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Arvada Center
Arvada’s
primary cultural attraction is the Arvada Center for the Arts
and Humanities. The center is located at 6901 Wadsworth
Boulevard, a quick commute from downtown Denver. The hours of
the Arvada Center are 9 to 6 Monday thru Friday, 9 to 5 on
Saturday, and 1 to 5 on Sunday. The Arvada Center is closed New
Year’s Day, Memorial Day, July 4th, Labor Day,
Thanksgiving Day, and Christmas Day. Each year over 300,000
people from Arvada and beyond visit the center.
The Arvada
Center is dedicated to performing and visual arts and education.
The center has received many awards from accredited Colorado
publications, including The Denver Post, Westword, and Colorado
Parent Magazine. Awards include "Best Art Center", "Best Live
Children’s Theater", and the MetLife Cultural Access Award.
The main
draw of the Arvada center is its theater productions. The center
is a constituent theater of the Theater Communications Group.
There are three different theaters at the center, including an
outdoor amphitheater for summer productions. The center has
hosted many award winning Broadway shows including Les
Miserables and Altar Boyz. With ticket prices rarely rising
above fifty dollars, the Arvada center provides an affordable
alternative to similar productions hosted at the Denver Center
for the Performing Arts. Ticket prices are even lower when you
subscribe for season ticket holdings. There is also an award
winning Children’s theater which puts on two productions yearly.
Plays are
not the only thing on stage at the Arvada center. Each year,
many musicians travel to Arvada to hold concerts. Catching a
concert in the outdoor amphitheater is a favorite summertime
activity for Arvada residents and people all over the metro
area. Music of all types is performed at the Arvada center,
including jazz, bluegrass, rock and roll, classical and country.
Random
attractions also make there way to the Arvada Center, such as
wine tastings and silent auctions.
In addition
to showing productions, the Arvada Center also provides
instruction and workshops to young aspiring performance artists.
Many youth from Arvada and all over the metro area spend there
summers at the center’s various camps. The center offers camps
for drama, dance, humanities, music, ceramics, photography,
visual arts and much more. Camps at the Arvada Center are
available for kids from aged one and a half to nineteen years
old.
Throughout
the year, the Arvada Center holds classes dedicated to both
visual and performance arts. Classes are open to kids and adults
alike, and attract more that 65,000 every year. Classes include
acting, ceramics, dance, photography, music, yoga, and much
more. The Arvada Center facilities include three dance studios,
eleven classrooms, a photography lab, and a ceramics studio.
The
center’s Art Days program serves over 20,000 students and
families in the Arvada area each year. The program features
school and large group field trips to the center. An Art Days
field trip may include a children’s theater production, hands-on
workshops, and technical tours of the theaters. Twice a year the
center hosts Family Art Days which are available to the public.
The Arvada
center is also home to two floors of gallery space. The gallery
strives to feature art created by Colorado artists, as well as
art never before seen in Colorado. 12 to 15 exhibitions are held
at the Arvada Center each year. Oftentimes, art by students in
Arvada and the Jeffco school district is featured in the
gallery. In addition to the gallery, the Arvada center has a
permanent museum which focuses on the historical and cultural
heritage of Arvada.
Outside the
Arvada center is a large playground which is open daily and free
to the public. Here, even goofing around on a playground can be
a cultural experience. The Arvada Center’s playground features a
343-foot sculpture of a sea-saurus, created by artist Bill Gian.
Kids are free to climb all over the giant sculpture. The
playground also has three other sculptures, a giant sandbox, and
"Talking Trash Cans" that talk back after a user deposits trash
inside.
The Arvada
Center offers free parking. Admission to the playground, museum
and galleries are free and open to the public. The center and
its theaters are fully handicap accessible.
No matter
whether you are interested in art, music, theater, or just
playing on playgrounds, the Arvada Center for the Arts and
Humanities makes an exciting Arvada destination. |
