Berkshire Theatre Group presents Rev Tor’s 14th Annual Dead of Winter Jam, celebrating the music and enduring spirit of Bob Weir and the Grateful Dead, at the Colonial Theatre
Pittsfield— On Saturday, February 7th at 7:30 p.m., Berkshire Theatre Group presents Rev Tor’s 14th Annual Dead of Winter Jam, celebrating the music and enduring spirit of Bob Weir and the Grateful Dead, at the Colonial Theatre.
Hosted by Dead Man’s Waltz & Friends, this year’s Dead of Winter Jam honors 61 years of Grateful Dead music, with special attention to the songs, collaborations, and improvisational spirit that Weir brought to the stage. As a founding member and creative cornerstone of the Grateful Dead, Bob Weir’s songwriting, rhythm guitar style, and musical vision helped define a band whose influence continues more than six decades later. Interweaving classic songs with extended improvisation, Dead Man’s Waltz brings a deep respect for Bob Weir’s body of work and the Grateful Dead catalog while offering a fresh, dynamic interpretation that captures the freedom and communal energy at the heart of the music.
The evening features special guest performances by Hayley Jane, Mark Mercier, Max Chase, and Mike “Woody” Wood, uniting standout musicians from the Northeast jam and festival scene for a night rooted in collaboration and musical exploration.
The celebration is on Saturday, February 7th at 7:30 p.m. at the Colonial Theatre, located at 111 South Street in Pittsfield. In keeping with the spirit of community that has always defined the Dead, patrons are encouraged to bring non-perishable food items, which will be donated to a local food pantry in need. Tickets and more information can be found online.
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Berkshire Bach Society presents master organist Renée Anne Louprette on the 1893 Johnson Organ at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House in Housatonic to open its 2026 Organ Masters series
Housatonic— On Saturday, February 7th at 2 p.m., Berkshire Bach Society presents master organist Renée Anne Louprette on the 1893 Johnson Organ at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House in Housatonic to open its 2026 Organ Masters series.
In a program suited to the delicate voice of the 1893 Johnson Organ, Renée Anne Louprette presents The Baroque Dance Masters with works by Bach, Georg Böhm, Dieterich Buxtehude, and Élisabeth-Claude Jacquet de la Guerre, one of the most remarkable composers of the Baroque era. Terrill McDade, Executive Director of the Berkshire Bach Society said, “For good reason we’ve called the 1893 Johnson Organ at the UU Meeting House in Housatonic a hidden gem,” commenting on how it still sounds very much the way it did when it was new.
Notably, her program includes the Chaconne in G minor that was one of two pieces recently attributed to a young J.S. Bach and added to the catalog as BWV 1179. The work dates from 1705 when J.S. Bach was 20 and is one of the earliest finished works by him to survive. It dates from the same year that he traveled to Lübeck to hear Buxtehude perform, which had a profound impact on his compositional style. Berkshire Bach is pleased to provide an opportunity to hear the work live.
Renée Anne Louprette is Assistant Professor of Music and College Organist at Bard College where she directs the Bard Baroque Ensemble. She has performed on important organs throughout the world and had received a Fulbright research grant to document the restoration of historic organs in Romania.
The concert is on Saturday, February 7th at 2 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Meeting House, located at 1089 Main Street in Housatonic. Louprette will provide commentary during the program and will conduct a Q&A session after the recital. Tickets and more information can be found online. The series continues on May 2nd with Peter Sykes on the great Roosevelt Organ at the First Congregational Church in Great Barrington in a program of works from the great French organ tradition that brings out the beauty and power of this cultural treasure.
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Becket Arts Center presents guest performer Douglas Ray Williams
Becket— On Friday, January 30th and Saturday, January 31st from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m., Becket Arts Center presents guest performer Douglas Ray Williams.
Friday, January 30th, Douglas Ray Williams will take on the role of Dr. Jörg Malmquist, an acclaimed self-help guru, delving into the mysteries of love in the format of a hilarious mock symposium on “romantic love and sexual fulfillment.” Dr. Jörg will be joined by other weirdos from Doug’s panoply of characters and a few local special guests as well.
