Things To Do In Thornton

Total Chaos Paintball brings video games into vivid reality, hosting colorful, officiated skirmishes on a 12,000-square-foot indoor battleground modeled after the Wasteland map from Call of Duty 2. Under constant pursuit by the opposing team, combatants duck down alleyways, hide behind urban debris, or outwit fast-moving opponents with quick presses of the pause button. The center can also simulate the stress of nighttime operations, killing the lights while a sound system broadcasts high-octane tunes to keep heart rates accelerated.

The visibility beneath the waters of Aurora Reservoir is between 5 and 12 feet in front of your face. The murkiness is less frustrating than it is suspenseful—you don't know exactly when the twin engines of an airplane will appear, allowing you to trace the rest of the sunken craft and greet its finned inhabitants. The remote, shadowy world of the downed plane is just one of many rendered accessible to students of Rocky Mountain Diving Center, where instructors can train their protégés up from first-time divers to certified teachers through a combination of classroom, pool, and outdoor sessions.

The center's educational programs include swimming and snorkeling classes in addition to open-water-diving-certification courses. These lessons enable graduated pupils to delve into several local lakes. The curriculum also covers specialty training on topics such as deep diving, night diving, and underwater photography—a career passion of the school's owner, Mark. With equipment for sale and rental as well as a dedicated service team, the center prepares its students for safe and comfortable excursions. Its tropical retreats afford rare opportunities to explore the reefs off of Fiji or swim alongside whale sharks or shark whales—extremely intimidating belugas.

The Denver Center for the Performing Arts is situated in the center of downtown’s thriving theater district. As the second largest performing arts center in the world, the Performing Arts Complex is a drama queen’s (or king’s) nirvana. There are many dazzling spaces within the dramatically designed, glass-roofed complex, including Boettcher Concert Hall, home to the Colorado Symphony; the Temple Hoyne Buell Theatre, which showcases many Broadway touring companies; and the Ellie Caulkins Opera House. In addition, you’ll find a Tony Award-winning theater company, the Seawell Grand Ballroom and many more performance stages. The Denver Center for the Performing Arts also holds events in the Complex’s outdoor Sculpture Park, and hosts community acting classes and educational events at next door’s Newman Center for Theatre Education. The Complex boasts more than 10,000 seats, with exceptional acoustics in every theater, and is a first-class theatrical emporium for cultured audiences.

Designed as one of the tallest, steepest man-made climbing destinations in the Rocky Mountain region, ROCK'n & JAM'n challenges climbers new and old with a medley of nook- and cranny-laden walls. During the two-hour introductory lesson, ROCK'n & JAM'n's full-time, web-slinging instructors teach aspiring mountain goats the basics of belaying (a term used to describe rope management between climbing partners), safety, and how to avoid rookie climbing errors such as ignoring gravity and walking vertically up the wall. After two hours of training, you'll be free to spend the rest of the day taking on challenges such as Boulder or the neck-craning Front Canyon.

Inside the booths at Global DJ Academy, one will find instructors such as Walt White, a 15-year veteran DJ who goes by the name Dark Agenda, and Elliot Overson––aka DJ Wushu––demonstrating the art of thrilling crowds armed only with a set of turntables and records. The team collectively accounts for thousands of hours of experience both teaching and performing for live nightclub audiences, unlike amateur DJs who only play for those living above and below them. This level of experience ensures that the academy’s 2,500 square-foot facility is put to good use as they impart their knowledge to students using its two production studios, soundproof recording booth, and six DJ workstations. Students can expect to learn skills ranging from the basics to advanced analog techniques, such as scratching and effects, all on the school’s modern user interfaces as well as production software.