Colorado’s Cultural CenterBy Valerie Summers
The 40 acre civic center includes a complex of inviting lawns, statues and brightly colored flower gardens flanked by the modified Roman style city and county building where Perry Mason TV movies were filmed and at the other end, the gold domed Capitol edifice, a glittering reminder of gold rush days. Adjacent to the Civic Center, I scoped out the handsome new central public library, housing 47 miles of filled book shelves. I found it an extremely well planned library with its information center, extensive reference section, western history art gallery, inviting children’s center, genealogy section, and separate areas for government publications, fiction and non-fiction providing all around spacious, attractive, welcoming settings for its readers.
I wandered through the entire museum for three hours starting with C-level which included the Just for Fun Family Center, classrooms and lecture room and a concourse leading to the Denver Public Library. The first floor featured special exhibition galleries, modern and contemporary art, an information center, museum shop and restaurant. Floor two displayed 20th century architecture, design and graphics and Northwest Coast Indian Art. American Indian Art was exhibited on floor three, with more than 17,000 objects covering all tribes of North America; pre-Columbian art and Spanish Colonial art was on the fourth; Asian art on five; European & American art, textile art and decorative arts before 1900 were featured on six; and on the top floor, art of the American West was displayed. One of my favorite pieces was Frederic Remington’s The Cheyenne bronze in that section. Aside from the collections, the museum’s interior design allows visitors to easily transit from one space to another without any confusion about which room to enter next. Each level provided seating areas, not just benches, many with books on the subject of the art displayed. Throughout the museum, art stops enhance the museum experience for all ages with gallery games, puzzles, videos and interactive activities. During my visit to the museum I made good use of the welcoming lounges offering cushy sofas, coffee tables, books, and displays where I relaxed in comfort with other visitors and did a little art reading prior to moving to the next exhibit. Individual light weight folding canvas seating was thoughtfully provided allowing visitors to carry them along and to enjoy a rest at any time during their museum visit. A lot of thought went into the museum’s design to make it visitor friendly.
The conveniently situated JW Marriott hotel’s hospitality, attractive décor, amenities and haute cuisine served at Mirepoix made it an excellent choice for my visit. At the culinary helm of the Mirepoix, named after a vegetable mixture used to flavor stocks, is Executive Chef Bryan Moscatello, named one of Food and Wine magazine’s Best New Chefs of 2003. Well deserving of this award, Chef Moscatello calls his style “Vegetable Inspired American Cuisine.” His changing menu reflects the season utilizing the freshest ingredients available. Delicious and innovative, Mirepoix dinner menus have featured such dishes as Maine lobster with summer onions, sorrel pesto and lobster oil; grilled beef rib eye with sheep’s milk ricotta ravioli and red romaine salad with parsley vinaigrette; and truffle crusted arctic char with mushrooms, sweet peas, toasted pasta pearls and mascarpone cheese. Breakfast and lunch menus also offer innovative selections. And the wine choices and service are just as good as the food.
There’s a lot more to Denver than its proximity to ski areas, guest ranches, rock climbing and other outdoor sports. It offers first class cultural events, educational venues and exceptional entertainment all year ‘round. For information:Central City Opera Denver Art Museum Denver Botanic Gardens Frontier Airlines JW Marriott Denver at Cherry Creek by Valerie Summers |
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Set against a backdrop of the towering Rocky Mountains, the “Mile High” city retains reminders of its beginnings as a frontier town of the mid-1800’s gold rush. Today’s Denver also features thousands of acres of parks, a handsome civic center, modern skyscrapers, and an enviable calendar of cultural venues, events and activities. 
Following suit, the ever growing Denver Art Museum is certainly one of the most comfortable and beautifully designed buildings for the art aficionado…inside. The outside appeared to me to be a hodge-podge of architecture; the current main building reminded me of a fortress adjoining a small contemporary structure soon to be joined by an ultra modern edifice designed by world renowned architect Daniel Libeskind. But, on the inside, it works beautifully, exhibiting 48,000 art objects including the world’s best collection of Native American art works.
