Thursday, November 7, 2024

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Bits & Bytes: Youth Art Month at Berkshire Museum; peace walkers in Great Barrington; Jeff Goodell on rising sea levels; WAM Theatre auditions

The six peace walkers, including Japanese Buddhist nun Jun-san Yasuda, are walking to Indian Point Energy Center nuclear power plant in Buchanan, New York, to raise awareness about nuclear weapons and waste.

Berkshire Museum to present Youth Art Month

Pittsfield — An exhibition of artwork from 12 art classrooms across Berkshire County will be on view in the Berkshire Museum’s Crane Room from Friday, March 2, through Saturday, March 3. Organized by the Berkshire County Arts Educators Professional Learning Network, the exhibition highlights work produced by Berkshire County students and arts educators.

An opening reception will be held Friday, March 2, from 5 to 7 p.m. and will feature performances from the Hoosac Valley High School Jazz Ensemble, directed by Jake Keplinger, at 5 p.m.; and the Berkshire Arts & Technology Charter Public School Wind Quartet at 6 p.m., directed by James Bergin.

The reception is free and open to the community. For more information, contact the Berkshire Museum at (413) 443-7171.

–E.E.

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Grafton Peace Pagoda walkers to arrive in Great Barrington

Jun-san Yasuda. Photo courtesy Grafton Peace Pagoda

Great Barrington — The public is invited to welcome the Grafton Peace Pagoda peace walkers at the South Berkshire Friends Meeting House Tuesday March 6, at 5 p.m. when they will arrive on foot having walked from Lenox. The group consists of six walkers, including Japanese Buddhist nun Jun-san Yasuda who has crossed the country five times on foot and logged several thousand additional miles for the cause of peace, who are walking to Indian Point Energy Center nuclear power plant in Buchanan, New York, to raise awareness about nuclear weapons and waste. The peace walk coincides within the current context of the ongoing threat of nuclear war with North Korea; the increasing confrontations with Russia in Ukraine and Syria; the Trump administration’s plans to spend more than $1 trillion for new nuclear weaponry over the next 30 years; and the ongoing crisis of radiation spills at Fukushima, Japan.

The event will begin with a potluck meal (anyone planning to attend is asked to bring a dish to share) and include a talkback with Jun-sanYasuda following the meal. Organized by the Grafton Peace Pagoda, Massachusetts Peace Action and South Berkshire Friends Meeting, the event is free and open to the public. For more information, contact the South Berkshire Friends Meeting at (413) 528-1230.

–E.E.

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Author Goodell to discuss rising sea levels

Jeff Goodell. Photo courtesy Jeff Goodell

Williamstown — Author and Rolling Stone contributing editor Jeff Goodell will speak at Williams College’s Paresky Auditorium Tuesday, March 6, at 7:30 p.m.

Goodell’s lecture, “The Water Will Come: How Rising Seas Will Change the World,” will focus on sea-level rise and the floods of the future. It will be based on his 2017 book “The Water Will Come: Rising Seas, Sinking Cities and the Remaking of the Civilized World.” In the book, Goodell gives an account of the coming water, why and how it will happen, and what it will all mean. Goodell is also the author of “Big Coal: The Dirty Secret Behind America’s Energy Future” and “How to Cool the Planet: Geoengineering and the Audacious Quest to Fix Earth’s Climate.” He is the recipient of the Sierra Club’s David Brower Award as well as a Grantham Prize Award of Special Merit.

The event is free and open to the public, and will be followed by a book signing. For building locations on the Williams campus, consult the online map or call the Office of Communications at (413) 597-4277.

–E.E.

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WAM Theatre to hold auditions for Fresh Takes play reading series

Talya Kingston. Photo courtesy WAM Theatre

Lenox — WAM Theatre will hold Equity principal auditions for its Fresh Takes play reading series Tuesday, March 20, and Wednesday, March 21. Auditions will be hosted by associate artistic director Talya Kingston with artistic director Kristen van Ginhoven.

Fresh Takes presents new works by women playwrights and the 2018 performances are scheduled for Sunday, April 15; Thursday, May 3; Sunday, June 10; a to-be-determined date in August; and Sunday, Sept. 16. Performances will take place at No. Six Depot Roastery and Cafe in West Stockbridge and at Shakespeare & Company’s Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre.

In 2018, any actor or stage manager involved in Fresh Takes, Equity or non-Equity, will be paid a minimum-wage hourly fee. Equity actors and stage managers will work under a pending Staged Reading Contract. The commitment involves six hours of rehearsal the day prior to the reading plus the reading itself. Auditions will take place via appointment only. Actors are asked to prepare a one-to two-minute contemporary monologue and may also be asked to read sides. Those wishing to audition should submit resumes and headshots as PDF and JPEG attachments by Friday, March 9, to Talya Kingston at talya@wamtheatre.com to arrange for a time slot.

Performers of all ethnicities, gender identities and ages, as well as performers with disabilities, are encouraged to audition. Non-Equity actors will be seen as time permits and should submit a photo and resume and indicate their non-union statuses in their requests.

–E.E.

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