And in My "Go" Section...

Today my sister and I went to meet our folks to attend the Christmas theater event at the Butte Opera House in Cripple Creek, staged by the Thin Air Theatre Company. This is first class theater in a beautiful mountain setting.

This year, I believe, is the best holiday play they have staged. As stated in the program it "is a re-imagining of the classic Christmas story, Miracle on 34th Street." It is set in Cripple Creek at the turn of the century with Teddy Roosevelt visiting the mining camps where he has an accident and becomes anmesiatic.

There are two villians in this melodrama, however one was booed on a more regular and heartfelt basis than the wicked widow. We must have known that she was redeemable.

The play was written by Chris Sorensen, who has been writing for the Cripple Creek stage since 2001, providing us with such original works as The Vampire of Cripple Creek, The Angel of the Christmas Mine, Frankenstein of Cripple Creek and another adapted Christmas classic, Cripple Creek Christmas Carol.


The play continues it run through a special performance on New Year's Eve. Tickets can be purchased online from the Butte Opera House website. Tickets are very reasonably priced at $11.75 for adults, $9.75 for adults and $7.75 for children 12 and under.

It is well worth the drive to Cripple Creek and the price of admission.

Grey and Spooky or Time to See Frankenstein

Fall family traditions for my folks and I include:adding polar fleece to our wardrobes, setting out more mouse traps (some mice are left for Pedro to chase at Thanksgiving), baking pumpkin bread, knitting daily for gift giving and attending the annual Halloween-themed melodrama in Cripple Creek at the Butte Opera House.

This year they staged the Cripple Creek version of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein. When we arrived today in a mountain thunderstorm complete with multiple lightning flashes, I remarked that TATC (Thin Air Theater Company) have really improved their special effects.

The play was wonderful. And after the play they have a themed olio with singing/dancing and costuming all Halloween based. It was really fun. This is such a small group that produce these events that you can be served popcorn and a drink by Frankenstein himself. It was so much fun. This is our third year to attend. We have seen the Vampire of Cripple Creek and Dr. Jekyll - Mr. Hyde.

We are planning to go to the Christmas production as well this year. It will be the Cripple Creek version of Miracle on 34th Street. Since Cripple Creek is only 20 miles from my folks house, it is an easy trek with the high fuel prices and potential winter weather.

Hope you are finding fun entertainment in your backyard!

Boo! The Doctor Is In!

Last Saturday the folks and I ventured off to the historic mining town of Cripple Creek. The destination was the Butte Opera House for the Thin Air Theatre Company's presentation of "Dr. Jekyll's Medicine Show." It is set in Cripple Creek at the turn of the century and takes the traditional tale of Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde to a whole new realm. The young man cast in the part of Jekyll was fabulous. You know in the old movies he was portrayed in different makeup to show the two sides of his personality. In this case, no makeup was used and the metamorphis was amazing.

Of course they do not allow you to take any photos of the performance but I did get some good ones of us at the performance with our guest, Count DracuBear. And he got the best seat in the house - inside Dad's cowboy hat.

The rest of the crew were happy just to pose with him. He is a freebie that Hallmark was offering this year before Halloween if you purchased three cards. And as you can see Mom is making sure we all know that he is devilishly handsome.



And here are my partners-in-crime for their photo op with the wee vampire.





















And that rare pic of me over there.

This theater group is made up of the remnants of the Imperial and Cripple Creek players and is known for its melodrama performances. This show and the one they are doing for the holiday season are both newly written and directed by local talent. And, as is tradition, there was a spooky, Halloween-themed olio after the main performance. This is where the cast put on short skits with singing and dancing. The funniest was the fake magic show complete with a successful Houdini-like escape trick (good thing his assistant knew how to untie the knot on the giant laundry sack he was trussed up in) and the disappearing lion trick. Can't tell you the secret because, after all, this is magic.

After a lovely autumn day in the high country we headed home to the news that a possible winter storm was on its way. The next morning, sure enough, Jack Frost made a feeble attempt to let his wintery intentions be known.

And the best part of the newscast is where they show the traffic cams around the region. This picture is taken from the roof of the Dinosaur Resource Center in Woodland Park. The newscaster, and the rest of us, get such a chuckle out of the palm trees in snow shots. They are plastic palm trees but all the same it is too funny to see this in a blizzard in the mountains of Colorado.

So this was a good day to stay indoors, watch movies and knit. Pedro had other ideas and begged to go outside to see what was going on. I let him out to look and he decided I had the best idea about staying indoors. Stay warm, enjoy!