During frontier days, several communities were formed along Cherry Creek, now the name of one of the city’s posh residential neighborhoods. This bustling area is a delightful place for visitor lodging, conveniently situated just minutes from downtown Denver, but with the charm of a small, uptown town. The communities newest addition to the constantly under construction Cherry Creek is Colorado’s hottest new hotel, the JW Marriott, situated just across the street from the recently opened two-tiered Cherry Creek Mall, a shoppers haven. From the street entrance, shops progress from high-end to moderate, with pleasant seating arrangements throughout and movie theaters anchoring the far end of the complex. Cherry Creek shopping mall is particularly favored during inclement weather.
In Cherry Creek North, the close by original shopping district, trees, benches, fountains and statues line the several blocks of one-story and two story boutiques, art galleries and restaurants. For the most part, this area boasts unique, individual shops of all types, while the Cherry Creek Mall consists mostly of chain stores, some very grand and expensive, but carrying merchandise that can be purchased in most major cities. Known as the Rodeo Drive of the Rocky Mountains West, Cherry Creek is the premiere shopping district for the Denver metropolitan area. It’s a shopping enthusiast’s dream and I enjoyed browsing in both the enclosed ultra modern mall and attractive shop-lined streets which together include over 420 department stores, shops, galleries and boutiques. 
The 11-story JW Marriott’s 196 guestrooms includes three concierge level floors where guests are insured ultimate privacy with access to an exclusive lounge where breakfast, hors d’oeuvres, cocktails and desserts are served each day. My room was spacious and elegantly decorated, with a view of the majestic front range of the Rocky Mountains and the downtown Denver skyline. All hotel guests have access to two outdoor hot tubs and sundeck, which I found very romantic under the stars. I also squeezed in some time in the state of the art fitness center. In the lobby and other public spaces, the works of several Colorado-based artists were displayed reflecting the region’s natural beauty. As an added feature, this fall, The Spa at Cherry Creek will open, offering a 9,300 square foot day spa and salon. The hotel personnel, from bellmen to front desk staff to the concierge were all friendly, helpful and efficient. The concierge staff had a wealth of information at their fingertips to meet the needs of all guests. I found the concierge’s secret box which contains individual cards with precise written directions to almost any destination particularly helpful. 
My first request for directions was to the Denver Botanic Gardens, situated just five minutes from the hotel. The 23-acre garden featured a large glass structure, the tropical conservatory, a virtual jungle of exotic trees and flora. On loan, through October, 2004, from the Shon people from the Republic of Zimbabwe, Africa, and dotting the landscape, were more than 80 beautifully carved statues denoting The Role of Women and themed, Chapungu: Custom and Legend; A Culture in Stone. The diverse landscape was divided into more than 30 themed areas with fountains and ponds scattered throughout, the Japanese Garden, Water Garden, and Romantic Garden among them. The exquisite Monet Garden which was my favorite strongly resembles breathtaking scenes of the artist’s famous water lily paintings.
Another jewel among Denver’s cultural venues is the Central City Opera. A scenic hour’s drive from Cherry Creek into the towering Rocky Mountains, I arrived in Central City, an original mining town which looks just about the same as it did more than a century ago. The major draw is the internationally acclaimed Central City Opera, the fifth oldest opera company in the country which, each summer, offers stellar productions featuring many super stars of the opera world. Built in 1878 by Cornish and Welsh miners who wanted culture in their lives, the Opera House is a Victorian jewel that has been restored to reflect its original glory. Perfect acoustics, frescoed ceiling and 756 comfortable seats added to opening night enjoyment of Massenet’s The Juggler of Notre Dame. Prior to each performance, Opera Notes, a synopsis of the current production, was offered to the pre-opera audience, seated on bleachers, some dressed in black tie and others in cowboy attire, in the Williams Stables, which pretty much appears on the inside and outside as it did a century ago. Before the Opera House was used strictly for opera presentations, Broadway stars also appeared on stage. Famous names of actors and singers from the past and present who have performed there include Lillian Gish, Helen Hayes, Samuel Ramey, Catherine Malfitano and Beverly Sills. The upcoming eclectic 2005 summer festival will present Puccini’s Madama Butterfly, Barber’s Vanessa and Britten’s Paul Bunyan. Attending an opera performance at the Central City Opera House was a unique, memorable experience.