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Marsalis at Williams WILLIAMSTOWN – Few families can boast the musical pedigree of the Marsalis family, New Orleans’ renowned band of jazz-loving brothers. Branford Marsalis, known for his broad musical scope, will be at Williams for a residency from Wednesday, Nov. 12, to Friday, Nov. 14. During his stay on campus, Marsalis will work with his regular jazz quartet and a string quartet, as well as student musicians, to develop new arrangements and compositions. “Questions and Answers with Branford Marsalis,” an opportunity for community members to ask questions of the saxophonist, will be held on Thursday, Nov. 13, at 4 p.m. in Brooks-Rogers Recital Hall. Marsalis recently announced the launch of Marsalis Music, an independent record label designed to nurture the talent of young artists shunned by the music industry’s large conglomerates. Ellis Marsalis, jazz pianist and patriarch of the Marsalis clan, collaborated on the project. In addition to signing recording artists, Marsalis Music plans to conduct workshops and partnerships with educational and cultural organizations to expand jazz’s audience. “Marsalis Jams,” one of the label’s first initiatives, will concentrate on college listeners. “This is a very exciting time, and I am thrilled to be doing this,” Marsalis said. Information and directions: 597-4279. Poetry Show PITTSFIELD —The Berkshire Writers Room and the Berkshire Museum will jointly present a semi-staged reading of “The Poetry Show” by Timothy M. Sheldon on Saturday, Nov. 15, at 2 p.m. Sheldon, the 65-year-old resident of Pittsfield who was appointed the city's first poet laureate on April 30 this year, died suddenly during surgery on June 22, less than two months after receiving accolades from the Pittsfield Cultural Council and Mayor Sara Hathaway. His play, consisting of “actable” poetry by Francois Villon, Shakespeare, William Butler Yeats, Edna St. Vincent Millay, William Blake, Charles Baudelaire, Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Charles Algernon Swinburne and more modern poets, including Archibald MacLeish, Mark Strand, Sky Halm, Chu Yuan and Sheldon himself, will be given a single performance on the opening day of the museum’s annual Festival of Trees and Toys. Directed by J. Peter Bergman, the reading will feature a cast of 10 players, including the author’s widow, Rosemary Sheldon, professional actors Erin Gorski and Bob Johnnene and a cast of popular local players, including Sally Filkins, Amy Renak, Lesley Ann Beck, Charlie Wright, Jason Terranova and Adam Sugarman. Bergman will also play a role in the performance. Admission to the play is free with museum admission. Information: J. Peter Bergman, 443-5631, or PBergman89@aol.com; Maria Mingalone, Berkshire Museum, 443-7171 Beethoven sonatas GREAT BARRINGTON — Pianist David Johnson of Mill River, Conn,. and cellist Thirzah Bendokas of Naugatuck, Conn,. will perform the complete cycle of Beethoven cello sonatas in three recitals beginning Saturday, Nov. 22, at 8:15 at the Kellogg Music Center at Simon’s Rock College. The series, presented by Barrington Performing Arts, will offer an opportunity to hear all five of the rarely performed Beethoven piano-cello sonatas. The masterworks are among Beethoven’s most significant chamber compositions and represent the three distinct periods of his musical style. The programs will also include Bach’s three sonatas for viola da gamba, as well as works by Lutoslawski, Janacek, Schumann and Debussy. Both Johnson and Bendokas have performed individually in Europe and in North America. Johnson’s successful New York recital debut was followed by tours in Europe and Canada. Bendokas has performed the Kabalevsky concerto with the Boston Symphony under Arthur Fiedler and the Dvorak concerto in Mexico City, under Quintanar. As a duo, they have assembled numerous programs featuring a wide range of repertoire, including rarely heard works by Vaughan Williams, Fauré and Charlie Chaplin. Information: 229-0488. ‘Death in Dallas’ WILLIAMSTOWN — To mark the 40th anniversary of President John F. Kennedy’s assassination on Nov. 22, 1963, the Williams College Museum of Art will present a video by Serbian artist Zoran Naskovski, “Death in Dallas (2000)” on view in the museum’s atrium Nov. 18 to Nov. 30. Recently presented in the Whitney Museum of American Art’s exhibition “The American Effect: Global Perspectives on the United States, 1990-2003,” Naskovski’s 17-minute video recalls the events of November 1963, juxtaposing vintage photos of Kennedy’s official appearances and his private life with footage of the assassination itself. In addition to Naskovski’s video, the museum will have on display four “Jackies” by Andy Warhol, created in 1964 and two screen prints with accompanying teletype texts from his “Flash-Nov. 22, 1963” portfolio. The works are part of an exhibition organized by C. Ondine Chavoya, assistant professor of art, to accompany his course, “Art 265F-Pop Art.” The Williams College Museum of Art’s collection has much of Warhol’s work, counting among its holdings paintings, sculpture, prints and books, dating from 1964 to 1987. The