Arts and entertainment notes

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Courtenay Budd (Submitted Photo)
Parisian music GREAT BARRINGTON — Close Encounters with Music will present “Americans in Paris” at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center on Saturday, Nov. 27, at 6 p.m. The annual Thanksgiving holiday performance will present pieces by American and French composers living and working in Paris in the 1920s and ’30s. Soprano Courtenay Budd, a Metropolitan Opera national finalist, will make her Berkshire debut singing songs by American composers John Duke, Bernstein (from his “Candide”), Douglas Moore (from “The Ballad of Baby Doe”) and more. French works will include Camille Saint-Saëns’ “The Swan” and “Allegro Apassionato.” Highlights will include “Violin Sonata No. 1” by George Antheil and a rare performance of the Aaron Copland’s recently discovered “Prelude” for piano trio — the trio remains unpublished. Also performing will be Melvin Chen on piano, violinist Toby Appel and cellist Yehuda Hanani, artistic director of the thematic series. Tickets are $25 for adults and $10 for students. Information and tickets: 800-843-0778, e-mail cewmusic@aol.com or visit www.cewm.org. McKrells Christmas PITTSFIELD — The Berkshire Museum will host The McKrells Christmas Show, in conjunction with the annual Festival of Trees exhibit, on Sunday, Nov. 21, at 7 p.m. In the first of five Originals in Song concerts this year, The McKrells will perform classic holiday carols, recitations, Bluegrass instrumentation and traditional Irish songs. The band has been the recipient of over 10 honors in the Capital Region since its inception nine years ago, including a Capital District Hall of Fame induction and the Northeast Country Music Association "Bluegrass Band of the Year" award in 2000 and 2001. Greylock Federal Union will underwrite the concert series. Advance tickets are $10 for members, $15 for non-members and $18 at the door. Information and tickets: 443-7171, ext.10, or www.berkshiremuseum.org. Arts Fund FALLS VILLAGE, Conn. — Twenty student authors have been selected to have their works read by area celebrities at Arts Fund 2004 at Housatonic Valley Regional High School on Saturday, Nov. 20 at 8 p.m. The benefit event will support The Arts Fund for Region One, which serves the six towns of the northwest corner of Connecticut. Meryl Streep has recently agreed to join event performers Sam Waterston, Jane Curtin, Lynn Redgrave, Ed Hermann, Campbell Scott and Jill Clayburgh. The first arts fund event celebrating student authors with celebrity readers, held in 2000, was sold out. The students — whose works include poetry, prose, essays, short stories and plays — will be honored as authors at the event. Student writers from the town of Sharon include Sarah Dudek, Nick Kraus, Ben Massey, David Miller, Josh O’Hara, Isabel Rooney, Jonathan Walley and Ellie Yahn. Falls Village student authors include Jacob Horowitz and Juliet Knuth. Kent students Roxanne Garrity and Nora Hanley, Cornwall’s Hannah Colbert, North Canaan’s Steven Alquesta and Salisbury students Charlotte Day-Reiss, Alicia De Paolo, Kai Haaland, Lisa Ruskin, Rachel Schapira and Joanna Zelman will also have works read. The students are in grades five through 12 and attend public schools, Housatonic Valley Regional High School, or The Hotchkiss School. The arts fund, a non-profit organization, strives to increase arts opportunities for all children of the six towns and further enhance the public school’s curriculum. Sponsors of the benefit event include Avonridge Inc., Robert J. Bird, DDS, David Gavin Salons, Elyse Harney Real Estate, Herringtons and Prindle Insurance. Tickets are $35. Information: 860-824-5123, ext. 162. Mountainview music CLARKSBURG — The Paul DiLego Trio with Charlie Tokarz will perform Wednesday, Nov. 24, from 8 to midnight at the newly opened Mountainview Restaurant and Lounge. The trio features Paul DiLego on piano, Richard Downs on acoustic bass and Randy Kaye on drums. Kaye played with the legendary Jimi Hendrix and has performed on numerous jazz albums. Charlie Tokarz will sit in on various saxophones and flute. At