Denny Alsop to arrive in Boston
Boston — On March 21, Housatonic River Initiative member, grandfather, and canoe builder Denny Alsop set out on a month-long canoe trip across Massachusetts to bring attention to the importance of clean water for the Commonwealth and beyond. On Wednesday, April 20, at 11 a.m., he will complete his cross-state “Canoe for Clean Water” trip as he arrives, via the Charles River, at the Hatch Shell on the Esplanade in Boston’s Back Bay.
Supporters will then proceed to Wormwood Park (A Street, Fort Point Channel), across the street from the new General Electric headquarters site, to protest and offer support as, at 1 p.m., Alsop delivers a letter he’s carried from the Berkshires in a quest for a clean Housatonic River, free of the PCBs that GE dumped there years ago.
Nina Ryan and Maria Black are working to organize people who would like to go to Boston to participate in the event. Those who want to join a carpool from the Berkshires or need information about the event should contact Ryan at (413) 822-9567 or ninafryan@gmail.com and use the subject line “Boston.”
–E.E.
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Housatonic River Walk Earth Day workday
Great Barrington — The Housatonic River Walk will hold its annual Earth Day workday on Saturday, April 23, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m.
This year’s work season features a variety of restoration techniques for River Walk’s severely abused river location, including planting hundreds of native plants propagated from locally collected seed; ridding the riverbank of knotweed, bittersweet, garlic mustard, multiflora rose, and other exotic invasives; trail repair and maintenance; and riverbottom cleanups. Volunteers will meet at the W. E. B. Du Bois River Garden Park by the former Searles Middle School parking lot on River Street near Bridge Street. Morning coffee and lunch will be provided. Tours will be given in the afternoon.
For more information, contact Rachel Fletcher at (413) 528-3391 or river@gbriverwalk.org.
–E.E.
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MASS MoCA and Jacob’s Pillow to co-present ZviDance
North Adams — Jacob’s Pillow and MASS MoCA will co-present the New York City-based contemporary dance company ZviDance in a work-in-progress showing of “On the Road” on Saturday, April 23, at 8 p.m. at MASS MoCA’s Hunter Center. “On the Road,” inspired by the Jack Kerouac novel by the same name, is an evening-length, multimedia dance piece that contemplates the general upheaval of the 1960s and the Beat generation’s startling notions of social rebellion.
In “On the Road,” Israeli-born ZviDance Artistic Director Zvi Gotheiner entwines the thrills of freedom, the sounds of jazz, and the perplexity of youthful American voices discovering their closeted and social selves. Set to an original score by frequent collaborator and composer Scott Killian, the soundscape is a commentary on Kerouac’s novel and an homage to the Beat poets. Couched in a mash-up of Beat Generation jazz and original dance music, the piece conveys a modern tone in utilizing the voices of young, urban contemporary spoken word artists.
Tickets to “On the Road” are $8 for students, $12 in advance, $18 on the day of the performance, and $22 preferred. For tickets and more information, see the Berkshire Edge calendar or call (413) 662-2111.
–E.E.
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Terry Tempest Williams to speak at Williams College
Williamstown — Author and environmentalist Terry Tempest Williams will speak at Williams College on Wednesday, April 20, at 7:30 p.m. in Griffin Hall, room 3. The event is free and open to the public and a book signing will follow.
A naturalist and advocate for freedom of speech, Williams explores how environmental issues are social issues and ultimately matters of justice. Her latest book, “The Hour of Land: A Personal Topography of America’s National Parks,” will be published later this year to honor the centennial of the National Park Service. She is a columnist for the Progressive and has written for the New Yorker, the New York Times, and Orion Magazine, among others.
Williams has received the Robert Marshall Award from the Wilderness Society, the Distinguished Achievement Award from the Western American Literature Association, and the Wallace Stegner Award from the Center for the American West. She was also the recipient of the 2010 David R. Brower Conservation Award for activism. Williams has been a Lannan Literary Fellow and a Guggenheim Fellow in creative nonfiction. Currently, Williams is the Annie Clark Tanner Scholar in Environmental Humanities at the University of Utah.
