Karen Allen to direct "The Batting Cage" at Simon’s Rock

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Great Barrington - Karen Allen will direct the upcoming production of Joan Ackermann’s The Batting Cage at Simon’s Rock College of Bard. The production will take place in the Studio Theater of the Daniel Arts Center from Thursday through Sunday, March 9-12. Ackermann’s play shows us two estranged sisters staying at an inn in St. Augustine, Florida. They have traveled together to dispose of the ashes of their recently deceased sister, as she had requested. But the ashes are lost in the travel, and the two sisters are left to deal with each other. Complete opposites, they grieve in entirely different ways, each moving from one extreme reaction to the other. The results are poignant. Karen Allen is teaching in the theater department and directing this production. She has starred in over 30 feature films, in including Raiders of the Lost Ark, Animal House, Starman, Scroodged, the Glass Managerie, and Falling Sky. She has also appeared in numerous stage productions both on and off Broadway, including The Glass Menagerie, Extremitires, The Country Girl, The Miracle Worker, and Speaking in Tongues. She won a Theater World Award for her work on Broadway portraying Helen Keller in The Monday After the Miracle. She studied acting with Stella Adler, Warren Robertson, and at the Strasberg Institute in New York. She studied voice with Kristen Linklater. Ms. Allen is a member of the Actor's Studio and of the Academy of Arts and Sciences. She began her work in the theater as a student and company member of the Washington Theater Laboratory in Washington, D.C., an experimental theater company inspired by the work of Polish theater director Jerzy Greotowski. She attended George Washington University and was one of the creators and directors of the theater program at the Washington Project for the Arts, which brought theater companies from around the world to Washington, D.C. Joan Ackermann, who adapted this play for the different age range of these actors, co-founded Mixed Company, a Great Barrington, Massachusetts-based theatre. In addition to The Batting Cage, Ackerman wrote the play Off the Map (she also wrote the screenplay); Zara Spook and Other Lures (1990 Humana Festival at Actor's Theatre of Louisville); Stanton's Garage (1993 Humana Festival); Don't Ride the Clutch; Bed and Breakfast; Rescuing Greenland; Isabella; A Knight at the Theatre and Back Story. Ackermann's work has also been produced at the Vineyard Theatre in New York, Circle Rep, the George Street Theatre, Cleveland Playhouse, Shakespeare & Company, The Berkshire Theatre Festival and the Mark Taper Forum. In addition to her stage work, she has written and produced for television. A special contributor to Sports Illustrated for six years, Ackermann freelanced for The Atlantic, Audubon, GQ, New York Magazine, Time, and other periodicals. The productions will begin each evening at 7:30 p.m., with a 2 p.m. matinee on Saturday and Sunday. The play is not suitable for children. Donations will be accepted. For information, call 528-7293.
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Pittsfield Man Sentenced On Multiple Rape, Indecent Assault Charges

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — On Wednesday, May 15 Douglas Agyeh, age 44 ofPittsfield, pleaded guilty to 23 charges. 
 
Agyeh pleaded guilty to:
  • 5 counts of Indecent Assault and Battery on a Person Over 14
  • 9 counts of Rape of a Child with Force
  • 9 counts of Rape of a Child, Aggravated by Age
The Defendant was sentenced to 10 to 12 years for the charges of rape and 3 to 5 years concurrent for the charges of indecent assault and battery. The Defendant will serve his sentence in state prison.
 
According to a report, in 2021 Agyeh was employed at a residential school for youth. Over a period of several weeks Agyeh was responsible for monitoring a student's safety as they (singular) slept.  During this time, he raped the student. In a separate incident, Agyeh was also found guilty of sexually assaulting a student under the guise of helping the student fold their (singular) laundry.
 
The Defendant was originally set to stand trial on January 30, 2023 but fled to Canada in attempt to avoid justice. The Defendant was arrested as he entered Canda. The Berkshire District Attorney's Office worked closely with the United States Department of Justice and Canadian authorities to successfully extradite the Defendant back to Massachusetts. Authorities allege the Defendant was traveling to Canda in an attempt to return to Ghana, Agyeh's native country.
 
The Great Barrington Police Department served as the lead law enforcement agency in the case. The Department of Justice and Canadian law enforcement agencies assisted the Berkshire District Attorney's Office, including the State Police Detective Unit, in the extradition of the Defendant.
 
Assistant District Attorney Andrew Giarolo represented the Commonwealth. Kristen Rapkowicz served as a victim witness advocate on behalf of the Berkshire District Attorney's Office. Berkshire County Kids' Place and Violence Prevention Center played a central role in the investigation. Emily Zoltan was the Multidisciplinary Team Leader in coordinating the law enforcement response.
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