times he plays two saxes at once, in harmony. The trio plays a standard jazz repertoire of dance music at “listenable” volumes — in other words, not too loud. There will be a $3 cover charge, 100 percent of which will be donated to the Northern Berkshire Santa Fund. A dinner menu and full bar will be offered. The Mountainview is on Easy Street, off Houghton Street, just over the North Adams line. Information: 664-9111. Clown show GREAT BARRINGTON — The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle St., will present “What’s in the Box?” with a theatrical clown and mime Bob Berky on Saturday, Dec. 4, at 2 p.m. The performance deals with the discovery of the true meaning of sharing and compassion. Berky said in a news release, “I want the audience to identify with both the joy of acquiring and the fun of possessing but then go a little deeper into more substantial satisfactions, which should occur day-to-day and not just at holiday time.” Since 1990, Berky has toured and performed as a solo artist at major theater, music and children’s festivals throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Australia, Israel and the Far East. Trained initially as a classical musician, he also performs musically and comically with symphony orchestras. Amelia Schmertz, executive director, said, “Bob is a brilliant performer whose work has a broad appeal to anyone who likes to laugh. The board of the Mahaiwe has a strong interest in bringing accessible family entertainment to the Great Barrington community, and Bob Berky’s appearance will be only the first of many family-focused programs.” Tickets are $12 for adults and $9 for children under 13. Information and tickets: 644-9040. String quartet BENNINGTON, Vt. — The Bennington String Quartet will perform at the Bennington Museum’s Ada Paresky Education Center on Sunday, Nov. 21, at 2 p.m. The group, consisting of Joseph Schor, Melanie Dexter, Catharine Hall-Schor and Nathaniel Parke, has performed at the museum previously, presenting both classical and contemporary works. The program will include Joseph Haydn's “String Quartet op. 74, no. 2,” “Paysages for String Quartet” by Ernst Bloch and Alexander Glazunov's “5 Novelettes, op. 15. Tickets are $10 for adults, $8 for seniors and students and $20 for families. Museum members receive a 10-percent discount. A brief reception with light refreshments will follow the performance. Information and tickets: 802-447-1571 or www.benningtonmuseum.org. Holiday festival BENNINGTON, Vt. — The Bennington Museum will hold its ninth annual Festival of Trees beginning on Saturday, Nov. 20, and culminating in a grand finale gala on Thursday, Dec. 9. Decorated trees and wreaths will be displayed throughout the museum for approximately three weeks. They will be sold, with other indulgences, during the gala’s "ultimate gift" silent auction. A holiday brunch will open the festival in the Paresky Court and Education Center on Nov. 20. Seatings will be held at 10:30 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Tickets are $18 per person, $7.50 for children 12 and under. Seating is limited, and tickets are available at the museum. The brunch will provide the first opportunity to preview and bid on trees and silent auction items, as well as luxury vacations and items in the "ultimate gift" auction. The museum will display a Grandma Moses Schoolhouse, a collection of wooden and ceramic Santa Claus figurines ushering visitors into an exhibit of antique dolls, dollhouses and a grove of uniquely decorated trees. A Hanukkah display will be on view in the Changing Exhibition Gallery. Also, the "Tree House of Treasures," in the museum's lobby, will feature handmade Vermont crafts to complement new giftware in the museum shop. On Sunday, Dec. 5, from 1 to 3 p.m., the Festival of Trees Sugar Plum Party will include a visit and photo opportunity with Santa, a visit by the Sugar Plum Fairy, story readings, a holiday maze and refreshments. Admission will be $4 per person, $2 per child for ages 2 to 12, free for children under 2. There will be an extra charge for pictures with Santa. The grand finale gala will be held on Thursday, Dec. 9, from 5:30 to 