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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350Mass-Berkshires monthly meeting
Pittsfield — 350Mass Berkshires will hold its monthly meeting on Wednesday, April 20, at 6 p.m. at the Unitarian Universalist Church. Gary Stoller will provide an update on fossil fuel divestment work, including the Saturday, May 21, personal divestment forum and the status of statewide legislation. Chris Kilfoyle of Berkshire Photovoltaic Services will provide an update on solar net metering legislation recently passed at the Statehouse.
A snack potluck will precede the meeting at 5:30 p.m. It is requested that those interested in attending the meeting RSVP online.
–E.E.
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Marionette shows at Ventfort Hall
Lenox — Puppeteer Carl Sprague will bring to life the classic folk tale “Ali Baba and the Forty Thieves” at 3:30 p.m. on Thursday, April 21, and Friday, April 22, at Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum. The performances will be followed by light refreshments.
Carl Sprague has been a puppeteer since childhood and inherited a collection of 60 Czech marionettes, each about eight inches tall and assembled by his great-grandfather, Julius Hybler, with purchased heads and hand-made costumes. Sprague has designed sets for films including “The Royal Tenenbaums” (for which he received an Art Directors Guild Awards nomination) and Martin Scorcese’s “The Age of Innocence” and has worked with the regional theatre companies including Shakespeare & Company, Berkshire Theatre Festival, Music-Theatre Group, and the Albany Berkshire Ballet. His sets at MASS MoCA for the photographer Gregory Crewdson were featured in the New York Times.
Tickets are $15 for adults, $7 for children ages four to 12, and free for children ages three and under. Reservations are recommended as seating is limited. For information or reservations, contact Ventfort Hall at (413) 637-3206 or info@gildedage.org.
–E.E.
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BCC to present annual Spring Gathering
Pittsfield — The Berkshire Community College (BCC) Alumni Association will hold its annual Spring Gathering on Wednesday, April 20, from 5 p.m. – 7 p.m. at J. Allen’s Clubhouse Grille. The event is free and all former BCC students are invited to attend.
The event will begin with a social hour with free hors d’oeuvres, a cash bar, and a performance by members of the BCC Players of a sampling of songs from their spring production of “Avenue Q.” The Association will then hold a brief business meeting to introduce the slate of officers for 2016 and BCC President Ellen Kennedy will provide campus updates. Lauren Pellegrino, director of recreational services, will talk about new programs and activities available at Paterson Field House.
The Spring Gathering is the first in a series of events planned by the BCC Alumni Association designed to encourage the many former BCC students in the area to re-engage with BCC and their fellow alumni. All BCC students, even those who took just one class, are members of the association. There are no dues required for membership.
To RSVP to this event, contact jlarkin@berkshirecc.edu or register online.
–E.E.
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BCD students move on to secondary schools
Stockbridge — Berkshire Country Day School’s (BCD) Head of School Paul Lindenmaier has announced that BCD students have had another successful year applying for admission to independent secondary schools. Applications from ninth graders went to 25 independent boarding and day schools, and each BCD student who applied was accepted. Schools that admitted BCD students include: Berkshire School, Buckingham Browne and Nichols School, Choate Rosemary Hall, Concord Academy, Emma Willard School, Ethical Culture Fieldston School, Groton School, Holderness School, Horace Mann School, Hotchkiss School, Middlesex School, Millbrook School, Milton Academy, Miss Hall’s School, Noble and Greenough School, Northfield Mount Hermon School, Phillips Academy Andover, Phillips Exeter Academy, Proctor Academy, Putney School, Riverdale Country Day School, St. Ann’s School, Trinity School, and Westover School.
Said Lindenmaier, “We are similarly proud of those students who will depart BCD in June prepared to flourish and meaningfully contribute at Pittsfield High School, Lenox Memorial High School, and Monument Mountain Regional High School next year.”
BCD will celebrate the success of its graduating ninth grade class at a commencement ceremony on Wednesday, June 15.
–E.E.
