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Daily Digest
Steve Decker cleans up in front of BankNorth on Wednesday.
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More Snow
The Berkshires received several inches of snow this morning, but not enough to close schools, unlike yesterday's sleety mess. Temperatures will drop into the 20s this afternoon. A few more snow showers are expected through the weekend. |
Duff'em If You've Got'em
 North Adams Regional Hospital went smoke-free Monday — so did all its sister sites, from Sweet Brook to Northern Berkshire Family Practice to the Women's Exchange. No ashtrays, no smoking: No butts about it. |
Wanted: Eagle Eyes
MassWildlife's annual eagle count runs Dec. 31 to Jan. 14. Anyone sighting one of the regal birds in Massachusetts is asked to participate.
Send date, time, location and town of eagle sightings, number of birds, whether juvenile or adult and observer's contact information to Mass.wildlife@state.ma.us. |
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Like to Write?
 iBerkshires accepts submissions about local events, news and opinion pieces. There are openings for freelance work, too, for qualified candidates. E-mail tdaniels@iberkshires.com to find out more. |
ObituariesRegionWhat's PlayingSales FliersColumnists | Independent Investor
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Other StuffMars Rovers Mark 5 Years
 Spirit and Opportunity have been trekking the red planet for half a decade. Spirit hit the 5-year mark on Sunday; Opportunity will on Jan. 24. |
Obama TransitionRelated Stories |
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Ventfort Hall Offers Holiday Programs - December 18, 2007
LENOX - Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum continues its "A Home for the Holidays" theme with programming for all ages Christmas week, Dec. 26 to 31.
Two marionette performances of "Beauty and the Beast" will be presented, as well as a weeklong run of the play "Fanny Kemble's Lenox Address." Also, the mansion is decorated for the holidays, and daily guided tours have been added for that week in addition to the daily self-guided tours and weekend guided tours.
Puppeteer Carl Sprague returns with the classic fable "Beauty and the Beast" on Thursday, Dec. 27, and Saturday, Dec. 29, at 3 p.m. Sprague has been a puppeteer since childhood and inherited a collection of 60 Czech marionettes made by his great-grandfather. Each is about eight inches tall with handmade costumes and intricately carved heads, as well as an accompanying antique puppet theater.
Sprague was the art director for such motion pictures as "The Royal Tennenbaums," for which he received an Art Director’s Guild nomination, and Martin Scorcese's "The Age of Innocence," "Mona Lisa Smile" and "Amistad." He has created numerous theater sets for many of the region's best-known theater companies, including Shakespeare and Company. Sprague also created the sets for the Ventfort Hall productions of "Morgan O'Yuki: A Geisha of the Gilded Age" and "Dancing with the Czar."
John Gardner's acclaimed one-woman play "Fanny Kemble's Lenox Address" stars Anne Undeland. One of America's most celebrated actresses of the 19th century, Kemble became an ardent abolitionist who helped change the course of the Civil War and became embroiled in a public scandal in a divorce from her slave-owning husband. Performances are Dec. 26 at 4 p.m., Dec. 27, 28 and 29 at 7:30 p.m. and Dec. 30 and 31 at 4 p.m.
The 1893 mansion has also been decorated by a team of 14 volunteers, including members of the Lenox Garden Club, under the direction of Chairwomen Lorraine Becker and Birgit Vetromile. Program Committee member Thomas Hayes of Country Dining Room Antiques in Great Barrington has provided table settings that evoke an 1890s Christmas dinner with owners George and Sarah Morgan. Original Morgan table linens, recently acquired from descendant Margaret Morgan, are part of the display.
The exhibit of 59 "Les Petites Dames de Mode" (The Little Ladies of Fashion) representing the history of women's styles from 1855 to 1914 continues. The 29-inch scale-model mannequins, wearing detailed costumes, are the creations of John R. Burbidge, retired senior designer for the famed bridal house of Priscilla of Boston.
The museum is open daily, except for Christmas and New Year's Day, and the additional guided tours are available hourly from 10 to 3, with the last beginning at 2. Self-guided tours are available daily year round.
Tickets for the marionette shows, including a holiday tea and refreshments, are $15 for adults in advance ($12 members), $18 at the door ($15 members) and $5 for children. Tickets for "Fanny Kemble" are $25 with group discounts for 10 or more. Admission to the museum is $12 ($6 members) with discounts available to seniors, college students, children and groups.
For further information or reservations (recommended for all events) call 413-637-3206 or visit www.GildedAge.org. Ventfort Hall is located at 104 Walker St. |
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