8:30 p.m. Refreshments will be offered, and the silent auction of trees, wreaths and gift packages will conclude. Admission will be $25 per person, and all proceeds will benefit museum programs and exhibitions. In conjunction with the festival, there will be a raffle of an elegant Victorian-style dollhouse created by Jacqueline Marro of Old Bennington. The two-story house comes decorated with its own tree and furnishings for select rooms. Raffle tickets are $5 each, or three for $12, and are available at the museum. Information: 802-447-1571 or www.benningtonmuseum.org. Cat Power NORTH ADAMS — Cat Power will perform at the at Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art on Saturday, Dec. 4, at 8 p.m. Cat Power is the nom de plume of Chan (pronounced “Shawn”) Marshall. Her most recent album, “Moon Pix,” received international acclaim, and her Covers album reveals much about her personality in the songs that she chose: “Satisfaction” by The Rolling Stones, “The Devil’s Daughter” by Michael Hurley, “Naked If I Want To” by Moby Grape and classics by Dylan and the Velvet Underground, according to a Mass MoCA news release. Cat Power has opened for Liz Phair and performed with Steve Shelley, now of Sonic Youth, and Tim Foljahn, of Two Dollar Guitar. Tickets are $14 in advance or $17 the day of the show; members receive a 10-percent discount. The performance will contain nudity, the museum advises. Information and tickets: box office, 662-2111 or www.massmoca.org. Funny book WILLIAMSTOWN — In his new book "Think You Are the Only One?" Williams College alumnus Seth Brown sets out to prove that for every wild idea, there may well be an organization to support it. Brown’s book is a catalogue of groups, societies and clubs dedicated to the not quite ordinary. From the Procrastinator’s Club ("rampant in college”) to the Extra Milers Club, dedicated to visiting every county in the United States ("visiting more than 3,100 counties means now that many of them are, regrettably, not especially memorable"), Brown captures a colorful panorama of unusual interests, according to a news release. Some fall into the category of hobbies (American Collectors of Infant Feeders), some into sports (Solid Rock Climbers for Christ), and some are scientific organizations (International Carnivorous Plant Society). There is a list of groups by category in the back of the book, so that any reader can find his or her "Oddball Groups Where Outsiders Fit In." Comprising two-page features for more than 60 groups, Brown presents each oddball group’s mission, history and contact information for the curious reader. Information: www.risingpun.com. Art show LAKEVILLE, Conn. — The Morgan Lehman Gallery will host an opening reception for its third annual small works exhibition, “Smaller than a Breadbox,” on Saturday, Nov. 27, from 5 to 8 p.m. The show will run through Sunday, Dec. 19. It is an invitational exhibition featuring the work of more than 10 artists who have never before exhibited in the area and new work by a selection of gallery artists. New to the show is Jenny Brillhart, a Miami artist who paints urban and suburban landscapes bathed in light, and Eliza Twichell, exhibiting a series of minimalist line drawings on paper. Returning artist Karl Saliter has created a series of tabletop-sized stone sculptures akin to the large-scale outdoor work seen in the gallery during the summer. Martha Porter’s photography has also been seen at the gallery, and her new photograms will be on view. With 15 artists exhibiting work from the whimsical to the serious, and with prices ranging from $100 to $1,000, the exhibit offers opportunities for gift-giving. Information: Sally Morgan Oberbeck or Jay Lehman Horowitz, 860-435-0898 or www.morganlehmangallery.com. Gallery tour WEST STOCKBRIDGE — The annual Art and Soul Gallery Tour will be held Thanksgiving Weekend, Nov. 26, 27 and 28, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. At each of eight galleries, artists-in-residence will be available to discuss their work, and refreshments will be offered in each shop. Visitors who stop in to all eight galleries can be included in a drawing at the end of