Film Room Podcast! Host Joe Baress is joined by movie aficionados Rebecca Kivak and Tamara Dunn, founders of the Take 2 movie column/blog, to do a deep dive into the New York Times’ 100 Best Movies of the 21st Century, and share their Top 10 movies of the past 25 years.

You can listen on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, Amazon Music and, of course, Podbean. Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss an episode. Links below:

PART I

APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/21st-century-in-film-part-i-breaking-down-the-best/id1763724373?i=1000716390061

SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0hAMkeggWffGa35RuF9XR3?si=XyJHgLkMRWK0af3FgK4zAg

YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wYU2VrKc25I

AMAZON MUSIC: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/41c78ec1-caa8-4d97-b57a-f2b8743348bc/episodes/5bf804f9-6599-4df0-9642-8c5a958451a0/film-room-21st-century-in-film-part-i-breaking-down-the-best-movies-of-the-past-25-years

PODBEAN: https://pbg1ced3a8n4j.podbean.com/e/cinematic-giants-the-top-100-movies-of-the-21st-century/

PART II

APPLE: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/21st-century-in-film-part-ii-breaking-down-the-best/id1763724373?i=1000716394691

SPOTIFY: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1R8j4K4RgxNcKrBIlwQGrM?si=XpaTPmJJTraUyVfPsSrLEA

YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=beR1yAJY4ho

AMAZON MUSIC: https://music.amazon.com/podcasts/41c78ec1-caa8-4d97-b57a-f2b8743348bc/episodes/c113f00e-6f3a-42cf-bf33-1d8eb09a56b1/film-room-21st-century-in-film-part-ii-breaking-down-the-best-movies-of-the-past-25-years

PODBEAN: https://pbg1ced3a8n4j.podbean.com/e/unveiling-the-new-york-times-top-100-movie-podcast/