The Bluebird Theater in Denver is a historic 500–550-capacity live music venue on East Colfax Avenue, known for its intimate shows and vintage atmosphere. Originally a neighborhood movie house in the 1910s, it is now a popular spot for both local and national touring acts.
Located on East Colfax between the Congress Park and City Park neighborhoods in Denver, Colorado, the Bluebird serves as a cultural anchor for the area. Its compact size, historic charm, and eclectic programming give it a strong neighborhood identity.
The venue holds roughly 500–550 people, with three main floor tiers plus a balcony overlooking the stage. This tiered design and balcony arrangement give most spots in the room a good sightline, contributing to its reputation as an especially intimate place to see a show.
Today, the theater operates as a live music venue, hosting a wide range of genres, from rock and electronic to hip-hop and indie. Its busy schedule attracts both emerging performers and established touring artists.
Constructed around 1913–1914, the building originally opened as the Thompson Theater. It was named for local grocer and druggist John Thompson and designed as a movie house by architect Harry W. J. Edbrooke. In the early 1920s, it was sold to theater operator Harry Huffman and subsequently renamed the Bluebird, initially often styled “Blue Bird.”
From the 1930s through the 1960s, the theater mainly showed neighborhood and second-run films, but business eventually declined. The venue shifted to showing lower-budget and then adult movies in the 1970s, finally closing in 1987.
Preservation efforts in the early 1990s led to a significant renovation. It reopened in 1994 as a live music venue, retaining historic elements like the projection room while adding tiers, a bar, and modern production.
The theater is a two-story masonry building with light brick and terra-cotta accents, and an iconic neon-lit marquee that has become a Colfax landmark. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1997, recognizing both its architectural value and its role in Denver’s cultural history. National outlets have also highlighted it as one of the better small clubs in the country.
In 2006, AEG (AEG Live/AEG Rocky Mountain) took over management and booking. They invested in sound and lighting systems and in ongoing upgrades while maintaining the historic character.
Over the years, artists such as Adele, Billie Eilish, the Lumineers, Jack White, Modest Mouse, Oasis, and Portugal. The Man has played the Bluebird Theater, often when they were still emerging or on more intimate tours. Locals value it as a neighborhood anchor on East Colfax and as a stepping-stone room where fans can see bigger acts up close.
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