Next year, the Denver Art Museum will mark the 100th anniversary of its Indigenous Arts of North America collection with a full year of programming and the reinstallation of 8,000 square feet of the museum’s permanent Indigenous Arts collection spaces.

The celebration will include the first major U.S. solo exhibitions for leading contemporary Indigenous artists Kent Monkman and Andrea Carlson.

Monkman is a celebrated, 59-year-old Cree artist. “Kent Monkman: History is Painted by the Victors” is a collection of 41 monumental works that will constitute his major survey in the U.S., presented in partnership with the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts. It will be on view from April 20-Aug. 17, 2025.

DAM Director Christoph Heinrich says Monkman’s exhibition “will give visitors the unique opportunity to connect with Kent’s staggering history paintings rooted in the resiliency of Indigenous communities in the face of injustice.”

In October 2025, DAM will introduce Carlson’s mixed-media visual art. Carlson, of Ojibwe descent, leans into futurism to create works that challenge historic injustices and museum practices that have harmed Indigenous communities.

Carlson, 45, combines poetry, storytelling, cultural and pop references in prismatic layers of color and iconography. Her collection will include 40 works on paper and sculpture.

“Carlson’s meticulous, multilayered practice continues to be a source of inspiration for many,” said Dakota Hoska, associate curator of native arts. “By taking objects from museum settings and placing them in her own landscapes, Carlson reverses the idea of ‘ownership’ and deconstructs what it means to be interpreted as a stereotype.”

On Saturday, the DAM will also host its 35th annual Friendship Powwow. It’s a popular event that features Native American dance competitions, family activities, prizes and booths. 10 a.m.-5 p.m. at the Martin Building Sie Welcome Center, 100 W. 14th Avenue Parkway.

For info on all things DAM, go to denverartmuseum.org

Park at the museum

On Sept. 10, the Denver Museum of Nature and Science will open a park within the park. City Park, that is. Nature Play is a free, 4-acre immersive, community-driven experience that will bring the museum’s award-winning “Explore Colorado” dioramas normally found on the third floor of the museum to outdoor life.

“Follow the water story from the alpine tundra to the grasslands of the prairie, celebrating Colorado as a place to learn, play and explore,” the museum said in a statement. “We’re blurring the line between the world inside the museum and Colorado’s diverse ecosystems just outside our doors.”

New leader for Local

Boulder’s Local Theater Company has announced the resignation of Executive Director Kate Roselle and the elevation of Misha Zimmerman to the position. Roselle has been managing the business of the company, which focuses on developing new American plays, for about 16 months, even after relocating to Louisville, Ky.

Zimmerman, of Fort Collins, has been a company producer and stage manager for years. Next up is the world premiere of Andrew Rosendorf’s “Stockade,” about a group of closeted U.S. soldiers in 1952. It runs Sept. 26-Oct. 13 at the Dairy Arts Center.

“I believe deeply in the power of theater to reshape our understanding of the past, illuminate our present, and inspire our future,” Zimmerman said.

Rave on?

A Brooklyn outfit called “Broadway Rave” presents what it calls “Musical Theater Dance Parties” featuring showtunes, costumes and Broadway performers. These events can pop up anywhere from London to Seattle, and two are presently scheduled for Colorado. Eaglecrest High grad Gregory Treco, a longtime member of the “Hamilton” cast (as well as the DCPA Theatre Company’s 2015 world premiere rock musical “The Twelve”) will perform a guest set Friday (Sept. 6) at The Marquis, more often a rock concert venue at 2009 Larimer St. “To do this in my hometown is exciting,” Treco said. Tickets are $39.75. Something similar will take place Oct. 17 at the Aggie Theatre in Fort Collins. If the show sounds vague, that’s because that’s literally all I could find about it.

Vintage booking canceled

In last week’s fall theater preview, we told you that the new Give 5 Productions would be remounting its successful staging of “Murder for Two” at the Vintage Theatre from Oct. 11-Nov. 17. That plan was abruptly scratched on Wednesday when producer Julia Tobey announced the canceled booking with a social post aimed directly at Vintage management saying, “ I do not tolerate disrespect. Period.”

Briefly …

Things have grown mighty quiet around the sweepstakes to land the Sundance Film Festival. The announcement of the three finalist cities – which might or might not include Boulder – has been expected any day since Aug. 20…

Last week, we told you Rick Springfield was in town for a benefit concert at Mission Ballroom to benefit Pepper’s Senior Dog Sanctuary. The Aug. 29 song soiree raised more than $400,000 for the nonprofit …

After 28 years, Canadian rock band Sum 41 is making what it says will be its final Denver appearance ever on Sept. 11 at Red Rocks…

Francesco Lecce-Chong, a Boulder native and acclaimed conductor, will lead Boulder Philharmonic’s Sept. 8 season opener, filling in for Maestro Michael Butterman. “In the back of my mind, it was always a dream that perhaps I would one day conduct my hometown orchestra, so it will be a special treat for me,” Lecce-Chong said. Info at boulderphil.org.

And finally …

I’ve never been to a Denver concert by the punk band X where businessman/mayor/senator John Hickenlooper was not in attendance. That was again true on Aug. 30, when Hick dropped by Summit Music Hall and took a selfie with frontman and friend John Doe.