Red Rocks is well known for being an open-air amphitheatre built into the rock near Morrison, CO and near Lakewood CO. It’s just over 10 miles away from Denver.
The venue is located near a large tilted disc-shaped rock, a large vertical rock stands at an angle from stage right, and there are six additional rocks positioned slightly off center in the background. The whole complex can fit up to 9,525 seats.
Denver purchased the area of Red Rocks in 1927. Construction of the amphitheater began in 1936, and it was open to the public that same year.
This venue has played host to numerous notable performances over the years, including for films and TV shows. It opened its Colorado Music Hall of Fame last year.
The amphitheatre’s top row is approximately 6,450 feet (1,965 meters) above sea level, and the surrounding Red Rocks Park covers 868 acres (14 km2).
The amphitheater is owned and operated by Denver and is located inside Red Rocks Park. People here face east/northeast, with the Downtown skyline just out of their line of sight.
In 1957, the American Institute of Architects chose Red Rocks as Colorado’s entry for the National Gallery of Art’s Centennial Exhibition.
Pollstar Magazine was so impressed with the venue’s quality and consistency that it removed Red Rocks from the running and rebranded the award.
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Construction began in October 2020 for a series of changes to the stage roof and structure.
John Brisben Walker (a guy who lived in the early 1900s) had this idea of artists performing on a stage at Red Rocks. He was probably inspired by how many Native Americans used to visit the place.
Walker created various concerts on a temporary stage in the early 1900’s; and after that, Red Rocks began its legacy as an entertainment venue.
Red Rocks natural amphitheater has been around for a while and is a landmark in Denver. In 1906, the city of Denver bought the land from John Walker for $54,133 ($815,877 today). Together with other land purchases from Walker, this added up to an area of 728 acres (1.1 sq mi; 2.9 km2).
Walker also built the “Mount Morrison Cable Incline funicular railway” which carried tourists from a base near what is today the amphitheatre parking lot, up to the view point atop Mount Morrison.