Christmas Carol

A Christmas Carol is another of my seasonal traditions. I have several movie version plus an audio reading of the book, which I need to enjoy each year. However, I also need to attend the Denver Center's presentation of the play.

The first time I saw this play, the company was the Bonfil's Company, and their theater was on Colfax. The company has become the Denver Center Theater Company, and moved into their current space many years ago. (The Tattered Cover Bookstore moved into their original space a couple of years ago after it was vacant for years.)

This is the second staging the play has had since I have been attending. The first staging was interesting as the set was slowly removed piece by piece as the play progressed; at the end only the scaffolding remained. Now there is a more traditional set with backdrops for the various settings, such as Scrooge's office, street scenes, etc.

The original staging was a lot darker too. Scrooge was unrepentant up until the cemetery scene with the Ghost of Christmas Future. Now Scrooge seems to moving to a life change even with the Ghost of Christmas Past; he does not need to be slapped around by the Ghost of the Christmas Future to become the good man.

Needless to say, this staging is not as dramatic. Scrooge seems to be moving to his changes, and his actions on Christmas morning are not a surprise. While it is still a nice presentation of a wonderful story, it is just nice.

Christmas Reading with Jamie Horton

Christmas is a season for traditions, and this is one of mine. Jamie Horton was an actor with the Denver Center Theater Company; he now teaches at Dartmouth. About thirteen years ago The Tattered Cover had another actor do a Christmas reading for them. It was a hit, but the actor could not do not the second year, so Jamie took up the challenge. I was not there for that event, but he read the complete Christmas Carol. It took over two hours, but was a hit again. The next year it was limited to an hour, which has been the format since then.

I discovered this happening eight years ago, and have tried to get to them each year. I think I have missed one, because the weather turned bad.

This years reading included Dr. Seuss' How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, an excerpt from Dylan Thomas, another short story, and several poems, including one by Jamie. It was nice evening, and it was free.

The Egg and I

The Egg and I
560 S. Holly St.
Denver, CO
(303) 577-9050
http://www.theeggandirestaurants.com

This is another breakfast place. It is a little more original in some of the variations they have in some of their dishes. The Hiker's Benedict is good; it is Eggs Benedict with asparagus added.

They have all of the traditional eggs, meats, and potatoes. I am there frequently.

Hot Cakes Diner

Hot Cakes Diner
1400 E. 18th Ave.
Denver, CO
(303) 832-4351
http://www.hcdiner.com

I love to eat breakfast away from home. Many of the places I go are traditional. Big portions of traditional food with friendly service. Hot Cakes is in that mode. Their food is cheap and plentiful. The staff is fun and attentive.

Their hot cakes are good. (The single cake is a lot of food, The double stack is just too much. This is from someone who can put down a lot of food.) However, the Sweet Potato Waffle should be tried. The Breakfast Burrito is also good.

I have not tried any of the lunch selection, but they sound good.

Annie's Cafe

Annie's Cafe
3100 E. Colfax Ave.
Denver, CO
(303) 355-8197
http://annies-cafe.com

Annie's used to be my favorite local. However, a year and half ago the owner of their building decided that the neighborhood needed a hotel. He tore down the building;the economy tanked, and he changed his places to poorly landscaped mosquito pond. Annie's had to move out of the neighborhood and we had an eye sore.

Annie's was lucky. At the time another restraint, Good Friends, had to close, and their location was available. So they moved. They tried for a while to have a combination of the two places, but Annie's has gone back to what was their tradition: comfort food.

Annie's is known for their breakfasts, which are cheep, large and filling. They have the traditional eggs, potatoes and meats. Also the breakfast burrito is good.

For lunch they have some nice traditional salads. There are the usual hamburgers, and sandwiches. The sweet potato fried are a nice side to these.

They also have some dinner plates. The meatloaf is sweet and interesting. The fish and chips should be avoided.

The one thing from Good Friends that has remained is the bar. Now Annie's has always had an interesting of soft drinks like Lime Rickey, etc. With the bar they now have an interesting selection of adult beverages.

It is still my local, but the distance has made the visits fewer.

Pasquini's Highlands

Pasquini's Highland
2400 W. 32nd Ave.
Denver, CO
(303) 477-4900
http://pasquinis.com

I have a method I sometimes use when I am trying a new place to eat: I order one of the basic dishes offered by the place to see how they handle the basics. That is what I did here with Pasquini's. I ordered spaghetti and meat balls.; I wanted to taste their basic sauce, meatballs, and pasta. What I got was a well rounded dish of enjoyment. The sauce and meatballs were spiced nicely to be enjoyable, but not excessive. Also the pasta was well cooked to just the right texture., they know how to treat pasta.

Finally, the portion was nice. I was satisfied without worrying that I had taken food away from a couple of children in some third world location.

I am looking forward to the prospect of going back to Pasquini's for some of their other fare. The ravioli looks inviting. They are a chain and there is a location close to home. They also deliver and I might try that service.

Well

Well is a play about healing. Lisa Kron, the author and main character, looks at the illness and cures in her life. Her mother has a life long chronic illness, which never gets better. When Lisa was young, her mother was an activist in the neighborhood. She was able to help the neighborhood deal with its mixed ethnic status.

Lisa also had her own health problem. She had some sever food allergies. She was able to identify the risks with a hospital stay,and is now well.

Lisa's problem with her mother is that her mother is not able to cure herself. Lisa was able to cure her allergies and her mother was able to cure the neighborhood, but she was not able to make any progress on her own problem.

The style of the play was unusual. The characters where able to step out of character, and respond to the situations in the play.

Kate Levy as Lisa and Kathleen Brady as her mother were both very good in the parts. There was an ensemble of four actors, who also were very good in their parts.