Denver Fashion Week, MCA birthday goodies, comedy picks and more things to do in Denver this week

Denver Fashion Week’s glitzy return

Tuesday-Nov. 21. The Mile High City’s quiet but powerful fashion scene had to make do without in-person gatherings last year. But our notable designers (think “Project Runway’s” Mondo Guerro, or up-and-comers Crystal Lee and Jevon Taylor), and entrepreneurial, social-justice-minded street fashionistas have been thrumming for more than a decade. What better way to celebrate them than with the return of Denver Fashion Week’s live events?

From the work of local boutiques, stylists and makeup artists to national brands and runway walks, the Nov. 16-21 events collect the best of the city, state and region’s contemporary fashion talent. Runway shows will take place at McNichols Civic Center Building, including Ready to Wear (Nov. 18), Local Designers (Nov. 20) and Sustainable Fashion categories (Nov. 21). Industry workshops (Nov. 16-17) also take place at McNichols. Reservations are required at eventbrite.com, tickets are $20-$120, and seats are going fast. denverfashionweek.com — John Wenzel

What are YOU laughing at?

Friday. The deadpan “Tonight Show” favorite Nate Bargatze may have been the biggest stand-up taking the stage along the Front Range this week, but he’s certainly not the only one. While the comic played the Paramount on Nov. 11, club shows and indie showcases are filling in the local gaps.

Fort Collins’ excellent newcomer The Comedy Fort this week features Emma Willmann (“The Late Show with Stephen Colbert”) Nov. 12-13, with tickets at $19 each. Denver’s Comedy Works clubs host Byron Bowers (downtown, Nov. 11-13 for $22) and “SNL” alum Kevin Nealon (south club, Nov. 12-13 for $40), while the comedy-friendly Wide Right welcomes back Portland, Ore., comic-transplant Andie Main’s hilarious “The Bi Agenda” showcase (Nov. 14, $12). The Black Buzzard at Oskar Blues is also hosting more great showcases, such as “Faded Comedy” (hosted by David Gborie and Brent Gill, Nov. 19). Visit 5280comedy.com for a full listing of metro area shows. — John Wenzel

Women’s film in the spotlight (and online)

Friday-Sunday. Even as the Denver Film Festival continues through Nov. 14, the Rocky Mountain Women’s Film Festival offers a welcome complement to DFF’s broader programming. The Friday, Nov. 12-Sunday, Nov. 14 event — the festival’s 34th overall — features 20-plus in-person screenings and filmmaker forums exploring narrative and nonfiction themes at North America’s longest-running fest devoted to women in film.

If you’re not able to attend in person, a virtual encore will take place take place the following week with 10 additional films, organizers said. Various screenings at Pikes Peak Center for the Performing Arts, 190 S. Cascade Ave. in Colorado Springs. Tickets: $139 for full-festival pass; $99 weekender (Saturday and Sunday); and $15-$59 for single-day passes. Full schedule and titles at rmwfilm.org. — John Wenzel

MCA, Clyfford Still’s birthday goodies

Opening Friday. To celebrate their respective anniversaries, the Clyfford Still Museum and Museum of Contemporary Art Denver are offering free and unusual programming for museum-goers — and especially those who aren’t regular museum-goers.

The Still, which turns 10 this year, is featuring new director Joyce Tsai at 6:30 p.m. on  Wednesday, Nov. 17, for a state-of-the-museum keynote, at Sharp Auditorium in the Denver Art Museum next door. Register online or watch on YouTube. The museum will also open its doors for a free day, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. on Thursday, Nov. 18, as well as a public voting platform that will shape the museum’s next big exhibit that will debut on Aug. 12, 2022. Visitors can also check out “A Decade of Discovery: Clyfford Still in Denver,” which opened in mid-October and revisits the institution’s very first exhibit. clyffordstillmuseum.org