What's on the menu?
There are three components to The Blind Cafe Experience:
Breaking Bread In Community
(Dinner in the dark!)
What's on the menu? A locally sourced special mystery dinner. We offer a dark chocolate social reception before going into the dark. In the dark, you will break bread with strangers and good friends alike, share inspiring stories and meaningful conversation, and experience live music… all experienced 100% in the dark! We design the menu based on the season and the availability of donations from the community.
A social impact discussion in the dark!
In our award winning, positive social change community awareness discussion, you will participate in a group discussion between the audience and our legally blind, amazing, heart-felt, blindness ambassadors. They will share their personal stories with you and you will have the chance to learn, ask questions, and discuss their personal experiences of blindness.
A Music In The Dark Experience
Music In The Dark Experience curated by Rosh & The Blind Cafe Orchestra
Ever wonder what it like to experience a live music performance in complete total darkness? Blind Cafe Music Productions brings an emotionally powerful music listening experience. These unique and intimate performances bridge the gap between the artist and their audience as they're empowered to participate in an active music listening experience, in the complete and total pitch dark! Learn what it was like to experience live music without the distraction of your visual conditioning, social etiquette and cells phones.
Rosh & the Blind Cafe Orchestra
Since 2010, Rosh & The Blind Cafe Orchestra has specialized in performing in the complete and total pitch dark at Blind Cafe events across the USA. Rosh, an American songwriter, born in Boston, MA, stumbled upon a temporary 'cafe in the dark' while on tour in 2007 in Reykjavik Iceland. It was so dark, he could not even see his hands in front of his face. It was then that he dreamed up the idea of creating positive social change experiences in the dark, intended to help people 'see' their world from a new perspective.
In 2010, the first Blind Cafe event was launched with the formation of The Blind Cafe Orchestra accompanying Rosh's original songwriter music. The Blind Cafe Orchestra is an evolving and rotating group of musicians, consisting of bass, piano, female vocals, and more! If you’re really lucky, you’ll get to catch Rosh & BCO with cello, violin & viola. This rare and unique approach to listening to music in the dark, with an array of various instrumentation, has led them to perform for over 20,000 people in the dark since 2010.
Special Musical Guests
Your 'Music In The Dark Curators' Dango Rose + Bridget Law of Elephant Revival & Rosh & the Blind Cafe Orchestra will be bringing you both well-known and soon to be 'discovered in the dark' musical guests.
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(past guest artists…)
The Blind Cafe Experiences
Dango Rose & Sage Cook (of Elephant Revival)
Dango Rose
Founder of Colorado's beloved Elephant Revival, Dango Rose will be performing in the dark with musical guests.
Dango Rose embraces a passion for music as a vital healing influence and spiritual path. He creates and collaborates to support harmony and truth. Born with a poet's soul and a warrior's heart his life's journey has been one of transformation.
For seventeen years, Dango has traveled nationally and internationally in touring bands. In 2006, he founded Elephant Revival and spent eleven years performing and recording with this influential outfit that pioneered the genre, “Transcendental Folk.” Rose penned band favorites like, “When I Fall,” “The Pasture,” "Jet Lag Blues" and others. Since Elephant Revival decided to go on hiatus in May 2018, Dango has taken refuge in the recording studio and his emerging record label. Here he melds his background in traditional forms (Folk, R&B, Old-Time, Bluegrass, Jazz, World, Blues and Fusion) with the transformational elements of musical craft. As journalist Marc Tonglen explains, “He reminds me of a cross between Leonard Cohen and Alan Parsons, and remains deeply embedded in the progressive Indie-Folk scene. His voice is distinctive, words penetrating and his arrangements— on the edge, yet engaging.”
Sage Cook
Sage Cook is a founding member of the bands Elephant Revival and WE DREAM DAWN. He has powerfully melodic skills on the guitar and electric banjo and has an ethereally poetic style of songwriting that draws a listener in deep. His voice is rich and smooth with many dimensions of expression. He hails from the vast open spaces of the Kansas/Oklahoma border and both his lyrics and melodies harken to a rural way of life.
Dismantling Racism In The Dark Experience with Pedro Silva
Last spring, we received a grant from the City of Boulder to 'pilot' our Blind Cafe Dismantling Racism In The Dark Experience. The impact was profound, and we are excited to continue this program at this upcoming Boulder Blind Cafe event. Our intention is to explore how we can use the engagement of community, socially in 100% darkness as an agent for expanding awareness of how we relate to others with the involuntary distractions of our visual conditioning, social etiquette and our cell phones.
Showtimes coming soon…
Pedro Silva
Pedro Silva is a Husband, Parent, Minister, Poet, “Pro-activist”, and engaged human being. He works with communities on maximizing the power of communicating across difference with a balance of both candor and care. He has led community conversations on race in the City of Boulder, is a core volunteer organizer with the nationally recognized Living Room Conversations program, member of the Boulder County Caucus of Together Colorado, and serves as Associate Minister at First Congregational Church Boulder, UCC. The Blind Cafe will be piloting several pilot Dismantling Racism In The Dark Workshop Experience will be announced soon! Read more about Pedro's work!
Who supports this pilot Program?
Rocky Mountain Justice & Peace Center, First Congregational Church, YWCA Boulder, Boulder County Arts Alliance, E-Town, Rockdale Innovations and METAS.
