If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it. That’s how the old saying goes, and the Denver Center for Performing Arts hasn’t presented anything broken. And as if their 2011-12 season wasn’t proof enough that extraordinary effort was exercised in selecting quality and varied works to get Denver butts in seats, what do they do? They go and tweak it even further and present us with the Marquee Club, which doesn’t really “fix” anything at the DCPA, but it sure does make it better.
A seemingly well-kept secret, the membership group (which has about 90 members) is into its sixth season and isn’t set on targeting only the rich or staunch theater enthusiast. Club Members and MC organizers, Jeremy Anderson and Carmel Koeltzow, said they saw a gap in the avenues young and working professionals, who have expressed interest in the arts, have to keep company with one another and participate as a group while supporting the work of the DCPA company. But more than that, it’s about having a lot of fun with some new people and seeing some life-changing theatre. That is the essential source of the excitement Carmel and Jeremy are hoping to inspire in others with The Marquee Club.
Each new season, members old and new, enjoy a heap of VIP treatments which include, four largely contrasting plays, Thursday night DCTC season ticket, preliminary cocktails and hors d’oeuvres (which are sometimes themed for that night’s performance) with special DCTC guests, private intermission surprises and “meet the cast” parties immediately following each show at Larimer Square hotspots. Talk about the ultimate backstage pass!
To Kill A Mockingbird kicks off this leg of the MC’s well-rounded package offerings, and is followed by American Night: Ballad of Juan Jose, Two Things You Don’t Talk About At Dinner and Ring Of Fire: The Music Of Johnny Cash.
Membership is 500 bucks, but Carmel and Jeremy both stressed that this price tag isn’t meant to exclude or discourage those of us who are musicians and can barely afford to rent dollar DVD’s at the Redbox. The Club has a plan set up so that you can make payments as you go. And really, it isn’t all that much moolah, considering the perks that you receive in return. And a little less than half of that is tax-deductible.
“Nothing needs fixing at the Denver Center,” declared Koeltzow, “we clearly are more in-tune with our audiences and our members, so it’s just the right time and the right place for this to be as successful as it is becoming.” And so, thanks to the inspired inception of the Marquee Club and its wealth of goodies, people no longer have to wonder about the man behind the curtain–they get to meet him.
For more information on the Marquee Club and how you can join, click HERE or call 303.446.4811