[Editor’s note: Since publication, The Youth Film Challenge screening at The Stissing Center in Pine Plains on Sunday, Dec. 5 has been canceled.]
STOCKBRIDGE — Each holiday season, the Town of Stockbridge becomes a magical New England village, decorated with wreaths and festive lights. There are activities for all ages to enjoy, including live performances, house tours, holiday markets, unique shopping opportunities, and other attractions.
View the original “Home for Christmas” at the Norman Rockwell Museum, along with the new exhibit “Jan Brett: Stories Near and Far,” holiday activities, and a well-stocked gift shop.
Visit the magical Winterlights at Naumkeag, revel in Joyful Family Holidays at The Red Lion Inn, and be entertained by special pop-up holiday offerings on Main Street throughout December. Hear Christmas carols and capture the moment in photo ops with tributes to a few Norman Rockwell paintings. Take a stroll through the Winter Wonderland Walkway of 16 lit and decorated trees at the Stockbridge Library, free of charge.
The Mount and Ventfort Hall, both in Lenox, are dressed up for the holidays and open for tours. The outdoor light and sound installation NightWood returns to The Mount for a second year, and Charles Dickens’ descendent performs a one-man theatrical interpretation of “A Christmas Carol” at Ventfort.
Berkshire Theatre Group presents Irving Berlin’s “White Christmas: The Musical” at its Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield and the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center in Great Barrington offers the Bolshoi Ballet in HD: The Nutcracker.
The BSO may have left the building for the season, but the Tanglewood Learning Institute is keeping music alive with a series of chamber music concerts. A special holiday encore presentation of The Magic Flute will be presented at The Clark.
—A.K.
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Berkshire Community College welcomes new exhibit to Koussevitzky Gallery
PITTSFIELD — Berkshire Community College (BCC) announces a new installation in its Koussevitzky Art Gallery — “The Body Politic” by artist Suzanne Lacke. The installation, on view Friday, Nov. 19–Monday, Dec. 20, explores the body, clothing, and the urban scene with boldly colored paintings and soft-hued sketches. Gallery hours are Mondays–Fridays, from 9 a.m.–5 p.m.
Lacke, a resident of Salisbury, Connecticut, lived for 40 years in Berkeley, California, where she painted, taught, and exhibited her artwork. She instructed a variety of art classes at two California community colleges and the University of California, Berkeley. Beginning with a focus on figure drawing and the human form, her interests expanded to the world outside the studio.
“I began drawing and painting people on the streets, in restaurants, libraries, on public transportation, in meetings, and almost anywhere I saw them,” Lacke said.
Lacke holds an MFA from the University of California, Berkeley and a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Pittsburgh. She also studied at the Art Students League in New York and at the New York University arts program in Madrid, Spain. She has held many solo and group exhibitions and authored several publications and articles.
—A.K.
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The Pass collecting Thanksgiving food donations for St. Stephen’s Table
SHEFFIELD — The Pass cannabis company announces that its retail dispensary is accepting food donations (canned, dried, non-perishables) for St. Stephen’s Table, which is based in Pittsfield and addresses food insecurity in the region. The Pass is accepting donations now through November 22 at its flagship store, located at 1375 N Main St. (MA Route 7) in Sheffield.
St. Stephen’s Table has been serving meals to those in need since 1984. The program operates on Thursdays and Fridays, providing hot take-out meals between 4:30 and 5:30 p.m. and distributing an average of 86 meals each night. Donations will be delivered to St. Stephen’s Table in Pittsfield before Thanksgiving.
—A.K.
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Berkshire Theatre Group announces new season of Hershey Felder Presents
PITTSFIELD — Berkshire Theatre Group (BTG) presents Season Two of Hershey Felder Presents — Live from Florence, featuring new musical and dramatic films, to be produced in Europe and broadcast for American audiences. Writer, pianist, and actor Felder, together with the arts broadcasting company he founded, Live from Florence, will expand beyond its home base in Italy with a season of new musical and dramatic stories set and filmed in Paris, Vienna, Venice, Warsaw, Avila, Spain, as well as Florence.
