Find the power of family in ‘The Oldest Boy’

When does a performer become the character they’re playing? at’s not an easy question to answer and it gets even more challenging when that performer is a puppet. But the creative minds behind Miners Alley Playhouse’s new production, “ e Oldest Boy” are more than up to that challenge. e show tells the story of an American mother and Tibetan father whose three-year-old son is believed to be the reincarnation of a Buddhist lama. And that son is brought to life on stage by a puppet.

“ is allows us to play with the idea of reincarnation in a really interesting way,” said Len Matheo, director of the show and Miners Alley’s producing artistic director. “It’s a really witty, lovely show about all the separations we experience through life. And the way the puppet comes to life is absolute magic.”

“ e Oldest Boy: A Play in ree Ceremonies” runs at Miners Alley, 1224 Washington Ave. in Golden, through Sunday, June 11. Performances at 7:30 p.m. ursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. on Sunday.

Written by Sarah Ruhl and featuring performances from Peter Trinh, Lisa DeCaro, Rob Payo, Tess Fuqua and Tim Inthavong, the show follows the family as they grapple with what to do when a Tibetan lama and a monk arrive at their home. e travelers want to take their child away for a life of spiritual training in India and the parents must decide if they can allow that or not.

To ensure the production properly portrayed and honored Tibetan culture, Miners Alley worked with Golden’s Sherpa House Restaurant and Cultural Center and were even given traditional clothing to use as costumes.

But the bulk of the work went into the development and characterization of the puppet character. Cory Gilstrap, design and production coordinator at Imagined Designs, collaborated with artist Kamala Presswalla to make a puppet that could fully come to life on stage. e result is a Japanese Bunraku puppet that allows both the rest of the

Coming Attractions

cast and the audience to fully immerse themselves in the momentous decision the family must on Sunday, May 21. Attendees will select from more than 20 trucks and can also enjoy live music, amusement rides and more. Find all the details at www.foodtruckcarnival. com.

Clarke’s Concert of the Week — Fruit Bats at the Ogden Theatre

Even without a microscope, understanding what healthy soil looks, feels and smells like can inform better practices. Undisturbed soil will evolve with its plant inhabitants. Rich brown, textured soil that smells like a forest will feed a vegetable plant on its own, without nutrient additives. A calculated ‘less is more’ soil management approach gives our soil a chance to breathe.

Regenerative agriculture rede nes the farmers’ relationship with nature. Humans’ senses have evolved

Clarke Reader

“ ere have been moments where just working on the blocking has made us cry,” Gilstrap said. “Something happens with puppets when performers interact with them properly. You can hear the audience gasp or applaud spontaneously.”

Performing with a puppet in a way that is believable and a ecting to the audience goes beyond using it as some kind of prop. As Gilstrap explains, it’s all about the details.

“Every motion needs to have a complete intent and there can be nothing left to chance,” he said. “It’s not just a matter of interacting with the puppet — it’s choosing moments with a character.” e magical realism element of the puppet performance enhances “ e Oldest Boy’s”ability to provide an opportunity to investigate the power of parenthood and celebrate a culture that many may not know much about.

“I hope audiences come away touched by the mother’s journey and the erceness of her response in making sure her child is safe and loved,” Matheo said. “I also want them to get a sense of this amazing multicultural community that is right here in Golden.”

Find information and tickets at https://minersalley.com/the-oldestboy/.

Meals on wheels at annual Food Truck Carnival e sixth annual Food Truck Carnival at E.B. Rains Jr. Memorial Park, 11800 Community Center Drive in Northglenn, provides diners with the opportunity to see rsthand just how many delicious food trucks the metro area o ers. e carnival will be from 4 to 9 p.m. on Friday, May 19, noon to 9 p.m. on Saturday, May 20 and noon to 5 p.m. with plants — the smell of healthy soil triggers serotonin production in the human brain. Alternatively, our negative reaction to the putrid smell of greenhouse gases produced by harmful bacteria warns us of toxicity. ese ne-tuned deep intuitions can become regenerative farmer’s almanac. By working in tandem with natural soil ecosystems, farmers can reduce the labor and expenses of disruptive soil tillage and chemical fertilizer application. Soil naturally wants to grow plants. By accepting help from nature, farmers can grow healthier plants more e ciently.

Rutger Meyers is a soil health technician for the Denver Botanic Gardens.

Visit the desert with Kenzie Sitterud at PlatteForum ere’s a subtle art to making music that works best when played on a backyard patio during the summer, and on his latest album as Fruit Bats, singer/songwriter Eric D. Johnson has it gured out. Like the best of Fruit Bats, “A River Running to Your Heart” blends warmth with a wry sentimentalism that immediately makes for the project’s most welcoming release to date.

PlatteForum’s resident artist, Kenzie Sitterud, is tapping into the rich cultural vein of the American West with their free exhibit, “To Dusk,” which runs through June 6 at the Annex Gallery, 3575 Ringsby Court, Unit 103, in Denver.

According to provided information, “To Dusk” replicates the landscape of the Utah desert by mixing interior and exterior spaces, “natural resources and waste from acts of consumption.” Visit https://platteforum. org/events/sitterud for full details.

