Opinion
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Pittsfield Hosts the First Out in the Berkshires Weekend October 10-12
Openly LGBT Events Come Out of the Closet
By: - Oct 02nd, 2009Pittsfield becomes the first city in the Berkshires to openly welcome LGBT visitors. On Columbus Day weekend, October 10-12, it kicks off an "Out in the Berkshires" weekend full of music, theatre and dance performances for the gay community and its friends. It's great to see the region openly welcome this segment of our population.
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Mayoral Race in North Adams Intensifies
Mayor John Barrett and Candidate Dick Alcombright Clash in Lively Debate
By: - Oct 01st, 2009Just like a church wedding the Alcombright supporters, many in his green t-shirts, sat in the pews on one side of the aisle, while the Barrett fans were seated opposite them. It evoked the visual image of a sharply divided city that reinforced the tough and contentious tone of the debate. It was an evening of lively political theatre with high stakes for the future of North Adams during a tough economy.
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Bountiful Fall Schedule Delights Berkshire Audiences
Our Guide to the Pick of the Harvest - through November
By: - Sep 10th, 2009Shorter days bring brighter nighttime events. With a cornucopia of choices, Fall 2009 promises to be the most entertaining in years. Check over our picks and previews which cover events from now until late November, and you're sure to find something to spice up your cider.
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The Artists in Adams, Mass
Interviews and Studio Visits
By: - Aug 30th, 2009Located between the larger and better known artist communities of Pittsfield and North Adams it is easy to overlook the vibrant Adams art scene. We visited and interviewed eight artists in their studios. They are all well established with an intriguing variety of work.
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Adams, Mass: Arts and Artists
Surveying Arts and Cultural Organizations
By: - Aug 29th, 2009The Arts and Artists of Adams, Massachusetts have received little attention. There are two vital and evolving arts organizations, the Topia Art Center and Greylock Arts Gallery, as well as several cultural entities to visit and enjoy.
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The Berkshire Late Summer Guide to Performances and Events
Our Picks and Previews for now through Labor Day 2009
By: - Aug 17th, 2009Summer may seem to be drawing to a close, but you can't tell by the busy schedule in the next few weeks. In fact, more new shows are opening, fresh dance companies are unpacking and the jazz musicians are waiting in the wings for a festive climax to Summer in the Berkshires. To make sure you don't miss anything, here is another handy roundup of the best events for late summer through the big Labor Day weekend.
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Best of the Berkshires for August 3 - 17
A Detailed Guide to Arts & Entertainment
By: - Aug 02nd, 2009composers, cutting edge dance or perhaps an absorbing evening of great theatre? Take time to indulge your senses and treat yourself to some of the Berkshire's legendary performing arts attractions. They all have great deals for residents and visitors alike. Use our handy Picks and Previews guide to help decide.
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Mayor John Barrett Speaks to Eclipse Mill Artists
Overview of 26 Years in North Adams Politics
By: - Jul 16th, 2009For 26 years John Barrett has served as the Mayor of North Adams. He is running for yet another two year term. In a meeting with artists of the Eclipse Mill complex he related the epic struggle to salvage a depressed city largely through his personal efforts to help Tom Krens and then Joe Thompson in their plan to transform the abandoned Sprague Electric campus into Mass MoCA. Some $35 million in state revenue was used to renovate the museum which is celebrating its first decade.
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Dick Alcombright Runs for Mayor of North Adams
The Candidate Answers Questions
By: - Jul 14th, 2009Recently Dick Alcombright who opposes the incumbent, John Barrett, met with us to discuss his platform as candidate for Mayor of North Adams. We particulaly focused on the presence of Mass MoCA, MCLA, and an emerging community of artists as a matrix for arts as an economic engine to drive a depressed and recovering city.
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Saratoga Performing Arts Center Season Opens
New York City Ballet, Philadelphia Orchestra, Lake George Opera, Bruce Springsteen
By: - Jul 11th, 2009For Berkshire residents the Saratoga Performing Arts Center is not that far away, and offers a completely different menu of performances to choose from. Their season had just begun when we visited. The New York City Ballet is in residence through July 18.
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Our Berkshire Review of the Arts :
July 6 - July 20Your Guide to the Best in Arts and Entertainment
By: - Jul 04th, 2009July is a great time to be in the Berkshires with dozens of must-see events taking place as we approach the height of the season. Making the right choices is challenging. Winnow them down using our capsule descriptions and handy links. There's no easier way to compare, check and choose than this handy guide. Lots of pictures, too.
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New York's World Science Festival
On Nothing and Other Important Matters
By: - Jun 20th, 2009The hottest tickets in New York from the 10th to the 14th of June were to events featuring physicists, neuroscientists and other exotic individuals. There was, indeed, much ado about nothing.
