Jacob's Pillow adds to its African American Connections

02:44PM / Friday, July 27, 2007Print Story | Email Story

In a ceremony capping a series of events celebrating Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival's rich African American history, the Upper Housatonic Valley African American Heritage Association formally dedicates Jacob's Pillow as a site on its African American Heritage Trail. The trail, which wends from Sheffield, in south Berkshire County, to just north of Pittsfield, was designated in 2006 as a National Heritage Area by the National Park Service. The dedication ceremony takes place on August 25 at 5:30pm, on the Pillow's historic site, which was declared, in 2004, a National Historic Landmark site for the significance of its contribution to America's culture-past and present. The heritage trail links 29 Massachusetts and Connecticut towns in the Upper Housatonic Valley National Heritage Area, and celebrates people and places that hold pivotal roles in key national and international events of African American heritage. Surrounding the dedication during the week are several free and paid events at Jacob's Pillow, including the revival of Joanna Haigood's site-specific dance/theater work Invisible Wings, commissioned by the Pillow and highlighting the history of Jacob's Pillow as a site on the Underground Railroad, performances August 20-25; the Bebe Miller Company, founded by African American artist Bebe Miller, performances August 23-26; and a PillowTalk with Eric Foner, a highly regarded historian who discusses race relations in America and the American Civil War, on August 25. The week of August 20 in the Pillow's Derby House property, there will also be a visual exhibit African American Heritage in the Upper Housatonic Valley, presented by the African American Heritage Trail. The ceremony will include the installation of a permanent sign commemorating Jacob's Pillow as a site on the trail. This is the second site in the Berkshires' African American history to be formally recognized, following the dedication in September 2006 of The Trustees of Reservations' Colonel John Ashley House, where Elizabeth "Mum Bett" Freeman began the fight that, in 1783, helped end slavery in Massachusetts. The trail also includes more than fifty other sites, including the W. E. B. Du Bois Boyhood Homesite, a National Historic Landmark property in Great Barrington; and the Samuel Harrison House in Pittsfield, home of the 54th Massachusetts Regiment chaplain who protested discriminatory pay practices. Before it was a dance festival, Jacob's Pillow was a station on the Underground Railroad in the mid 1800's. In the following years, it has consistently supported African American culture, introducing audiences to a wide array of traditional African dance and music and contemporary African and African American forms and artists. This has been in evidence since the first decade of the Festival's 75-year history, when the Ted Shawn Theatre's inaugural season featured Asadata Dafora, the first artist to perform traditional African dances on a concert stage. Trailblazing African American dancers and choreographers followed, including both the famous, such as Alvin Ailey, Carmen de Lavallade, Jawole Willa Jo Zollar, and Bill T. Jones, and lesser-known artists finding public acclaim. The Ted Shawn Theatre, the first venue in America built for dance presentation, is built with huge timber cross-beams, hewn from hand by the prominent Berkshires African American entrepreneur Warren Davis. Inspired by Jacob's Pillow's history as a station on the Underground Railroad, Invisible Wings,is revived for the Pillow's 75th Anniversary Season. Choreographed by San Francisco-based choreographer Joanna Haigood, and performed by Zaccho Dance Theater, the work encompasses live music by Linda Tillery and her spirited a capella group, the Cultural Heritage Choir. Performances are August 20-22 and 24-25 at 7pm, This site-specific work, called "an unpreachy, vivid history lesson" by Jennifer Dunning, New York Times, asks the audience walk to several performance sites on the grounds, passing through woods and rough ground, and uniquely evokes 19th century race relations and the visceral experience of slaves escaping through the woods. Amenities at Jacob's Pillow, plus More Ways to Learn About Dance The Archives at Jacob's Pillow are open Tuesday-Sunday, noon through final curtain, in Blake's Barn. The library and reading room offer visitors the opportunity to view over 5000 selections of footage of dance icons at work over the decades, from Ted Shawn and Ruth St. Denis to Mark Morris and more; to browse through a collection of rare and unusual dance-related books; and to peruse the archival collections of Pillow programs and photographs from 1933 to today. Guides are available to assist in sharing the resources of the Archives. New for the 75th Anniversary Season, an interactive viewing kiosk allows visitors to see rare footage of 75 different historic and current dance icons, including superstar Mikhail Baryshnikov and more. Take a Guided Tour of this National Historic Landmark, once a family farm and station on the Underground Railroad and now a renowned dance festival, school, archives, and community programs. The public is invited to meet at the Welcome Center Saturdays at 5:30pm for a free guided tour or to pick up a Self-Guided Tour Map anytime. Dance Opportunities Morning Jumpstart Classes offered in Pilates, Ballet, Modern, and more, Mondays through Fridays at 8am. All experience levels, 16 and older, $8 per class, Ruth St. Denis Studio. Call the Education Hotline at 413.243.9919 x57. Weekly Master Classes are led by Festival artists Sundays at 10:30am to noon for intermediate and advanced dancers, $15 per class. Pre-registration is required. Call the Education Hotline at 413.243.9919 x57. The School at Jacob's Pillow is open to observation by the public. See classes and rehearsals of The School at Jacob's Pillow Tuesdays through Saturdays, 9am-5pm, featuring teachers from all over the world, at no charge, in the Sommers Studio. Interested groups of four or more should confirm space availability by calling 413.243.9919 x21. Dining The Pillow CafÃ© offers fine dining with wine service under the tent on The Great Lawn. Wednesdays through Saturdays, dinner is served 5-7pm. Saturday and Sunday brunch is served noon to 2pm. Reservations are required, call 413.243.2455. The Pillow Pub offers casual family fare, takeout for picnics and full bar service. Wednesdays through Fridays 5pm-midnight, Saturdays noon-midnight and Sundays noon-5pm. The Tea Garden serves gourmet teas and fresh bakery items in the charming and historic spot where Ted Shawn's Men Dancers served patrons during the 1930s. The Coffee Bar and Ice Cream Bar are open pre-performance and during intermissions. Sample menus for each dining venue are available at www.jacobspillow.org. Pillow Patrons are also invited to bring picnics and relax at one of many choice picnic spots on the Pillow grounds. As of April 1, 2007, major support for Community Programs at Jacob's Pillow has been provided by The Barrington Foundation; Central Berkshire Fund of the Berkshire Taconic Community Foundation; The Dana Foundation; The Gladys Krieble Delmas Foundation; Frances Alexander Foundation; Marshall Frankel Foundation; The Howard Gilman Foundation; The Harkness Foundation for Dance; The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation; The Geoffrey C. Hughes Foundation; The Leir Charitable Foundations, in Memory of Henry J. Leir; The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; Mertz Gilmore Foundation; Evelyn Stefansson Nef Foundation; New England Foundation for the Arts; Rudolf NureyevÂ® Dance Foundation; The William J. and Dorothy K. O'Neill Foundation; The Prospect Hill Foundation; The Shubert Foundation, Inc; The Starr Foundation; Trust for Mutual Understanding; Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency; Massachusetts Office of Travel and Tourism; National Endowment for the Arts; AlexÂ®; Ameriprise Financial; Berkshire Bank Foundation; Big Y World Class Market; TD Banknorth Charitable Foundation; Jacob's Pillow Business Alliance; and Jacob's Pillow Members. Major endowment support is provided by The Barrington Foundation; The William Randolph Hearst Foundation; The Leir Charitable Foundations, in Memory of Henry J. Leir; Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency; The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation; Onota Foundation; The Prospect Hill Foundation; Puffin Foundation; and the Talented Students in the Arts Initiative, a collaboration of the Doris Duke Charitable Foundation and Surdna Foundation. Jacob's Pillow celebrates its 75th Anniversary Season in 2007. The Pillow encompasses an acclaimed international festival (the longest-running dance festival in the U.S.), a professional dance school, rare and extensive archives open to the public free of charge, an intern program, year-round community programs, and a creative development residency program. The historic site includes 163 acres, 31 buildings, three unique stages (including the first theater in the U.S. built specifically for dance), three dance studios, exhibition spaces, restaurants, the Pillow Store, residential housing, administrative offices, a health center, gardens, trails, and woodlands. In 2003, Jacob's Pillow was declared a National Historic Landmark and is the first and only dance entity in the U.S. to achieve this honor.