the weekend to win one of 22 prizes donated by the galleries and merchants — including dinners and lunches at local restaurants, artworks and a night at a local inn. The galleries involved are Antiqualia, 2 Main St.; Artifacts, 5 Center St.; Charles H. Baldwin and Sons, 1 Center St.; Hotchkiss Mobiles, 8 Center St., featuring “Balanced Metal,” a new show of 12 original small metal mobiles; Out of Vietnam, 3 Harris St.;. The Train Station Gallery, 6 Depot St.; Revisions Cabinetry for the Home, 3 Depot St.; and Hoffman Pottery, 103 Route 41, where blank plates, bowls, mugs and tiles will be available for painting by visitors. Also raffled will be donations from La Bruschetta, The Village Oven, Found at The Bookloft, Rouge, The Williamsville Inn, Café Pomo D'Oro, The Public Market, The Williams River Country Store, The West Stockbridge Video Store, The Queensborough Package Store, Grace Healing Arts, The Shaker Mill Inn, Baldwins Hardware and massage therapist Cher Hanssen. Symphonic Winds WILLIAMSTOWN — Steven Bodner will conduct a free performance of the Williams Symphonic Winds in Williams College’s Chapin Hall on Saturday, Nov. 20, at 8 p.m. The concert, "Paraphrases of the Past," will include selections from Mozart’s “Le nozze di Figaro,” Jonathan Dove’s “Figures in the Garden,” interludes from Louis Andriessen’s “M is for Man, Music, Mozart,” William Schuman’s “New England Triptych,” Steven Bryant’s “Chester Leaps In” and Robert Patterson’s “Stomp Igor.” Information: 597-2736. Chamber Choir WILLIAMSTOWN — The Williams Chamber Choir, a 24-voice select ensemble, will perform an afternoon concert in the First Congregational Church on Sunday, Nov. 21, at 3 p.m. The group will perform works by Renaissance master Josquin des Prez, early American composer William Billings and Estonian pieces featured in their recent concert with the concert choir. Admission is free. Information: Brad Wells, 597-2295. Cantilena choir GREAT BARRINGTON — Berkshire County’s newest vocal ensemble, the Cantilena Chamber Choir, will present its premiere concert on Sunday, Nov. 21, at 3 p.m. at St. James Church, 352 Main St. The choir is composed of 24 skilled singers from the Berkshires and Eastern New York. Andrea Goodman, director of the Saratoga Choral Festival, a choir in residence with the Philadelphia Orchestra at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, will conduct the group. The program will feature all-English a cappella music from the Renaissance to the late 20th century, with music by contemporary songwriters John Rutter and John Tavener — including his “Song for Athene,” first presented at the funeral for Princess Diana. The music of William Byrd and Thomas Tomkins, and two English Madrigals, will be sung in the Renaissance portion. From the late 19th and early 20th centuries will be the music of the church composer Edgar Bainton (with Ann Marcure at the organ, the only accompanied piece on the program) and Edward Elgar, including the choral arrangement of “Nimrod” from his “Enigma Variations,” as well as the “Hymn to St. Cecilia” by Benjamin Britten, an a cappella work based on the poetry of W. H. Auden. Tickets are available at the door at $15 for adults and $10 for student and seniors. Information and reservations: 518-791-0185, e-mail satbchoir@yahoo.com or visit www.bhsinging.org/cdata/cant. Holiday concert MANCHESTER, Vt. — Southern Vermont Arts Center will host Seasonal Musicale: Jane Wood, the Dorset Church Choir and Friends on Sunday, Dec. 5, from 2 to 3 p.m. in the center’s Yester House. The free performance hour will feature pianist Wood, the United Church of Dorset’s music and choir director, church soloist and Manchester Elementary School teacher, Jack Hontz on clarinet, duets with guitar accompaniment from Debbi Jaccheo and Helen Hart and flutists Roger Squire and Ruth Woodard. Information: 802- 362-1405 or www.svac.org. Muir quartet WILLIAMSTOWN — The Muir String Quartet will give a free concert in Brooks-Rogers Recital Hall, on the second floor of Bernhard Music Center on Friday, Nov. 19, at 8 p.m. The quartet will feature Peter Zazofsky and Lucia Lin on violin; violist Steven Ansell and cellist