VAIL'S #1
Yet again, Vail secured the #1 ranking in SKI Magazine’s Top Ten North American... [more]
Showtime Dazzles the Rockies
BRAVO! Vilar Center for the Arts and The Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater Vilar Pavilion
When Alberto Vilar first visited the Vail Valley in 1988, he was immediately smitten with its drop-dead beauty, bitten hard by the skiing bug, and soon written into the roster of Beaver Creek residents.
But for this Cuban-born investment businessman and aficionado of the arts, something in his adopted home was missing: a year-round venue for cultural and performing arts. Working with the Beaver Creek Arts Foundation, it didn't take long until the Vilar Center for the Performing Arts became a reality. The center opened in February of 1998.
With its debut, Beaver Creek became the first mountain resort community in the world to maintain its own performing arts facility and present an annual series of diversified, cultural events.
Though partly financed by donations from Vail Valley residents, Vilar became the naming patron both for his contributions and his passion for performing arts. "Culture enriches our life," said Vilar, "What would life be without Mozart, as the saying goes."
On opening night, violinists Ida and Ani Kavafian played with the Santa Fe ProMusica Chamber Orchestra. Their performance set the standard for the venue, as well as setting the stage for things to come. Since then, the Vilar Center has hosted acclaimed artists in classical music concerts, jazz, dance, opera, film, musicals, comedy and dramatic presentations, all of the caliber you're accustomed to seeing at Carnegie Hall or the Kennedy Center in Washington D.C. Certainly, you wouldn't expect to find such world-class performers in a theater just steps away from ski lifts, and definitely not in a venue hidden beneath a skating rink.
The Venue
Deep within the resort's Market Square Building sits an exquisite theater — intimate, luxurious, welcoming, and burnished by the warmth of natural wood. Inspired by the design of Littman's Kunstler, a turn-of-the-century theater landmark in Munich, the Vilar Center recalls the classic architecture of grand European halls, with a horseshoe-shaped auditorium and imposing ceilings and columns that envelop the visitor in splendor. Yet despite such magnificence, the theater is surprisingly intimate, offering just 530 seats, each with an unobstructed view of the stage from orchestra, parterre, balcony and box seats. The theater's meticulous design also assures acoustics of absolute perfection
The facility’s rich design continues into the lower lobby, where carpets and fabrics are decked out in autumnal colors and accented by natural wood and stone. A stunning wall of glass is engraved with the names of patrons and beautifully detailed etchings of aspen groves and wildlife. Meanwhile, the muted tones of the lobby walls recall the color of the sky at dusk to harmonize with the Rocky Mountain environment surrounding them.
Kudos for the theater design go to two architectural giants: Hardy Hotzman Pfeiffer & Associates of Los Angeles, whose theater accomplishments include the Minneapolis Orchestra Hall, Denver's Boettcher Hall and the performing arts centers in Anchorage, Alaska and Eugene, Oregon; and Pierce Segerberg & Associates of Vail and Denver, who take credit for the designs of the Sonnenalp Hotel in Vail and the Chateau, Pines and Greystone landmarks in Beaver Creek. Like the Vilar Center, each incorporates regional imagery.
The May Gallery lies off the upper lobby of the Vilar Center, a patrons' lounge resplendent with velvet couches, cloth walls and a grand piano. Designed by Savage & Associates of Encino, California, the gallery showcases art collections on loan from Beaver Creek residents, as well as antique architectural drawings on permanent loan from Peter and Leni May.
The Performers
Over the past three years, performers at the Vilar Center have offered a dazzling diversity of entertainment.
From the People's Republic of China, the Peking Opera enthralled audiences with song, dance, juggling, sword-throwing and amazing acrobatics.
The Capitol Steps, those witty, political satirists, poked fun at the serious issues in Washington.
Ballet Folklorico-Quetzalli de Veracruz brought colorful dances of Mexico to the stage.
Oscar-winning composer Marvin Hamlisch, classical flutist Eugenia Zukerman, the Lakota Sioux Indians dance troupe, and comedian Steven Wright were some of the headliners who’ve filled the Vilar Center.
For a complete calendar of performances call (970) 845-TIXS or 888-920-ARTS
or visit www.vvf.org.
The Future
Because Alberto Vilar was discouraged as a youth to pursue his study of the violin, one of his goals is to make cultural arts available to the children and students of Eagle County and the surrounding area in Colorado
"The Vilar Center should become the cultural lightning rod for the valley, especially its youth. I cannot impress enough how important it is to expose young people to the performing arts early in their lives,” Vilar declares. “This is when many are open to new experiences, and this cultural exposure could very well enrich the rest of their lives."
The Gerald R. Ford AmphithEA-ter Vilar Pavilion Since President and Mrs. Gerald Ford adopted the Vail Valley as their second home in the 1980s, their significant contributions of time and effort toward the area's growth were acknowledged with the naming of two of Vail's landmarks, The Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater and the Betty Ford Alpine Gardens. Both are summertime legends, attracting visitors to a most extraordinary array of high altitude flowers and to performances of dance, ballet, classical and popular music.
During the past year, Alberto Vilar added his name to Vail's premier summer entertainment venue. The Gerald R. Ford Amphitheater Vilar Pavilion is a reconstructed and expanded version of its former self.
The popularity of its offerings demanded an upgrade to the already outstanding amphitheater. As in past years, music and dance devotees will enjoy a summer filled with a diverse menu of entertainment.
Bravo! Vail Valley Music Festival presents the compelling sounds of chamber, orchestra and jazz during its 15th season next summer.
The 14th Vail International Dance Festival electrifies August with creative and innovative dance companies performing in a wildflower-encircled setting as beautiful as dance itself.
Hot Summer Nights gives popular music lovers a treat: Each Tuesday evening in June and July, guests can rock to a free concert in the famed amphitheater.
If this whets your appetite for a summer visit, call 888-VVF-VAIL, or visit vvf.org for information and a calendar of summer performances.
Lillian Ross writes regular travel columns for the Denver Rocky Mountain News, edits Colorado travel planners, and writes articles for Colorado-based feature magazines, including Vail Valley Golf.
Aspen and Snowmass
But for this Cuban-born investment businessman and aficionado of the arts, something in his adopted home was missing: a year-round venue for cultural and performing arts. Working with the Beaver Creek Arts Foundation, it didn't take long until the Vilar Center for the Performing Arts became a reality. The center opened in February of 1998. 
Deep within the resort's Market Square Building sits an exquisite theater — intimate, luxurious, welcoming, and burnished by the warmth of natural wood. Inspired by the design of Littman's Kunstler, a turn-of-the-century theater landmark in Munich, the Vilar Center recalls the classic architecture of grand European halls, with a horseshoe-shaped auditorium and imposing ceilings and columns that envelop the visitor in splendor. Yet despite such magnificence, the theater is surprisingly intimate, offering just 530 seats, each with an unobstructed view of the stage from orchestra, parterre, balcony and box seats. The theater's meticulous design also assures acoustics of absolute perfection
The 14th Vail International Dance Festival electrifies August with creative and innovative dance companies performing in a wildflower-encircled setting as beautiful as dance itself.