Things to do: Denver holiday markets, Christmas light shows begin

Grateful Drag? You bet.

Thursday. There’s little that’s new under the sun when it comes to The Grateful Dead. Their archives have been exhaustively mined, their legacy long secured. But what about injecting drag queen culture into our long, strange trippers’ catalog?

Billing itself as the world’s first “Grateful Drag band,” the Nashville group Bertha is set to headline Boulder’s Fox Theatre on Thursday, Nov. 21, and Denver’s Cervantes’ Other Side on Friday, Nov. 22, with drag-queen covers of familiar Dead hits, including three-part harmonies, a rocking backing-band, different hosts, and surprise guests.

Tickets for the all-ages events run $23-$35 at axs.com or etix.com. Both shows are benefits for local LGBTQ+ organizations such as Transformative Freedom Fund, Bread & Roses Legal Center, and Rocky Mountain Equality.

The glittering city is back

Wednesday-Jan. 12, 2025. The Denver Post’s annual holiday lights list drops next week, but it’s already time to grab tickets to the city’s most popular displays. That includes the Nov. 23 all-ages debut of Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance’s Zoo Lights — with a Thursday, Nov. 22 adult night that includes one free drink (5-9 p.m.) Tickets are $30. Call 720-337-1400 or visit denverzoo.org/events/zoo-lights.

This weekend also marks the launch of the 2024 Blossoms of Light display at Denver Botanic Gardens’ York Street location. The wildly popular attraction, which winds through a mile of the tightly packed urban garden, includes tens of thousands of glittering LED lights, special drinks and more.

It runs Wednesday, Nov. 20-Jan. 12, 2025 (closed Nov. 28 and Dec. 15) from 4:30-9 p.m. nightly at 1007 York St. in Denver. Tickets: $20-$31. Call 720-865-3500 or visit botanicgardens.org/events for more details — including Chatfield Farms‘ Trail of Lights, which runs now through Jan. 5, 2025.

Cherry Creek, Mile High Holiday markets

Opening Friday. Now that we’re post-Halloween, the gifting pressure is on. You can relieve it early by visiting one of the high-profile holiday markets around Denver this weekend, starting with the Mile High Holiday Mart, presented by the Junior League of Denver. The 45th event runs Friday, Nov. 15-Sunday, Nov. 17, at Gates Field House on the University of Denver campus as a fundraiser for its host. $10 entry, with discounts available. Dozens of local, high-quality vendors will be joined by rotating food trucks. See jld.org/fundraisers/mile-high-holiday-mart for more.

We’ll also see the fifth edition of the Cherry Creek Holiday Market, Thursday, Nov. 21-Dec. 24, at Fillmore Plaza in Cherry Creek North (between Second Avenue and Fillmore Street). It features more than 40 rotating vendor booths of local artisans and crafters, as well as the two-story, upgraded Mistletoe Lounge, organizers said, with live music, donation bins and more to boot.

The free “Million Light Plug-In” event also kicks it off Thursday, Nov. 21 from 5-7 p.m. Visit cherrycreekholidaymarket.com for more.

A really big Christmas show

Saturday-Sunday. If you want to be comforted in the most bombastic way possible, you’re in luck: Trans-Siberian Orchestra is returning for its all-hands-on-deck Christmas show, “The Lost Christmas Eve,” to celebrate the album’s 20th anniversary. That includes shows in Denver at 3 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 16 (at Ball Arena) and Colorado Springs, Sunday, Nov. 17 (Broadmoor World Arena).

As fans know, the band takes traditional tunes and juices them up with spectacle and volume. This year promises “an all-new, dazzling spectacle packed with pyrotechnics, lasers, and the incredible storytelling synonymous with TSO.” Well then! Tickets are $79-$120 for Denver, and $150-$225 for Colorado Springs, via ticketmaster.com.