Michael Reynolds performing the “Haydn D Major, Op. 20”; “Janacek #2” and “Ravel F Major” quartets. The Muir String Quartet has long been acknowledged as one of the world's most powerful and insightful ensembles and appears annually on the major chamber music series throughout North America and Europe. In keeping with the quartet's namesake, explorer and Sierra Club founder John Muir, the quartet donates proceeds from its EcoClassics Inc. recordings to conservation organizations and programs supporting young musicians. They are the Quartet-in-Residence at Boston University. Members will work with Williams string students in a master class format on Thursday, Nov. 18, at 4 p.m. in the same location. The public is invited. Information: 597-2736. School play PITTSFIELD — The Pittsfield High School drama society will present “You Can’t Take it With You” at 7:30 p.m. on Friday and Saturday, Nov. 19 and 20, with an understudy preview tonight [Thursday, Nov. 18]. The show’s director, Ralph Hammann, said that the comedy, written by George S. Kaufman and Moss Hart, offers a refreshing look at individuals’ freedoms and family values. “We hear so much about these concerns that it sometimes begins to sound cliched, but this play, which was written in 1936, honestly embodies the value of community and demonstrates the nurturing importance of a family and extended family and the importance of individuality,” Hammann said in a news release. “There’s a genuineness in the writing which reflects the time period when it was written — the mid-1930s — while providing a mirror to our current social concerns.” The play centers on the eccentric Sycamore family. Cast in the production are Larissa Huda, Kate Rusk, Claire Van Riper, Justin Roccabruna, Leo Yantovsky, Melvin Varughese, Greg Vyska, Shawn Kirchner, Erika Geller, Devan Gardner, Steve Rogers, Mark Schilling, Rebecca Tramel, Barry Benham, Emma Lifvergren, Juan Urrea, Brittany Davis and Dan Haley. Jenna English and Cassie Stevens will each play the Grand Duchess Olga Katrina on successive nights. Understudies appearing in the Thursday preview will be: Kori Thompson, Krystal Sykes and Meagan Graham. Rebecca Tramel is the assistant director, Jessica Baczek is stage manager and Dan Haley is technical director. Costumes are by Donna Larkin, who was assisted by Samantha Tejada. Sound effects are by Hannah Lifvergren and Matt Connors, while Tejada will execute the lighting. Sykes will be in charge of props. Patrons are asked not to bring infants or very young children who might cause a distraction during the show. Tickets are $7 for adults and $5 for students. Reserved seats will be available on Friday and Saturday for $12 but must be purchased by 2:45 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 19. Tickets and information: the school, 499-9535. ‘Proof’ performances GHENT, N.Y. — The Ghent Playhouse will present David Auburn’s “Proof,” on Friday, Nov. 19, and on weekends through Sunday, Dec. 5, with performances on Fridays and Saturdays at 8 p.m. and Sunday matinees at 2 p.m. The Tony Award and Pulitzer Prize-winning drama tells the tale of a young woman who spent years caring for her brilliant but unstable father, a famous mathematician. On the eve of her 25th birthday, Catherine questions her own sanity while dealing with the arrival of her estranged sister and the amorous attentions of a former student of her father’s. The play stars Sarah Stegeman of Stephentown, N.Y., Melissa Jagel of Lee, Grant Miller of Ghent, N.Y., and Berkshire resident Jeffrey Borak, theater critic for The Berkshire Eagle. Tickets are $15, $12 for members — reservations are advised. Information and tickets: 518-392-6264 or www.ghentplayhouse.org. Railway show NORTH ADAMS — The Railway Café will host singer and songwriter Justin Roth on Friday, Nov. 19, at 8 p.m. Roth is a fingerstyle guitarist who blends folk-rock with lyric ballads and instrumentals. This year, he was a finalist in the Susquehanna Music and Arts Festival, a Troubadour Contest Alternate at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, a songwriter showcase honorable mention at the Rocky Mountain Folks Festival and earned the title