Best bets this weekend include Durango PlayFest, Hardrockers Holidays and the Carve Wars Festival.
The second annual Durango Playfest will cap off nearly a week of workshops and rehearsals with day and evening performances of four different plays Friday and Saturday at Henry Strater Theatre and Durango Arts Center.
The festival brings nationally recognized theater artists to Durango to join local artists in developing stage readings of original stories and full plays. The four plays being performed this weekend are “My Ántonia” by Meg Miroshnik, “The Ways of Necessity” by Stephen Nathan, “A Shift in Gravity” by Kathleen McGhee-Anderson and “Two Hander” by Barry Kleinbort and Lois Walden.
Tickets are available for individual plays for $25 or for full festival passes for $100. For a schedule of performances, visit www.durangoplayfest.org/events-2019.
The three-day Hardrockers Holidays festival will begin at 10 a.m. Friday and run through Sunday afternoon in Silverton. The festival celebrates Silverton’s mining heritage with a variety of activities for all ages.
Events for men, women and children will include horseshoes, hand mucking, machine drilling, tug-of-war, arm wrestling and more. Children’s events will take place Friday. Live music will be provided as part of the Great Western Rocky Mountain Brass Band Festival at the Silverton School gym.
Food, beer and other beverages will be sold on-site. Concessions benefit the fire department. For more information, visit bit.ly/2yKH0xt.
The Carve Wars Festival will take place from 9 a.m. Friday to 2:30 p.m. Sunday at Purgatory Resort. The three-day festival features chain-saw carving competitions, live auctions, artist meet-and-greets and live demonstrations.
Renowned chain-saw artists will compete throughout the weekend for prizes and awards. Between competitions, participants will have the opportunity to meet the artists and watch live demonstrations. Artwork created during the competitions will go up for bid during two live auctions Saturday and Sunday.
This is a free, family-friendly event. For more information, visit www.purgatoryresort.com/events/carve-wars.
Telluride Jazz Festival, 9 a.m., $200, Telluride Town Park, 500 East Colorado Ave.
Chevel Shepherd at the La Plata County Fair, 5:30 p.m., $25-$35, La Plata County Fairgrounds, 2500 Main Ave.
Member and Community Appreciation Party, 11 a.m., free, Durango Public Library, 1900 East Third Ave.
Durango Roller Girls vs. The Chupacabras, 6:30 p.m., $10-$15, 12 and younger free, Chapman Hill Ice Arena & Ski Area, 500 Florida Road.
Summer of Hitchcock Free Classic Movie Series: “North by Northwest,” 6 p.m., Animas City Theatre, 128 E. College Drive.
