Spencertown Academy presents ‘Gary Lucas: Solo Electric and Acoustic’
Spencertown, N.Y.— On Saturday, January 11th at 7:30 p.m., Spencertown Academy Roots & Shoots Concerts Series presents “Gary Lucas: Solo Electric and Acoustic.”
Acclaimed guitarist and Grammy-nominated songwriter Gary Lucas will perform a tour de force program of original songs, blues, tributes to Lucas collaborators Captain Beefheart and Jeff Buckley, covers of 1930’s Chinese pop, Wagner, Stones, electronic soundscapes, and more.
“We are looking forward to welcoming Gary Lucas back to the Academy. He is one of the most innovative guitarists I’ve ever seen play live,” says Dusty Wright, a member of the Academy Music Committee. “His repertoire is so vast, each show is unique, inspired by the vibe of the audience and his mood in the moment.”
Lucas has performed and collaborated with a who’s who of musical luminaries, including Captain Beefheart (Don Van Vliet), Jeff Buckley, Leonard Bernstein, Lou Reed, John Cale, Patti Smith, Chris Cornell, Nick Cave, and many others. He has also recorded over 50 albums to date in his own right in a variety of genres, including jazz, rock, classical, folk, blues, avant-garde, and world music, and has performed in over 40 countries. He has received several Lifetime Achievement awards for his songwriting with Jeff Buckley (he co-wrote Buckley’s anthems “Grace” and “Mojo Pin”) and many honors, including performing solo before the General Assembly of the United Nations to commemorate International Holocaust Remembrance Day.
The concert is on Saturday, January 11th at 7:30 p.m. at Spencertown Academy, located at 790 State Route 203 in Spencertown, N.Y. Tickets and more information can be found online.
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Stockbridge Library presents an author talk with Jonathan Alter
Stockbridge— On Saturday, December 14th at 3 p.m., visit the Stockbridge Library to listen to author Jonathan Alter speak about his book “American Reckoning: Inside Trump’s Trial — And My Own.”
Jonathan Alter is an award-winning author, political analyst, documentary filmmaker, columnist, television producer, and radio host. A former senior editor and columnist at Newsweek, Alter is a longtime political analyst for NBC News and MSNBC. He co-produced and co-directed the HBO documentary “Breslin and Hamill: Deadline Artists,” which won the 2020 Emmy for Outstanding Historical Documentary. In 2013-2014, he was an executive producer of “Alpha House,“ a comedy on Amazon. Over the years, Alter has written for the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Washington Monthly, the New Yorker, Bloomberg, the Daily Beast, and other publications. In 2021, he launched a weekly Substack newsletter called “OLD GOATS, Ruminating with Friends,” which includes frequent columns and his conversations with accomplished people of wisdom and experience.
Alter will be in conversation with André Bernard. For nearly 20 years André Bernard has been Vice President and Secretary of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation, which has awarded Fellowships to exceptional artists and scholars in 55 fields annually since 1925. He held various editorial positions at Viking Penguin, Simon & Schuster, David Godine, and The Book-of-the-Month Club, and served as Editor-in-Chief and then Publisher of Harcourt Brace. He is the author of five books of literary miscellany, for a decade wrote book-related columns for The American Scholar and The Kenyon Review, and has appeared on various media discussing writers and publishing, including “The Today Show” and NPR’s “All Things Considered.”
The free event is on Saturday, December 14th at 3 p.m. at the Stockbridge Library, located at 46 Main Street in Stockbridge. More information can be found online.
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Ventfort Hall Gilded Age Mansion & Museum presents ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ marionette shows by Carl Sprague
Lenox— On December 27th and 28th at 3:30 p.m., Ventfort Hall Gilded Age Mansion & Museum presents ‘Little Red Riding Hood’ marionette shows by Carl Sprague.
Experience the Gilded Age art of marionette puppetry and storytelling. Bring the kiddos and be part of the Ventfort Hall tradition of Carl Sprague’s captivating and practical marionette magic. The audiences will have the opportunity to meet this wizard, who knows how to pull strings.
