Wanda Houston to perform at BBG
Stockbridge— Berkshire Botanical Garden (BBG) will conclude their Music Monday series with a performance by Wanda Houston and her band on August 29. Vocalist Houston, who has toured with multiple Motown legends, will be joined by the three virtuoso and diverse musicians who form her band.
Beginning at 5:30 p.m., Houston will take the audience on a high-energy musical journey through the 40s, 50s, 60s and beyond. She will highlight the Great American songbook, jazz, motown, R&B, and pop from the early 20th century to modern music.
Tickets to Music Mondays are $10 for BBG members and $15 for non-members. Entrance is free for children 12 and under.
Audience members are encouraged to bring a picnic, a blanket or lawn chairs, stroll the grounds, and dance. A limited number of Berkshire Picnics are also available for reservation.
Music Mondays takes place rain or shine, but in case of severe weather, concerts will be canceled, and refunds given. In the event of questionable weather, please check the website, berkshirebotanical.org, or call 413-320-4794 for updated information.
For more information, visit www.berkshirebotanical.org/music-mondays-2022.
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Dewey Memorial Hall hosts ice cream social, honors Jean Chapin
Sheffield– On Tuesday, August 31 from 6 – 8 p.m., Dewey Memorial Hall will host an ice cream social with live music, lawn games, a coloring table, and door prizes. South Berkshire neighbors are invited to this free event, which is a chance to celebrate community and meet new friends.
The first 50 households to arrive will receive a bucket filled with treasures from Sheffield and Berkshire businesses, and High Lawn Farm ice cream will be available for free as long as it lasts. The Michael Junkins Jazz Duo will provide live music.
Jean Chapin, a lifelong Sheffield resident and former vice president of the Dewey Hall board, will be recognized at this event. Chapin has been awarded the 2021 award for Extraordinary Service. In the words of long time board member Ken Terry; “Jean was a steadfast pilot in the storm”, providing “the backbone of our efforts to keep the Hall going during a very dark and scary time.” She served on the Dewey Hall board for ten years, from 2003 to 2013. Chapin’s award will be given at 6:30 p.m.
For more information about the event, visit the Dewey Hall website.
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Molly McCully Brown to give public talk
Great Barrington— Bard College at Simon’s Rock will welcome acclaimed author and Simon’s Rock alumna Molly McCully Brown for a public talk reflecting on her award-winning collection of poetry and this year’s Book One selection, The Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and Feebleminded. The lecture and Q&A will take place Monday, August 29 at 7 p.m. in the McConnell Theater for the Simon’s Rock campus community and the public; a live stream of the event will also be available, free of charge, via Zoom.
Named one of the best books of the year by The New York Times, The Virginia State Colony for Epileptics and Feebleminded is haunted by the voices of those committed to the notorious Virginia State Colony, an epicenter of the American eugenics movement in the first half of the twentieth century.
Born with cerebral palsy, the author immerses herself in this devastating past, giving voice to the patients at the Colony. For all the horrors it channels, this visionary book uplifts through communion with the natural world and between poem and reader. “Molly McCully Brown’s first book of poems is part history lesson, part séance, part ode to dread. It is beautiful and devastating,” wrote The New York Times.
Raised in rural Virginia, Molly McCully Brown is a graduate of Bard College at Simon’s Rock, Stanford University, and the University of Mississippi, where she received her MFA. She teaches at Old Dominion University, where she is an Assistant Professor of English and Creative Nonfiction, and a member of the MFA Core Faculty.
Zoom information:
Webinar ID: 816 8487 4326
Join via Phone: +1 646 931 3860
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Clark Art Institute offers free admission on August Adventures Day.
Williamstown— On Tuesday, August 30, the Clark Art Institute will partner with the Highland Street Foundation to host August Adventures Day, providing free admission for all visitors.
August Adventures Day at the Clark is offered as a part of the Highland Street Foundation’s continued commitment to making cultural, historical, and nature venues accessible to all. August Adventures provides enriching opportunities throughout the month of August for individuals, children, and families across the Commonwealth. Each day, the program makes one museum, zoo, nature sanctuary, or event available to all with no admission fee. On August 30, visitors can visit three special exhibitions, Rodin in the United States: Confronting the Modern; José Guadalupe Posada: Symbols, Skeletons, and Satire; and Tauba Auerbach and Yuji Agematsu: Meander.
Visitors will also be able to view the permanent collection galleries which feature a rich array of works by artists including John Singer Sargent, Winslow Homer, Berthe Morisot, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Edgar Degas. Additionally, the Clark’s grounds, which are always open free of charge, provide miles of walking trails in a setting of profound natural beauty traversing meadows and woodlands. Drawing Pads and Looking Carefully Cards are available to enjoy sketching or to search the collection. The Clark’s Art Lab space also provides an area for hands-on art making activities.
For more information on the Clark, visit clarkart.edu. For additional details on August Adventures, visit highlandstreet.org.
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Litchfield County Choral Union presents annual concert
Norfolk, Conn.— The Litchfield County Choral Union (LCCU) was founded in 1899 and has – except during World War II and the 2020-1 coronavirus pandemic – offered annual choral concerts in the Concert Shed built by the Battell-Stoeckel family and located on their estate in Norfolk, CT.
This year, the annual concert will resume with a change of venue. Under the baton of Music Director Elizabeth Allyn, the LCCU will present a program of varied choral works, “The Gift of Song,” at 3 p.m. on Sunday, August 28 in the Battell Chapel on the Village Green in Norfolk. Tickets will be required because of limited seating, but there is no admission charge for this concert — a freewill offering will be received.
To reserve tickets, call the Church of Christ, Norfolk at 860-542-5721, specifying the number of tickets you wish to reserve. Members of the public may also attend the dress rehearsal as space allows on Thursday, August 25, at 6:30 pm. – no ticket necessary.
