The Denver Center will bring its ongoing commitment to educating young women to Saturday’s annual Girls & Science Fair at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science. Photo by Brian Landis Folkins.

Denver Center’s Props and Education departments will use American Mariachi to demonstrate how science fuels creativity in theatre arts

Denver’s annual Girls & Science Fair, which was was created to ignite a passion for science in girls, returns for its fifth year on Saturday, March 2, at the Denver Museum of Nature & Science.

The Denver Center’s Props Department will demonstrate how it made the flowers for ‘American Mariachi.’ Photo by Kyle Malone.

Susie Moss, the museum’s Advancement Manager, helped to create this event “to be a catalyst for girls to explore all different realms of possibility for a fun and exciting career in a STEAM field.” That’s Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics. And while the event is focused on girls’ participation, all children are welcome at all events.

The program will include a series of short-story presentations from accomplished women working in STEAM fields. There will be many different types of “Mini Clubhouses” that will have hands-on activities and information about specific organizations, including one run by employees of the DCPA.

The Denver Center clubhouse will focus on the creativity of the Props Department. Our participation activity will be making crepe-paper flowers, while demonstrating how we created another kind of flowers for our Denver Center Theatre Company production of American Mariachi last season.

“The thing that stays with me the most is how beautiful it is to watch the look on young faces when they realize that the imaginative, creative things that they love most about live theatre – design, costumes and sets – all use basic principles of science at their core,” said DCPA Teaching Artist Rachel Kae Taylor, the Denver Center’s main liaison with the museum for this event. Her advice to participants is to wear comfortable shoes.

Other organizations hosting clubhouses are The Bird Conservatory of the Rockies, The Butterfly Pavilion, Denver Botanic Gardens and The Denver Zoo. Each group will have their own hands-on experience, allowing participants to see and use some of the tools of their trade.

CBS4, which is co-hosting the event with the Museum of Nature & Science, will have a clubhouse hosted by meteorologist Lauren Whitney. The name of her station is Cotton Candy Rainbow Shoppe, and while I’m not sure exactly what that is, it sounds fun and yummy.

Moss said the museum wanted to have something for older girls who may have specific questions about a career in a STEAM field, so, for the first time this year, attendees can speak one-on-one with STEAM career mentors who will be prepared to answer questions covering everything from what inspired their career paths to what tools are needed. Scientist speakers will include women from Arrow Electronics, Newmont Mining, Red Rocks Community College, Sound Relief Hearing Center and Tetra Tech.

“My most memorable moment from past science fairs is when a grandmother told me that it’s because of this experience that her granddaughter now wants to be an engineer,” Moss said.

Moss’ advice for those coming is to consider alternative modes of transportation because parking is limited.  Coupons are available for first-time Lyft users to get to the event. Youth-group organizations can get all attendees free admission (chaperones included) by pre-registering for the event.

Wynn Pastor has been a Scenic Technician and Shop Purchaser for the Denver Center Theatre Company since February 2016. The Pennsylvania native is best known as a carpenter on the TLC reality shows “Trading Spaces” and “Trading Spaces: Family Edition.” She also proved herself to be an able poker player in a match between cast members from “Trading Spaces” and “American Chopper” on the World Poker Tour by reaching the final table. In addition to her work on television, she has published a book on carpentry, “Yes, You Can!: Home Repairs Made Easy,” with Ken Sidey (2005, Meredith Books).

Denver Girls & Science Fair

• Saturday, March 2
• Denver Museum of Nature and Science, 2001 Colorado Blvd.
  
• 9 a.m.-5 p.m.
• Tickets: Adult $17.95; Seniors $14.95; Age 3-18 $4; Under age 3: Free
• Order tickets, or get more information