FODfest to honor the life of late journalist Daniel Pearl
Sheffield — On Saturday, Oct. 29, at 7:30 p.m., Music in Common (MiC) will present its flagship concert event, FODfest (Friends of Danny Festival), at Dewey Hall. FODfest celebrates the life of Daniel Pearl, the slain Wall Street Journal reporter who began his career at the North Adams Transcript and Berkshire Eagle. The concert will feature more than a dozen local musicians in a unique format that is part jam session, part song-swap, and part concert. Also included in the evening will be a screening of the new documentary short about MiC, “From Madness to Music,” which was released earlier this year. Doors will open at 6 p.m. with pizza, snacks and beverages available for purchase throughout the event.
Now in its twelfth year, FODfest was started by singer/songwriter and producer Todd Mack started FODfest as a way to honor his friend and bandmate after Pearl was abducted and killed by terrorists in Karachi, Pakistan, in 2002. This year’s line up will include Graham and Barbara Dean, Eric Reinhardt, Bruce Mandel, Marisa Massery, Juliet Popper, James Bill, David Hodge, Erika Ludwig, Joel Blumert, Steve Mole, Lee Rogers, Ryan Foss, and Glenn Geiger. New this year, FODfest artists will perform the songs written by MiC immersion program students.
Admission to the concert is free, but donations are encouraged. A silent auction and raffle of local items will take place throughout the evening. For more information, contact MiC at (413) 717-0374 or info@musicincommon.org.
–E.E.
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Naumkeag to host haunted house
Stockbridge — Haunted Halloween will return to the Carriage House at Naumkeag Thursday, Oct. 27, through Monday, Oct. 31, from 6:30 to 9 p.m. The haunted house will take place both indoors and in the gardens at Naumkeag so guests are encouraged to dress for the weather. A tent with drinks available for purchase will be provided as visitors wait to go through the Haunted House. Tickets are $15 for members and $25 for nonmembers and reservations are strongly encouraged. The suggested ages for entry are 13 and up, though not enforced and ultimately left to a parent’s discretion. For more information, contact Carrieanne at (413) 298-3239 x3013 or cpetrikhuff@thetrustees.org.
–E.E.
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Author Ian Buruma to give reading at Stockbridge Library
Stockbridge — The Stockbridge Library will welcome Ian Buruma, author of “Their Promised Land: My Grandparents in Love and War,” to its speaker series on Saturday, Oct. 29, at 4 p.m.
“Their Promised Land” is Buruma’s account of his grandparents’ enduring love through the terror and separation of two world wars. As the shadows of war again, Buruma’s grandparents mounted a remarkable effort to rescue 12 Jewish children from the Nazis and see to their upkeep in England.
Ian Buruma was educated in Holland and Japan. In the 1980s, he worked as a journalist and spent much of his early career travelling and reporting from all over Asia. He now writes about a broad range of political and cultural subjects for publications including the New York Review of Books, the New Yorker, the New York Times, la Repubblica, and NRC Handelsblad. He was awarded the 2008 international Erasmus Prize and was voted as one of the Top 100 Public Intellectuals by Foreign Policy and Prospect magazines in 2008 and in 2010.
For more information, call the Stockbridge Library at (413) 298-5501.
–E.E.
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L’Atelier Berkshires to welcome OxBow Road
Great Barrington — On Thursday, Oct. 27, from 7 to 9 p.m., L’Atelier Berkshires will welcome musical duo OxBow Road. OxBow Road consists of artist Kiki Dufault and musician Deborah McDowell of Club Helsinki Hudson. The duo is known for its rich harmony and unique country folk/rock compositions and will be celebrating the release of its new album, “Sweetheart. OxBow Road will be joined by Adam Post on bass. For more information, contact Natalie Tyler at (510) 469-5468 or natalie.tyler@atelierberks.com.
–E.E.
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Olana to offer ‘Owleen’ owl hike
Hudson, N.Y. — On Saturday, Oct. 29, at 7 p.m., the Olana State Historic Site will offer an “Owleen” owl hike, during which participants will have the opportunity to learn all about owls and to meet one of Wildlife Lectures owner Bill Robinson’s own owls.
Bill Robinson taught seventh grade biology for many years and has been a professor at SUNY New Paltz. He was the founder and past president of the New York State Falconry Association and also filmed and produced the educational video “Birds of Prey in the Natural World.” Robinson and his birds have appeared on many national broadcast TV shows, such as the Late Show with David Letterman, the Today Show, and Good Morning America.
The presentation and hike are acceptable for all ages. The program will start in the Wagon House Education Center and move to Olana’s carriage roads to try to spot owls in their natural habitat. Participants are advised to wear good walking shoes and to pack a flashlight. For more information or to register, call Olana’s education department at (518) 828-1872 x105.
–E.E.
