Event season is going strong in Durango, and there are several fun events coming up as near as the end of summer.
Durango PlayFest is Monday through next Saturday, and this new event offers you the chance to see tomorrow’s great plays in Durango, now. This is the second year of Durango PlayFest, and it will bring professional theater artists to Durango to gather for a week to develop four new plays, which will then be shown to the community. PlayFest is held at the Durango Arts Center.
The La Plata County Fair is Wednesday through Aug. 11 this year, and as always, it is a great celebration of our community’s heritage and its future. This year brings us an amazing concert on Friday. Chevel Shepherd, winner of “The Voice,” will perform at the rodeo arena. Tickets are available for this performance at the Durango Welcome Center in downtown.
Next Saturday is the final Free Outdoor Movie Night of the summer. This new North Main District event is brought to you by the Durango Business Improvement District, in partnership with Louisa’s Electronics. Movies are shown on the lawn behind the Rec Center – just follow the signs. Arrive by 8:30 p.m. for seating, and the movie starts at 8:45 p.m. The last movie this summer is “Captain Marvel.”
The 21st San Juan Brewfest is on Aug. 24, and is held at Buckley Park. The biggest beer tasting festival in the Four Corners features 50 breweries, two live bands and tons of fun, all to benefit United Way of Southwest Colorado. This year, the Brewfest is presented by Bank of the San Juans. VIP tickets are sold out, but there are plenty of general admission tickets. Those will sell out as well, so hurry and get your tickets today at sanjuanbrewfest.com/tickets. New this year to the San Juan Brewfest are events on Friday the day before, and Sunday the day after. Enjoy Durango’s premier craft beer event!
The Four Corners Motorcycle Rally runs from Aug. 30 to Sept. 1. There are events at the La Plata Fairgrounds, Purgatory, Ignacio, downtown Durango and at Durango Harley Davidson. Concerts will be held downtown on 10th Street between Main and Narrow Gauge both Friday and Saturday. The motorcycle parade is downtown on Main on Sept. 1, and starts at 11 a.m. Visit fourcornersmotorcylcerally.com for details.
Coming up in September is the Autumn Arts Festival, held this year on Sept. 21 and 22. Durango Cowboy Poetry Gathering is celebrating its 31st year from Oct. 3 to 7. On Oct. 18, downtown Durango will host the Animas Valley Balloon Rally with the 4th Downtown Balloon Glow.
This is in addition to regular, ongoing events like the Community Concerts at the Rochester Hotel on Wednesday nights, trivia nights at the Irish Embassy, Powerhouse Science Center and The Roost. There is also live music about every night of the week somewhere downtown.
To learn more about all the events coming up, bookmark DowntownDurango.org/events.
Tim Walsworth is the executive director of the Durango Business Improvement District. Contact him at timw@downtowndurango.org.