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Possible Measles Exposure at Boston, Logan

12:05PM / Wednesday, December 24, 2025

BOSTON — The Massachusetts Department of Public Health confirmed Wednesday that an out-of-state adult visitor who spent time in Boston and Westborough earlier this month was diagnosed with measles and was present in a number of locations.

This could have resulted in other people being exposed to measles virus.

The visitor arrived at Logan International Airport on American Airlines flight 2384 from Dallas-Fort Worth, Texas, on Dec. 11 at 2:39 p.m. They stayed at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel Boston-Westborough in Westborough and departed the state on Dec. 12 via Logan at 9:19 p.m. on JetBlue flight 117 to Las Vegas.

DPH is working with the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and local partners to identify and notify those who may have been exposed to measles from this individual.

"Measles is a highly contagious, airborne disease, which has increased significantly in the United States because of the unfortunate decrease in vaccination rates. It is also a preventable disease," said Public Health Commissioner Dr. Robbie Goldstein. "This current situation serves as an important reminder of the critical role vaccination plays in protecting our communities. While Massachusetts has not had a measles case this year, 2025 saw the highest number of nationwide cases in more than a decade — nearly 2,000 in 44 jurisdictions, and sadly, three deaths.

"Fifteen years ago, measles had been considered eliminated in the United States, but that tremendous progress is at risk. Vaccines are one of the most important public health interventions ever — they are safe, effective, and lifesaving."

Measles is very contagious. However, the risk to most people in Massachusetts is low because the vaccination rate in the state is high. People who are not immune and visited any of the locations on the following dates and times may be at risk for developing measles.

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