In support of the album, Fruit Bats will be stopping by the Ogden eatre, 935 E. Colfax Ave. in Denver, at 8 p.m. on Friday, May 19. ey’ll be joined by electronic nostalgia explorer Kolumbo. Buy tickets at www.axs.com.

Clarke Reader’s column on culture appears on a weekly basis. He can be reached at Clarke.Reader@hotmail.com.

BY LUKE ZARZECKI LZARZECKI@COLORADOCOMMUNITYMEDIA.COM

On most Tuesdays and ursdays and some Saturdays, a team of bikers meets to explore Colorado’s network of trails.

e group connects at a co ee shop in downtown Denver. When the weather isn’t too hot, it’s after work around 4 or 5 p.m. In the dead of summer, it’s usually in the morning.

ey sip on espresso and decide where they want to ride that day. It could be on the bike lanes of Denver, the 36 Bikeway to Boulder, the Platte River Trail to Brighton or other suburbs. Most of the time, it involves a stop along the way.

“We would go down the Platte River Trail to the C 470 trail and then Krispy Kremes along there. We call it the Krispy 50. It’s a 50-mile loop,” said Ted Schultz, one of the riders in the group.

e group started after Schultz and two colleagues in his o ce space decided to start riding together after work. Schultz rode with a few others and combined the two groups.

After the ride, they go to a brewery to catch up with one another and relax after the ride.

Colorado’s network of trails

Part of the reason the group exists is due to Colorado’s extensive bike trail infrastructure. Schultz said it’s only improved in the past two decades.

“When you add up the miles of really good trails, it’s just mind-boggling,” he said.

Schultz, who grew up in Colorado, said understanding for cyclists sharing the road and building more infrastructure has vastly grown. In the 70s and 80s, he could almost count on angry driver backlash during his rides. Now, not so much. e Denver Regional Council of Governments built a map that shows all the trails and bike lanes across the region. ey stretch all the way from Boulder to Clear Creek to Castle Rock.

Much of that may be due to more focus on improving trails and streets.

And more may be coming. e Greenhouse Gas Planning Standard, a new rule adopted by the Transportation Commission of Colorado in December 2021, requires agencies to measure greenhouse gas emissions from transit projects, with limits on how high those emissions go.

Bike Path

With bike infrastructure providing the option for drivers to ditch their cars and bike, it can reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Jacob Riger, multimodal transportation planning manager for the Denver Regional Council of Governments, said his group has already modi ed its 2050 Metro Vision Regional Transportation Plan based on the rule.

Emily Lindsey, active and emerging mobility program manager for DRCOG, said people are ready.

Of the 15 million daily trips in the region, 43% are less than three miles and 19% are less than one mile.

“So, super bikeable, even more so with e-bikes,” she said.

Chris Chen, one of the riders in the group, noted that some improvements are needed. Chen, who lives in Littleton, said there aren’t many bike lanes.

He said either more need to be added or there need to be wider shoulders. He also said more education about how to share the road with bikers needs to be implemented, citing the death of Gwen Inglis in 2021.

Inglis was a national champion who was struck and killed by a driver in Lakewood.

“It’s been so long since I took the driver’s test, but I don’t know if they have incorporated anything into that,” Chen said.

He explained that it’s scary when vehicles go by fast, especially semi-trucks. e trucks, going fast enough, will push air to the side, which pushes the cyclist, but then will suck the air back in, bringing the cyclist in with it.

“If it’s really close, it’s really scary, not only the sounds of it and in the nearness of that fastmoving object, but the air actually pulling you in,” Chen said.

Compared to other places, Anthony Harvey, another member of the group, said the bike infrastructure ranks higher than the places he’s seen, including Texas, Califor- nia and Chicago.

Benefits of riding e group ranges in age. Chen is one of the younger ones in his 40s with some of the older riders in their 60s. Meaning, biking is an activity for all abilities and ages.

Chen said he used to be a swimmer. But he didn’t like the fact he had to drive to the pool before 5 a.m. to be at practice in time. at was too early for him, so he stopped swimming and started cycling more. Not only did it satisfy as a workout, but also was more convenient.

“I can combine commuting and exercise all together,” Chen said. en he joined the group and it became a lot more fun. It was a way for him to make new friends, destress and get a workout. It also reminds him of his childhood.

“It’s the feeling of when you’re a little kid and you’re going fast and you’re like ‘this is awesome.’” Chen said. “It still feels like that. at sense of freedom.”

Harvey said he got into biking after he was injured from MMA competitions and decided to switch sports. He participates in various races.

“I was able to actually race with bikes and can also stay t,” he said.

Benefi

Ts Of Friendship

While the biking brings the group together, the camaraderie keeps them pedaling. Schultz, Chen and Harvey all talked about the importance of keeping up with each other, not just on the trail.

Each friend rides on their own and sees the bene ts of being alone. But with the group, they push each other to go faster and further and gives a chance to connect over a topic each is passionate about.

After each ride, they stop at a brewpub or a bar, with Chen’s recommendation for one with a food truck.

“ at’s when we can catch up on trips and things happening with the family and what new gadgets people have,” Chen said. “ at kind of stu .”