Berkshire School’s Wu wins $10,000 Kapteyn Prize
Sheffield — Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation has announced that Berkshire School music teacher Tasia Cheng-Chia Wu has been awarded the 12th annual James C. Kapteyn Prize for excellence in teaching in an unprecedented year for the region’s educators and students. She will receive a $10,000 award for study or travel to enrich her teaching, and the school will receive a $2,000 grant in her name.
Wu joined Berkshire School’s music department in 2000. In addition to teaching music theory and advising students, she directs the chamber orchestra program and female a cappella ensemble, organizes a visiting artist series, and serves as music director and plays piano for musical theater productions. Under her leadership, the school’s music program has grown to include courses that focus on chorus, chamber music and music theory. She is a source of support for international students, who refer to her as “Mom.” She launched a popular Lunar New Year event featuring food, decorations, presentations and fireworks to celebrate the heritage of students who are often thousands of miles from home.
Colleagues, students and parents describe Wu as a passionate, innovative, endearing and selfless instructor who is also a gifted musician and an award-winning composer and director. “Dr. Wu is more than a teacher —e ven more than a mentor,” wrote recent graduate Logan Renneker. “She is an attitude. Her generosity, confidence, love of hard work and, most of all, kindness are imprinted upon every student she touches.”
Current student Hamda Hussein of Somaliland in East Africa says she views Wu as a role model and parental figure. “Dr. Wu has been making sure that I feel at home and that my identity and culture are recognized. She organized an advisory dinner where we cooked Somali traditional food. Those kinds of moments, which I am very grateful for, taught me the art of appreciation and the importance of welcoming people with love and kindness.”
Principals and heads of school may nominate an outstanding high school teacher who meets the vision of the fund. Nominations for next year’s Kapteyn Prize are due Feb. 9, 2021.
–E.E.
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Ventfort Hall provides special access to ‘A Christmas Carol’
Lenox — Ventfort Hall is collaborating with Byers’ Choice Ltd. on a new film version of “A Christmas Carol” performed by British actor Gerald Dickens, a great-great-grandson of author Charles Dickens. Byers’ Choice has sponsored Dickens’ annual U.S. tour of “A Christmas Carol” for over two decades and Ventfort Hall has hosted Dickens’ performance in the past.
In 1993, Dickens created as his first one-man show, “A Christmas Carol,” inspired by Charles Dickens’ own energetic readings of the 1860s in the United States and elsewhere. Using his own adaptation of the classic Christmas tale, Dickens plays 26 characters using his vocal and physical talents to bring each scene to life. Dickens has worked both on- and offstage as an actor, director and producer. A fascination with the life and works of his ancestor led him to write and direct other one-man shows including “Mr. Dickens Is Coming!”, “Nicholas Nickleby” and “Sketches by Boz.” Dickens performs regularly in major theaters and arts centers, as well as at several arts and literary festivals in the United Kingdom and has entertained cruise passengers worldwide since 2007.
Access to the film may be purchased for $20. The film is available to stream through Thursday, Dec. 31. For tickets and more information, see the Berkshire Edge calendar, or contact Ventfort Hall at (413) 637-3206 or info@gildedage.org.
–E.E.
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Auditory After Hours to continue with Clipping
North Adams — MASS MoCA will continue its Auditory After Hours series Saturday, Dec. 5, at 7 p.m. with Clipping.
The Los Angeles-based experimental hip-hop trio Clipping will dive into its archive to create a darkly atmospheric gallery soundtrack with material from an abandoned audiobook score (one chapter of which premiered at MASS MoCA in June 2019 at Solid Sound). Titled “The Depths,” this new chapter is intended to immerse listeners in a cold, Atlantean soundscape during their nocturnal spelunking of the galleries.
Tickets are $30 for adults, $10 for members and $18 for youth ages 6-16. Ticketholders are asked to bring their own smartphones or other Wi-Fi-enabled listening devices and headphones in order to access the music. For tickets and more information, see the Berkshire Edge calendar, or contact MASS MoCA at (413) 662-2111 or info@massmoca.org.
–E.E.
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Simon’s Rock pianist to perform program of modern American music
Great Barrington — On Sunday, Dec. 6, at 3 p.m., Bard College at Simon’s Rock will present a virtual faculty recital with pianist Aaron Likness.
Likness will perform modern and contemporary American music, including Charles Ives’ Piano Sonata no. 2, “Concord, 1840-1860,” the composer’s homage to Transcendentalism; John Wesley Work III’s “Scuppernong: Three Pieces for Country Folk”; and the premiere of “Mood No. 1” by Simon’s Rock faculty member Larry Wallach. Likness is a pianist and collaborator active in the New York and Boston metropolitan areas. He is a graduate of the New England Conservatory and the University of North Carolina.
The event is free and open to the public via Zoom. For more information or to register, see the Berkshire Edge calendar, or contact Bard College at Simon’s Rock at 413-644-4400 or info@simons-rock.edu.
–E.E.
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Bidwell House Museum to hold fundraising auction
Monterey — The Bidwell House Museum’s fall fundraising auction, “The 12 Days of Bidwell Bidding,” runs through Saturday, Dec. 12, and includes artworks, furniture, gift certificates, experiences and more. The funds raised from the auction will help the museum work through the winter and plan for a 2021 season. For more information, contact the Bidwell House Museum at (413) 528-6888 or bidwellhouse@gmail.com.
–E.E.