“Little Red Riding Hood” is a fairy tale about a young girl and a sly wolf. The young girl is bringing food to her grandmother and encounters the wolf on her walk through the woods. Its origins can be traced back to several pre-17th-century European folk tales. The two best known versions were written by Charles Perrault and the Brothers Grimm.
Sprague has been a set designer for such motion pictures as “The Royal Tenenbaums” and Scorcese’s “The Age of Innocence,” as well as for theater productions including Shakespeare & Company. Sprague, who has appeared annually at Ventfort Hall with his “behind the scenery” mastery, has been a puppeteer since childhood. He inherited a collection of 60 antique Czech marionettes, each about eight inches tall, that were assembled by his great-grandfather, Julius Hybler.
The shows are on December 27th and 28th at 3:30 p.m. at Ventfort Hall Gilded Age Mansion & Museum, located at 104 Walker Street in Lenox. Tickets and more information can be found online.
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Drag Story Hour at Berkshire Museum
Pittsfield— On Saturday, December 14th from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m., the Berkshire Museum presents Drag Story Hour.
Drag Story Hour captures the imagination and play of the gender fluidity of childhood and gives kids glamorous, positive, and unabashedly queer role models. In spaces like this, kids are able to see people who defy rigid gender restrictions and imagine a world where everyone can be their authentic selves.
The all-ages event is on Saturday, December 14th from 2 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the Berkshire Museum, located at 39 South Street in Pittsfield. More information can be found online.
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Lenox Winterland Festival
Lenox— On Saturday, December 14th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., the Lenox Chamber of Commerce presents the Lenox Winterland Festival, an annual event to welcome the holiday season with artisan craft vendors, food, donuts with Santa, music, and cheer.
Attendees can shop with local merchants as they offer holiday specials or browse the Artisan Crafters present for unique gifts for friends and family. Products from artisan crafters include handcrafted jewelry, candles, maple syrup products, alpaca hats and mittens, glassworks, and much more.
From 10 a.m. to noon, kids can meet with Santa. Shire Donuts will have specialty donuts available for purchase to benefit the Elizabeth Freeman Center. Live entertainment will be provided by Christine Bilé. There will be food and beer trucks from Charlie’s Bistro Truck and Antimony Brewing, and Restaurant Cello will be serving hot cocoa and cookies at their spot along with brunch service. There will also be a raffle to benefit the Elizabeth Freeman Center.
Attendees can also enjoy the Holiday Tree Walk where Lenox businesses have individually decorated trees complete with a hidden pickle for the kids to hunt for. Maps will be available at the Lenox Chamber table at the event. The local downtown merchants will have holiday specials and some will be offering other treats.
The event is on Saturday, December 14th from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. at 51 to 67 Church Street in Lenox. More information can be found online.
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Catamount Mountain Resort to dedicate a race trail to skiing legend Toni Matt
Hillsdale, N.Y.— On Saturday December 14th at 1 p.m., Catamount Mountain Resort will dedicate a race trail to skiing legend Toni Matt.
Ski pioneer Toni Matt was a champion Austrian and American ski racer who spent his life in the mountains beginning in his childhood home of St. Anton, Austria and continuing in America in New England, Montana, and New York. The former Ski School Director at Catamount from 1960-1974 achieved success and notoriety throughout his career culminating with his induction into the United States Ski Hall of Fame in 1967.
Soon after becoming the 1938 Austrian Junior national champion at age 19, Matt came to the United States in 1939 with Herbert Schneider to teach skiing with the Hannes Schneider Ski School. In the same year, he won his first United States downhill championship and also set a record when he won the Inferno Race on Mount Washington in New Hampshire. Matt’s record time still stands today and clocks in at 6 minutes ahead of the previous record time. Toni Matt’s second United States downhill championship would come in 1941.
Toni Matt had a storied career on two continents in skiing, ski racing, coaching, and serving his country in the U.S. Army. “The Toni Matt racing trail dedication will be a great day for the Toni Matt family, a great day for Catamount Mountain Resort, and a great day for ski history in America” said Richard Matt, son of Toni Matt.
The dedication will be on Saturday December 14th at 1 p.m. at Catamount Mountain Resort, located at 78 Catamount Road in Hillsdale. More information can be found online.