The 2021-2022 season will include Dante and Beatrice in Florence, premiering November 28, 2021, about Italy’s greatest poet Dante Alighieri and his muse, Beatrice; Mozart and Figaro in Vienna, premiering January 9, 2022, about the outrageous collaboration between Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart and Lorenzo da Ponte that created the perfect comic opera, The Marriage of Figaro; The Verdi Fiasco, premiering March 27, 2022, about the disastrous opening night of Verdi’s immortal La Traviata; The Assembly, premiering May 29, 2022, featuring the San Diego School of Creative and Performing Arts and telling the real-life story of Holocaust survivor Eva Libitzky’s visit to diverse urban schools and the shocking events that occurred; Chopin in Paris, premiering August 7, 2022, adapted from Felder’s critically acclaimed stage play Monsieur
Chopin about the music and life of Polish Pianist-composer Fryderyk Chopin; The Crazy Widow (of Moses de Leon), premiering October 16, 2022, set in Avila, Spain, and focusing on 13th century Jewish mysticism that is the basis for Kabbalah; and A Musical Surprise for Holiday Time, premiering December 18, 2022, the subject of which will be decided by viewers who have purchased season tickets.
After its livestreaming debut, each production will be available on-demand for one week to single ticket holders. Season purchasers will have continuous access to the complete library of Hershey Felder Presents — Live from Florence, including its first season, as well as additional content. Tickets are $50 per household if purchased prior to November 28, 2021 and thereafter $55 per household, with 50 percent of proceeds benefiting BTG.
For A Musical Surprise for Holiday Time, which premieres Sunday, Dec. 18, 2022, the artist to be featured will be chosen by patrons. When you purchase a season ticket, you will be able to send BTG your request. The composer/artist with the most requests will be the subject of the December 18 season finale, the only requirement being that the composer or musical artist must no longer be “with us.” Winner(s) of this audience event will be granted a walk-on role in the filmed production, and all-expense-paid travel and lodging to the location of the production for five days.
Holiday Pass: $89 (discounted from full price of $110) for viewing access to the first two productions of Season 2
Season Pass: $220 (discounted from a full price of $385) for all-access pass to seven new musical films
Season 2 pass holders must send their choice for composer or musical artist to be represented in film to MyShowChoice@gmail.com. Any participant who has voted for the artist/composer with the most votes will be placed in a lottery and the winning name will be pulled January 1, 2022 on a live feed airing on the HFP website at 12 p.m. Pacific Time. All entries must be received by December 31, 2021 at 12 p.m. Pacific Time. Only one entry per Season Pass purchase.
—A.K.
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Bridging Divides, Healing Communities Youth Film Challenge screenings set for December
PITTSFIELD — Over the past four months, young people throughout Berkshire County, Columbia County, northeast Dutchess County, and northwest Litchfield County engaged with polarizing social issues by making a short film showing how they contend with problems and inequities in the world and in their communities.
The Bridging Divides, Healing Communities Youth Film Challenge — an initiative run by the Berkshire Film and Media Collaborative and the Civic Life Project, and funded by the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation — received submissions from young people across the region. Now, a jury of local film industry professionals is judging the films to select the winners of $3,500 in cash awards and finalists for regional screenings and discussions.
The jury consists of five film industry professionals representing the region of eligibility:
Jayne Atkinson is an award-winning actor and Berkshire County resident who works in film, theater, and television. She is known primarily for her work in such hit television series as “24,” “House of Cards,” “Madam Secretary,” and “Clarice.”
Gretchen Rennell Court is a casting director and Sheffield resident. She has worked in film for more than four decades, casting such Hollywood hits as “Flashdance,” “Children of a Lesser God,” “The Color of Money,” and “The Horse Whisperer.”
Mirissa Neff is a documentary filmmaker and Columbia County resident whose work centers on themes of race, music, and how images can help people imagine new collective futures. She has worked as a producer and correspondent for a range of PBS and public radio programs. Her latest project, the feature film “This is National Wake,” will be released in 2022.
Damon Osora is an educator and Litchfield County resident. He is chairman of the English Department at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, where he has taught a range of classes, including film, since 1995.
Matthew Penn is an award-winning director and producer who grew up in Berkshire County and New York City. He has worked in theater as an actor and director, and has directed more than 150 primetime television dramas including “House,” “The Sopranos,” “The Closer,” and “Law & Order.”
The jury will determine the recipient of the Grand Prize of $2,000, as well as the second place ($1,000), and third place ($500) winners. The winners will be announced before Thanksgiving (November 25).
Three local venues will screen the top films submitted to the Youth Film Challenge:
- Crandell Theatre in Chatham, New York on Saturday, Dec. 4, at 11 a.m.
- The Stissing Center in Pine Plains, New York, on Sunday, Dec. 5, at 11:30 a.m.
- Daniel Arts Center, Bard College at Simon’s Rock, Great Barrington, Sunday, Dec. 12 at 3 p.m.
The free screenings will be followed by a Q&A session with local young filmmakers, depending on their availability, and a discussion about the topics they addressed.
—A.K.