artist’s “Flash” images are a recent acquisition. The Williams College Museum of Art is open Tuesday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Sunday from 1 to 5. Admission is free and the museum is accessible by wheelchair. Information: 597-3178, WCMA@williams.edu or www.wcma.org. Velmans reading GREAT BARRINGTON — The Bookloft in Great Barrington and the Bushnell-Sage Library in Sheffield will co-sponsor a reading by local author Loet Velmans at the Bushnell-Sage Library, 48 Main St., on Saturday, Nov. 15, at 2 p.m. Velmans will read from and sign copies of his new book, “Long Way Back to the River Kwai: Memories of World War II,” Arcade Publishing, 2003. Velmans and his family fled Holland in 1940 to escape the Germans. They finally ended up in the Dutch East Indies, where he joined the Dutch Army. But in March 1942, the Japanese invaded and conquered the archipelago and made prisoners of all the local soldiers. Over the next three and a half years, Velmans and his fellow POWs were sent to slave labor camps to build a railroad through the dense Burmese-Thai border. Some 20,000 POWs and slave laborers died while working on this “Railroad of Death.” Velmans suffered malaria, dysentery, malnutrition and unspeakable mistreatment by the Japanese, but he never gave up. “Long Way Back to the River Kwai” is his personal account of survival. After the war Velmans came to America, where he worked for the public relations firm Hill and Knowlton, ultimately becoming the CEO. His wife, Edith, is the author of “Edith’s Story”. The Velmans divide their time between New York and Sheffield. Information: The Bookloft 528-1521, or Bushnell-Sage Library, 229-7004. Jazz concert NORTH ADAMS — The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts Jazz Band will perform full instrumentals, combos and vocal arrangements during its free fall semester concert on Saturday, Nov. 15, at 8 p.m. in Venable Theatre. The program, which is open to the public, will incorporate arrangements of Latin and contemporary compositions and renowned pieces by Charles Mingus, including "Fables of Faubus" and "Haitian Fight Song." The band is directed by Brian Fitzpatrick, chairman of the fine and performing arts department. Information: 662-5255. Art lecture BENNINGTON, Vt. — Installation artist Ann Hamilton, winner of a 1993 MacArthur “genius” prize, will speak in the Tishman Lecture Hall at Bennington College on Monday, Nov. 17, at 7:30 p.m. Hamilton’s varied body of work includes photography, video and art objects, but she is perhaps best known for her site-specific installations that are admired not merely for the range and quantity of materials used but for her unique vision and ability to encode gesture and meaning. The lecture is free and open to the public. Information: 802-440-4549 or eapeller@bennington.edu. Free concert WILLIAMSTOWN — The Williams Symphonic Winds, directed by Steven Dennis Bodner, will present a concert, "English Variations," featuring works by mostly English composers from the Baroque to the present, at 8 p.m. Saturday, Nov. 15, in Chapin Hall. The free program will begin and end with movements from “Danceries,” a collection of Renaissance-inspired dance pieces by British composer Kenneth Hesketh. Information: 597-2736. PGLAG film LENOX — The Williamstown/Berkshire and South Berkshire chapter of parents, families and friends of lesbians and gays (PFLAG) will sponsor the film, “Journey to a Hate-Free Millennium,” followed by a facilitated community discussion, tonight from 7 to 9 at the Lenox Community Center, 65 Walker St. The event is co-sponsored by Berkshire Community College’s Diversity Committee, the Coalition for Cultural Diversity of Pittsfield, the Unitarian-Universalist meeting of South Berkshire and the Berkshire Stonewall Community. Following the screening will be a conversation with Lenox Memorial middle and high school nurse Carrie Bither and teacher Bernadette Mercier, both of whom attended an intensive training on the program. The program is free. Refreshments will be served.
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Friends of Great Barrington Libraries Holiday Book Sale

GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass. — The Friends of Great Barrington Libraries invite the community to shop their annual Holiday Good-as-New Book Sale, happening now through the end of the year at the Mason Library, 231 Main Street. 
 
With hundreds of curated gently used books to choose from—fiction, nonfiction, children's favorites, gift-quality selections, cookbooks, and more—it's the perfect local stop for holiday gifting.
 
This year's sale is an addition to the Southern Berkshire Chamber of Commerce's Holiday Stroll on this Saturday, Dec. 13, 3–8 PM. Visitors can swing by the Mason Library for early parking, browse the sale until 3:00 PM, then meet Pete the Cat on the front lawn before heading downtown for the Stroll's shopping, music, and festive eats.
 
Can't make the Holiday Stroll? The book sale is open during regular Mason Library hours throughout December.
 
Proceeds support free library programming and events for all ages.
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