Berkshire Grown to hold holiday farmers’ markets
Great Barrington — Berkshire Grown will present holiday farmers’ market from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 15, at Monument Valley Regional Middle School and Sunday, Dec. 16, at Sweetwood in Williamstown. The markets will feature children’s activities, food for breakfast and lunch, and live music by local musicians.
The markets will showcase the Berkshires’ winter bounty of apples, potatoes, carrots, beets, winter squash, onions, garlic, mushrooms, and a variety of greens including kale, Brussels sprouts and micro greens. Shoppers will also find fresh eggs, chicken, lamb, grass-fed pork and beef, and over a dozen different kinds of locally produced cheeses, jams, pickles, kimchi, sauerkraut, honey and baked goods.
An expanded winter market season will see additional markets taking place at MVRMS January through April on the third Saturday of the month. Admission to the markets is free and SNAP/EBT will be accepted. For more information, contact Berkshire Grown at (413) 528-0041 or buylocal@berkshiregrown.org.
–E.E.
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Shakespeare & Company to stage ‘Pride and Prejudice’
Lenox — Shakespeare & Company will present a costumed reading of “Pride and Prejudice” written by Jon Jory and based on the novel by Jane Austen Friday, Dec. 14, through Sunday, Dec. 16, in the Company’s Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre.
Directed and staged by longtime Company member and producing associate Ariel Bock, the family-friendly holiday performance is a fast-paced reading in which all of the wit and romance of the classic 1813 novel come to life. Finding a husband is hardly Elizabeth Bennet’s most urgent priority but, with four sisters, an overzealous match-making mother and a string of unsuitable suitors, it’s difficult to escape the subject. When the independent-minded Elizabeth meets the handsome but enigmatic Mr. Darcy, she is determined not to let her feelings triumph over her own good sense, but the truth turns out to be slipperier than it seems.
Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for students. For tickets and more information, see the Berkshire Edge calendar or contact the Shakespeare & Company box office at (413) 637-3353.
–E.E.
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Mobile sound sculpture ‘Unsilent Night’ to visit North Adams, Hudson
New York City — Phil Kline’s mobile sound-sculpture “Unsilent Night” will visit North Adams, Massachusetts, Thursday, Dec. 13, at 5:30 p.m. and Hudson Saturday, Dec. 22, at 6:30 p.m.
“Unsilent Night” is an original composition by Kline, written specifically to be heard outdoors in the month of December. It takes the form of a street promenade in which the audience members are the performers. Each participant gets one of four tracks of music. The music was originally played using only cassette tapes in boomboxes but, as vintage boomboxes have become harder to find, most people use smartphones with portable speakers to blast the music. Together, all four tracks comprise “Unsilent Night.”
A limited supply of boomboxes will be available to borrow on a first-come, first-served basis. Those planning to use smartphones are asked to go to unsilentnight.com/participate before the event to download a track, or download the Unsilent Night app. The event is free and all are invited to participate. For more information, contact info@unsilentnight.com.
–E.E.
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Ancram Opera House to present ‘Real People, Real Stories’
Ancram, N.Y. — The Ancram Opera House will close out its 2018 season with ‘Real People, Real Stories’ Saturday, Dec. 15, at 3 p.m.
‘Real People, Real Stories’ draws storytellers from the local community and is performed twice each year. The theme for the holiday edition of the series will be “The Kindness of Strangers.” Featured storytellers will include Norm DeGuerre of Hudson with a story about a chance meeting in the Barcelona subway; Dean Irwin of Ancramdale with a story about a helping hand in the tape room at ABC Studios; Brett LaFave of Albany with a story about a near-death experience; and Jenny Seham of Copake with a story about an encounter in the Bellevue Hospital lock-down psychiatric ward. Also featured will be a special guest storyteller from the North East Community Center teen program.
Tickets are $20. For tickets and more information, see the Berkshire Edge calendar or contact Ancram Opera House at (518) 329-0114 or info@ancramoperahouse.org.
–E.E.
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Bidwell House Museum to screen lecture on the supernatural world of the 1700s
Monterey — As the first offering in its new off-season “History Talk Replay” program, the Bidwell House Museum will present a screening of its 2010 talk “The Supernatural World in the 1700: Religion, Magic, Witchcraft and ‘Wonders’” by John Demos Sunday, Dec. 16, at 1 p.m. at the Monterey Community Center.
Demos, the Samuel Knight Professor of American History emeritus at Yale University, is an award-winning author and Tyringham resident. His books include “The Unredeemed Captive: A Family Story from Early America” and, most recently, “Puritan Girl, Mohawk Girl.” His 1982 book “Entertaining Satan: Witchcraft and the Culture of Early New England” won the Bancroft Prize.
Admission is free and donations are welcome. Coffee and cookies will be served. For more information, contact the Bidwell House Museum at (413) 528-6888 or bidwellhouse@gmail.com.
–E.E.