On Saturday, January 31st, Williams will be joined by the award-winning costume and wig designer Seth Bodie, in “Wigs.” Bodie will have prepared five different character looks, which will be revealed to Williams for the first time in front of the audience. Williams will then have to create unique characters on the spot, testing all his improvisational skills.
The performances are on Friday, January 30th and Saturday, January 31st from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Becket Arts Center, located at 7 Brooker Hill Road in Becket. Tickets and more information can be found online.
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Berkshire International Film Festival presents special encore screening of ‘To Life!’ in observance of Holocaust Remembrance Day
Great Barrington— On Sunday, February 1st at 3 p.m., the Berkshire International Film Festival (BIFF) presents a special encore screening of “To Life!” (original German title “Auf das Leben!”) in observance of Yom HaShoah (Holocaust Remembrance Day.)
Originally shown at BIFF in 2015, the film follows the intertwined lives of Ruth, an aging cabaret singer, and Jonas, a young man facing a terminal illness. Though separated by generations and shaped by vastly different life experiences, the two form an unexpected and profound bond – giving one another renewed purpose and a reason to live. Experience this powerful and life-affirming film, followed by a conversation with award-winning screenwriter Stephen Glantz.
The screening is on Sunday, February 1st at 3 p.m. at The Triplex Cinema, located at 70 Railroad Street in Great Barrington. The film is in German with English subtitles. Tickets and more information can be found online.
This event was previously scheduled for Sunday, January 25th at 3 p.m.
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Lenox Library and Indie Lens Pop-Up present a screening of ‘The Librarians, A Powerful Look at the Quiet Heroes Battling Book Bans in America’
Lenox— On Saturday, February 7th at 2 p.m., Lenox Library and Indie Lens Pop-Up present a screening of “The Librarians, A Powerful Look at the Quiet Heroes Battling Book Bans in America,” he critically-acclaimed documentary that follows a courageous network of besieged librarians as they unite to examine how book restriction policies are shaping library collections.
From Oscar-nominated Director and Producer Kim A. Snyder and Executive Producer Sarah Jessica Parker, “The Librarians” takes viewers from Texas to Florida and beyond, where local libraries have become unexpected battlegrounds in a national struggle over parental control, intellectual freedom, and democracy itself. The film takes a deep investigative dive into the escalating movement against book banning, capturing the courage and resilience of the everyday heroes, librarians, as well as concerned parents and students flanking them, who have become first responders in the fight for the freedom to read, standing defiantly against censorship at all costs.
After the screening, there will be an engaging and interactive panel discussion about censorship, its effects on democracy, and the broader implications for education and intellectual freedom. Panelists include:
- Martin Garnar (he/him) Director of the Amherst College Library and editor of the Intellectual Freedom Manual (10th ed.)
- Jennifer Guerin (she/her) Librarian at W.E.B. Du Bois Regional Middle School in Great Barrington, MA, where a complaint against Maia Kobabe’s “Gender Queer” in a teacher’s classroom made national headlines in 2024.
- Colleen AF Venable (she/her/they) is the author of the National Book Award Longlisted “Kiss Number 8,” a graphic novel co-created with Ellen T. Crenshaw that has been banned in 11 states; and “Katie the Catsitter” series with Stephanie Yue (banned in Florida and Tennessee.) Colleen is also the graphic novel adapter of the “Junie B. Jones” series, which has lived on the banned list for the last 30+ years. In addition, Colleen is one of the national leaders of Authors Against Book Bans.
The event is on Saturday, February 7th at 2 p.m. at the Lenox Town Hall Auditorium, located at 6 Walker Street in Lenox. Following the presentation, The Bookstore will be selling a variety of banned book titles. More information can be found online.
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Ventfort Hall Gilded Age Mansion & Museum presents Richard Dauchy, beloved Berkshire docent, for a spirited game of Gilded Age trivia
Lenox— On Sunday, February 8th from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m., Ventfort Hall Gilded Age Mansion & Museum presents beloved Berkshire docent Richard Dauchy for a spirited game of Gilded Age trivia.
Gather a team of three and take your stand against other Gilded Age aficionados on trivia of the era and about the Berkshire Cottages.
The event is on Sunday, February 8th from 4:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. at Ventfort Hall Gilded Age Mansion & Museum, located at 104 Walker Street in Lenox. There will be a cash bar of beer and wine. Reservations and more information can be found online.
