Some incredibly unique talents have chosen to spend their entire weekend with Berkshire Busk! Headlining the bill is Groovy Guy, an internationally traveling professional street performer who is bringing his juggling skills to Great Barrington for the first time.
Friday Highlights: Comedy Juggling, Roots Music Galore
Guy Collins, also known as Groovy Guy, earned his stripes as a comedy juggler in the U.K. and Europe through street performance and appearances at Renaissance fairs, circuses, and more. Guy has been a mainstay at busking hotspots like London’s Covent Garden and Key West’s Mallory Square. While working at Boston’s Faneuil Hall, he earned a $10,000 tip from Penn Jillette (of Penn & Teller) and the Travel Channel. He will be performing on lower Railroad Street on both Friday and Saturday evenings.
On the music side, Berkshire Busk! regulars will enjoy the return of Dav!d Reed with his upper Railroad Street performance. Reed’s performances are marked by his charisma, unusual collection of instruments, and wide variety of uplifting tunes. Other musicians throughout downtown include Christina Dellea, Ian Herchenroder, and Jasperoo.
Saturday Highlights: Henna, Poetry, Southern Rock
On Saturday, Colby Lewis with Whitewood will take the upper Railroad Stage opposite Groovy Guy. Lewis frequently performs at the Busk as an acoustic solo artist, but made his debut with Whitewood last summer. His latest performance is bound to be full of high-energy classic southern rock.
Attendees are encouraged to pay Poppy and Kevin Devaney a visit on both Friday and Saturday night while they are stationed downtown. The two bohemian artists each travel throughout the country with their talents, Poppy as a henna artist, and Devaney as a busking poet who creates compositions before your eyes on a vintage typewriter. Other talents throughout downtown range from Balloon Ben to musical duos Kajax and Rick & Marilyn, as well as solo artist Daring Coyotes.
Extended Schedule on Saturdays
Poppy and Kevin Devaney will also be found in front of Robin’s Candy on Saturday afternoon. Bring the kids downtown early to enjoy Willy Welch at the morning’s Farmers Market. Welch is an accomplished singer-songwriter who has written 36 songs for “Barney & Friends” on PBS (though his full repertoire appeals to all ages). Jerry Posner, a motivational speaker by trade, will be playing some feel-good tunes on his ukuleles and dulcimer at Berkshire Mountain Distillers from 2 to 4 p.m.
Berkshire Busk! is free to attend and takes place in downtown Great Barrington every Friday and Saturday evening, from June 28 through August 31. Primary festival programming begins at 6:30 p.m. Visit the Berkshire Busk! website for the full schedule of events.