of New Folk Finalist at the Kerrville Folk Festival. The suggested donation is $10 per person; reservations are recommended. Visitors can bring a potluck dish. Information and reservations: 664-6393, e-mail railwaycafe@juno.com or visit www.fusf.org/railwaycafe. BCC play PITTSFIELD — The Berkshire Community College will perform "Rashomon" on Thursday through Saturday, Nov. 18 through 20, at 8 p.m., and on Sunday, Nov. 21, at 2 p.m. in the college’s Robert Boland Theatre. Written by Fay and Michael Kanin, the play is based on the stories of Ryunosuke Akutagawa and adapted from the Academy Award-winning film by Akira Kurosawa. The central tale is the story of a wife of a Samurai who is assaulted by a roving bandit who also kills her husband. Contradictory versions of what happened are reenacted at a trial by the bandit, the wife and the dead husband. With the help of a priest, a woodcutter who witnessed the events puzzles over what really happened and what such a horrible occurrence says about human nature. Cast members include J.T. Fuhrmann, Matt MacArevey, Stephanie Watroba, Christoper Dellea, Ryan Cavanaugh, Aaron Thompson, Jessica Goodchild, Darwin MacDonald and Chris Montemagni. The play is directed by Sam Slack, with Christopher Gregory as lighting designer and technical director. Jason Asprey choreographed the fight scenes. Tickets are $10 general admission and $5 for students, seniors and college staff. Information and tickets: 499-0886. Photography exhibit GREAT BARRINGTON — Sculpture Now and Berkshire South Regional Community Center will hold an exhibition of photographs and a video created during workshops offered by Sculpture Now, in connection with its outdoor sculpture show, “Sculpture In and By the River 2004,” to students from Monument Mount and Mount Everett High Schools. One exhibition will be close to 100 color and black and white photos and cyanotype photograms. Students, teachers and artists created these photos. The photograms where built in the waters and on the banks of the Housatonic River from collected and found, natural materials. Included in the exhibition during December and January, will be a video produced by Lawrence Burke of Flying Cloud Moving Pictures in New Marlboro, with the assistance of Ben Pender-Cudlip, a student at Simon’s Rock College. The video documents the events of the two days of workshops with both schools, including the artist- guided tours of the “Sculpture In and By the River 2004” exhibitions at the Norman Rockwell Museum and the Berkshire Mountain Bakery. The workshops were guided by artists Jennifer Reis- Ewasiuk, Ann Jon, Gary Orlinsky, and Robin Tost and by teachers Peggy Reeves and Martha Thomson from Mount Everett High School, and Neel Webber and Linnea Mace from Monument Mount High School. The project was supported in part by Private Donors, Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation, Eagle Fund and Janet’s Fund, Friends of the Bushnell Sage Library, Greater Berkshire Foundation, High Meadow Foundation, Massachusetts Cultural Council through the Local Cultural Councils of Alford/Egremont, Great Barrington, Monterey, New Marlboro, Sandisfield, Sheffield, Stockbridge and West Stockbridge and the following businesses Balgen Machine Co. Inc., Clark and Green Inc., Dietemann Design, Domaney’s Liquors and Fine Foods, Inc., Ed Herrington Inc., Flores Studio, Kwik Print Inc., Lee Bank, Minkler Insurance Agency Inc., MSL Natural design, Sheffield Pottery Inc., Snap Shop, Taylor Rental Center, Tom’s Toys Inc., Reistan Enterprises Inc. and Vlada Boutique. The exhibition will be on display at the community center from Nov. 10 through Jan. 14, 2005. Subsequently the exhibition will travel to other locations. Dates and places will be announced. All photographs are for sale, and the proceeds will be applied towards the Sculpture Now student workshops for next year. The center is at 15 Crissey Rd. Information: Berkshire South, 528-2810, or Jon, director of Sculpture Now, 698-2313 or annjon@bcn.net.
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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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