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A Berkshire Review of the Arts :
June 22 - July 5A Timely Guide to the Cultural Cornucopia
By: - Jun 19th, 2009Summer Begins with an amazing array of performing arts events to choose from. Both Tanglewood and Jacob's Pillow kick off their busy schedules while the main stages of the Berkshire's four resident professional theatre companies all kick into high gear. Our capsule descriptions and handy links will guide you through the dense array of superb cultural resources. In season world renowned artists perform in the Berkshires.
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Great Barrington's Mahaiwe Announces 2009-10 Season
A Diverse Array of Events in Next Twelve Months
By: - Jun 10th, 2009A new season of events kicks off July 5 with the reigning "Pied Piper of Music," Dan Zane and Friends and continues with opera, dance, theatre and "something for every taste."
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Our Latest Berkshire Review of the Arts for June 1-20
Your Guide to the Berkshire's Best in Theatre, Music, Dance
By: - Jun 01st, 2009June is bustin' out all over, and our resident performing arts organizations are pulling out all the stops as the season approaches. Once again we provide our handy guide to upcoming Berkshire events.
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Richard Alcombright Stirs the Pot
Mobbed Turnout for North Adams Mayoral Candidate's Fundraiser
By: - May 31st, 2009North Adams, and Mass MoCA now celebrating its 10th anniversary, have come a long way from rock bottom when Sprague Electric left town, during the 13 terms of Mayor John Barrett, Jr. For the first time in 26 years Barrett has a tough opponent in Dick Albombright. Some 800 plus turned out for a spaghetti dinner fundraiser last week. It's shaping up to be a tight race.
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Paul Chaat Smith: Everything You Know About Indians Is Wrong
Provocative Essays on Politics, Arts and Culture
By: - May 29th, 2009This is a thought provoking collection of essays, many produced for exhibition catalogues by Paul Chaat Smith an associate curator of the National Museum of the American Indian of the Smithsonian Institute in Washington, D.C.
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Nancy Jane Fitzpatrick's Red Lion Inn Facebook Party
Face It: The Challenges of Social Networking
By: - May 26th, 2009During a mixer that Nancy Jane Fitzpartick held in the Lion's Den of the historic Red Lion Inn in Stockbridge there was the chance to put a face in the place. The event was about Facebook networking in all of its complexity.
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Memorial Day and Liberty
Recalling Ellis Island
By: - May 25th, 2009For all those who sacrified that others may be free. A day to visit family grave sites and remember the fallen. From Ellis Island, to Gettysburg, to Iwo Jima and Normandy to Wounded Knee or Mi Lai. History is never simple and every cause is hardly just.
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Previews: A Berkshire Review of The Arts
Guide to Music, Theatre and Dance: May 18-31
By: - May 18th, 2009Here's your weekly guide to the top events happening in and around the Berkshires with more than a dozen exciting and fascinating offerings for you to choose from.
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Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center Announces Coming Season
Metropolitan Opera in HD Returns to Great Barrington
By: - May 09th, 2009The live in HD series of broadcasts from the Metropolitan Opera were an enormous success this past year for the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in Great Barrington. There will be a preview of the season which starts in the fall with a broadacast of a vintage performance of Renee Fleming starring in Eugene Onegin on July 11. The Mahaiwe is planning a stunning schedule of dance, music, film and theatre for the coming season.
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Biennale de Montreal 2009
Exploring the Theme of Open Culture
By: - May 05th, 2009The Biennale de Montreal, 2009 is the sixth in a series that was launched by Centre international d' art contemporain (CIAC) under its director, Claude Gosselin, a dozen years ago. The ambitious interactive theme of Open/ Libre Culture is a response to dramatic changes impacting a network of some 300 global biennial projects. The current version focuses primarily on Canadian artists.
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The Biennale of Montreal 2009
Interactive Arts Featured May 1 to 31
By: - Apr 25th, 2009Once again we expect the unexpected in the 2009 Biennale of Montreal (BNL MTL 09). Taking a lead from developments in on line social networking,media, texting, sampling in music and video,this event will allow the public to interact with all aspects of the intense, month long project.
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Provincetown Art Association and Museum
2009 Season Schedule
By: - Apr 17th, 2009There are many highlights offered in the dense schedule for the 2009 season of the Provincetown Art Association and Museum. Founded in 1914 the PAAM has served one of the nation's oldest and most renowned artist colonies. The exhibitions and programming reflect that rich history.
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Decline and Fall of Print Media
Rethinking Intellectual Property
By: - Apr 16th, 2009As newspapers make drastic cuts in response to mounting debt and decline of ad revenue there is a paradigm shift in the way that we gather and rely on the accuracy of information. In the blogosphere and Facebook/ Twitter world everyone is a media pundit. At least for the proverbial 15 minutes which has eroded to just seconds. In the internet age who "owns" the rights to text and images?
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