Fiske You Were Here

Anna Tolette — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 22:02:38 +0000

Fiske You Were Here Anna Tolette Mon, 07/20/2026 - 16:02

Christie Sounart

When 91��Ҹ� residents Drew Simon and Ron Marks have free weekend time, they know where they’ll be: Fiske Planetarium.

More than five years ago, the friends began attending planetarium shows on CU 91��Ҹ�’s campus and now have seen more than 40 of them. They’ve experienced everything from energetic laser displays featuring music from the Grateful Dead or Jimi Hendrix to immersive scientific programs about black holes and galaxies.

Sometimes they’ll see eight shows in a day during the annual Dome Fest West festival in April, which the planetarium hosts and features short films and utilizes immersive media.

“At its heart, Fiske isn’t just about astronomy or music — it’s an immersive experience,” Simon said in a Colorado Arts and Sciences Magazine profile. “It’s an art form that’s still finding its full expression.”

Fiske Planetarium opened in 1975 as the largest planetarium between Los Angeles and Chicago, a title it still retains with a 65-foot dome and 200-seat capacity. Its first show was about supernovae and their influence on Earth’s life.

Each year, the planetarium has held more than 700 public shows, not including field trips for K-12 students, CU classes and other special events. More than 60,000 visitors come to the planetarium annually, said Carla Johns, the planetarium’s community relations and engagement manager.

“Over the last 50 years, we estimate over a million people have seen a talk or a show at Fiske,” she said.

The planetarium’s best-selling shows range from topics like stars and planets to a Taylor Swift-themed laser show.

“Surprisingly,” said Johns, “Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon laser show has become a planetarium classic and is as popular now as it was back in the ’70s.”

What shows do you remember seeing at Fiske? Email us at editor@colorado.edu.

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Photo courtesy of Fiske Planetarium

Fiske Planetarium opened in 1975 as the largest planetarium between Los Angeles and Chicago, a title it still retains.

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