The Classical Source For All The Performing, Visual And Literary Arts & Entertainment News
Classical

Buzz Kill: Colorado Symphony Orchestra to Cancel 'High Note Series' After Latest Controversy with Denver City Officials

The Colorado Symphony Orchestra may have hit a snag in its latest "High Note Series" production. Denver city officials claim that the mass consumption of pot in a public setting coincides with the city's ordinance barring such events.

While the city can't stop the concert from happening, a letter from city attorneys urge the CSO to cancel the May 23 gala at the Space Gallery.

And if the orchestra takes it upon itself to go as planned, the city will take action.

"We will exercise any and all options available to the city of Denver to halt the event and hold the business owners (and) event organizers responsible for any violations of law," says the letter.

Thankfully the CSO isn't trying to combat the city's ordinance. In a written response to Denver officials.

"We're reviewing the issues with our legal team," the CSO said.

"When the Colorado Symphony accepted support from the legal cannabis industry - as a means of supporting our financial operations and connecting with a culturally diverse audience - we believed we did so in full compliance with the law," it continues.

But the Space Gallery isn't a public venue, it is, however, a private section of the city, and that doesn't allow the city's sanctions to take precedent.

Sam Kamin, a University of Denver Law professor, echoed this fact.

"If the symphony decides to make a test case of it, it would be more interesting," he said. "It would be a much closer case than the Civic Center event would be."

But the call will most likely shut down the performance as the CSO doesn't want to take many chances against the city's laws against public consumption of pot.

I suppose now that marrying the symphony and its marijuana counterpart will take longer than anticipated.

Another hybrid, here's the CSO doing GoT.

About the Author

Real Time Analytics