Saturday, June 21, 2025

News and Ideas Worth Sharing

Bits & Bytes: Shire City Sessions; Stanton Home 30th anniversary; Marko Remec at Chesterwood; ‘Ugly Lies the Bone’ talkback; Behold! New Lebanon July 23 tours; book release at Arrowhead

Stanton Home has been providing care for people with special needs since 1986 and invites the public to tour its grounds, weavery and organic gardens, as well as to meet residents, staff and international volunteers.

Shire City Sessions to return for 2016

Pittsfield — Shire City Sessions is back for 2016 with a new location at the First Street Common, 90 First St., and an inspired lineup of live, original music on four Monday evenings: July 25 and August 1, 8, and 15. All events start at 6 p.m. and are free and open to all ages.

The 2016 line-up for Shire City Sessions will feature Banditos with Chris Merenda and the Wheel on Monday, July 25; Primate Fiasco with a Sounds and Tones artist showcase on Monday, August 1; Eli “Paperboy” Reed with the Easy Ridin’ Papas on Monday, August 8; and Kat Wright and the Indomitable Soul Band with the Transmitters on Monday, August 15.

In addition to live music, food and beverages will be available for purchase. In the case of rain or inclement weather, concerts will move indoors to the Zion Lutheran Church adjacent to the Commons.

For more information, contact Al Bauman at (413) 499-0607 x1 or abauman@compuworks.biz.

–E.E.

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Stanton Home to host 30th anniversary celebration

Stanton Home staff, residents, and volunteers.
Stanton Home staff, residents, and volunteers.

Great Barrington – Stanton Home Executive Director Peter Stanton, along with founders Nick and Andrea Stanton, will host a 30-year anniversary celebration with appetizers, music and drinks at Stanton Home on Sunday, July 24, from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. Stanton Home has been providing care for people with special needs since 1986 and invites the public to tour its grounds, weavery and organic gardens, as well as to meet residents, staff and international volunteers.

There is a suggested donation of $30 per person. Children will be admitted free of charge. For more information or to RSVP, contact Stanton Home at (413) 528-0506 or info@stantonhome.org.

–E.E.

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Artist Marko Remec installs site-specific work at Chesterwood

“Remember What (Field Totem)” by Marko Remec at Chesterwood.
“Remember What (Field Totem)” by Marko Remec at Chesterwood.

Stockbridge — Chesterwood is featuring a site-specific installation by New York City conceptual artist Marko Remec in its Studio Field through Sunday, October 2. “Remember What (Field Totem)” is the latest in Remec’s “Totem Series” and is a reconfiguration of a portion of his installation “Can’t Hear You (Fat Totem),” exhibited at MASS MoCA in North Adams from June 15, 2013 – June 19, 2016. The installation features 128 32-inch dome mirrors arrayed in the pattern of a chessboard gone awry.  Each mirror reflects 180-degree views of Chesterwood’s landscape along with fleeting views of those observing the work.

Marko Remec is a conceptual sculptor living and working in New York City with his wife and two children. Born in 1958, Remec graduated with degrees in studio art and chemistry from Williams College and earned his MBA from the Stanford Graduate School of Business.

For more information, contact Chesterwood at (413) 298-3579.

–E.E.

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‘Ugly Lies the Bone’ transition talkback

Christianna Nelson. Photo: Ava G. Lindenmaier.
Christianna Nelson. Photo: Ava G. Lindenmaier.

Lenox – Shakespeare & Company will host a talkback presented by Mission: Getting to Next (MGTN), a leadership and career transition organization for women military officers, on Saturday, July 23, after its 3 p.m. performance of “Ugly Lies the Bone,” a play about a woman combat veteran who returns home from service in Afghanistan bearing physical and emotional scars. The talkback will feature “Ugly Lies the Bone” lead actress Christianna Nelson along with MGTN founder Carole Hyatt, Brig. Gen. Marianne Watson, Lt. Col. Jennifer Cassidy, Cmdr. Susan Polizzotto, and three coaches from One-to-One Women Coaching Women. Tickets for “Ugly Lies the Bone” with the talkback range from $24.50 to $49.50 and are available via the Berkshire Edge calendar and the Shakespeare & Company box office at (413) 637-3353.

–E.E.

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Behold! New Lebanon July 23 tours

Monte Wasch. Photo: Uli Rose.
Monte Wasch. Photo: Uli Rose.

New Lebanon, New York — Behold! New Lebanon, the living museum of contemporary rural American life, has announced its tour schedule for Saturday, July 23. The programs will include:

Speed Demons – Long-time Lebanon Valley Speedway owner Howard Commander will lead a behind-the-scenes tour of the Speedway.

Hops Make the Beer – Tour artist/writer Alex Olchowski’s Spring Hill Hops, the only commercial-scale hops farm in Columbia County.

What You “Auto” Know About Your Car – Bud Godfroy of Godfroy’s Service Station will demonstrate the basics that drivers need to know and lead them through a car inspection.

Making Jazz – Learn how a familiar tune can be transformed into jazz with Juilliard graduate Monte Wasch at his home music studio.

Tickets are $10 per program for adults, $5 for children ages 5-16 are $5, and free for children ages 4 and under when accompanied by an adult. All children ages 12 and under will be admitted free for Speedway program. Advance ticket purchase is recommended for all programs. For more information, see the Berkshire Edge calendar or contact Behold! New Lebanon at (518) 720-7265, or info@beholdnewlebanon.org.

–E.E.

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Arrowhead Poetry Workshop book release

Pittsfield — The Berkshire County Historical Society will formally release its latest publication “Red Barn, Volume Two,” a second installment of new poetry created by the Arrowhead Poetry Workshop, On Monday, July 25, at 6 p.m. at Herman Melville’s Arrowhead. The event is free and open to all.

The book features 26 new poems by Marie T. Gormalley, Karen Schoemer, Barney Edmonds, Victoria Passir, Todd L. Johnson, J. Peter Bergman and Elizabeth Vickery Haight, along with one written by Herman Melville. The seven poets whose work is included will read and the book will be available for purchase. Refreshments will be served. For more information, call (413) 442-1793.

–E.E.

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