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The Sullivan family revealed the dedication sign at Tillotson Park in honor of Robert Sullivan.

Lenox Dedicates Baseball Field To Former Star

By Andy McKeeveriBerkshires Staff
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Old newspaper clippings and photos were available for friends and family to relive Robert Sullivan's glory days.
LENOX — Robert Sullivan may have passed up a shot at baseball legend but he secured a spot in the heart of Lenox Dale.

The baseball field at the newly renovated Tillotson Park was dedicated Saturday to the man who declined a chance of playing professional baseball to return home and work the family farm.

Sullivan led the Lenox High School Millionaires to a championship in 1946 and then played in the Cincinnati Reds' minor league teams before giving up the sport he loved.

"We were so privileged to be good enough to be a teammate of Bob's," Tom Bosworth, Sullivan's friend and 1946 teammate, said. "He was a baseball prodigy."

Over the last few years, the park has received hundreds of thousands of dollars of upgrades and when it was finally completed, it was an easy decision to name it after Sullivan, Lenox Community Center Director Kim Graham said. Sullivan grew up across the street from the park and is arguably the greatest player the county has had.

"I just wish he was here for it. Baseball was his life," Sullivan's granddaughter Kelly Sullivan said.

Boswell, Kelly Sullivan, Robert's son Michael Sullivan and his grandson Michael Sullivan Jr. unveiled the banner that proudly dedicated the field to a large crowd . Michael Sullivan threw out the first pitch of the Lenox-versus-St. Joseph junior varsity game to family friend Tristian Vaber.


Robert Sullivan's son Michael Sullivan threw out the first pitch at the newly-named Bob Sullivan Memorial Field.
"It's very emotional. It's a great honor," Michael Sullivan said after the ceremony. "The whole thing was a surprise to us."

The dedication was a "clear" decision for the Community Center board in February, Graham said. The park added additional parking, basketball courts and upgrades to become more family oriented, she said.


"This park is long overdue for Lenox Dale," Graham said. "It's no longer just a baseball field. It's a family park."

While the dedication was originally planned for opening day, it had to be rescheduled because of rain. Saturday was the first date the center had.

For the ceremony, a table filled with old newspaper clippings and photos relived Robert Sullivan's playing days.

"He was the best baseball player to come out of Lenox High and I love him," former teammate Duke Lahart said.

The day he left the sport, Robert Sullivan was offered a spot on the spring training roster with the Detriot Tigers, Michael Sullivan said.

Robert Sullivan's love of baseball has continued through the generations. Michael Sullivan and his son both have remained dedicated to the high school team as a coach and a player.

The ceremony brought back waves of memories for the family. After the ceremony, the Lenox team took turns shaking the hands of the members of the 1946 team who were present.

"Some of these old-timers just keep talking about him," Michael Sullivan said. "It's such a huge honor for the family."
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The Classical Beat: Look For a Profusion of Events at Tanglewood From Fall and Into Next Spring

by Stephen DanknerSpecial to iBerkshires

LENOX, Mass. — Come late August, classical aficionados are grateful for the cornucopia of extraordinarily sonorous riches the Boston Symphony has bestowed upon audiences within the incomparably bucolic setting that is Tanglewood. It's been, as ever, a magical summer of glorious music making.

But wait – it's not over; for a cool, refreshing stylistic change of pace, with a tincture of Jazz, Broadway, Dance, Classical, Pops and Local Community events to buoy the spirits, be sure to check out the complete schedule of upcoming events at the storied Tanglewood Learning Institute, beginning in September. Read below for the complete TLI listings.


Tanglewood Learning Institute Announces Fall/Winter/Spring Season, Presenting Over 50 Events September 2026 through May 2027

TLI's most expansive season to date brings classical, jazz, Broadway, and dance talent to Tanglewood's Linde Center. Tickets now on sale.

The Tanglewood Learning Institute (TLI) has announced the 2026–'27 fall/winter/spring season, the most expansive yet, with over 50 events at the Linde Center for Music and Learning on Tanglewood's campus and in the Berkshires community. Marking the third year of year-round TLI programming, the upcoming season offers a wide-ranging performance lineup of exciting classical, jazz, Broadway, and dance talent as well as the TLI Cinematics film series, new TLI Focal Point photography classes, and community engagement events.  

The season begins in late September with TLI Jazz: Mark G. Meadows & The Movement (Sept. 18) and TLI Presents: Beijing Guitar Duo (Sept. 25). Berkshire-based artists appear throughout the season, including a dedicated weekend of TLI Close to Home performances (Oct. 30–Nov. 1). BSO musicians curate and perform five TLI Chamber Concerts (Oct. 18, Nov. 8, Feb. 28, April 11, and April 25). Last year's inaugural Berkshire Bach Portals series, a collaboration with Berkshire Bach Society, continues with four programs about the impact of Bach's music across artistic disciplines (Nov. 7, Jan. 30, March 20, and May 15). As currently planned, the TLI fall/winter/spring season concludes May 23 with a performance by Grammy-winning vocal ensemble Roomful of Teeth. TLI events continue during the 2027 Tanglewood summer season. 

Single tickets and choose-your-own subscriptions for the upcoming TLI season go on sale Wednesday, August 12 at 10 a.m.

TLI Presents

A wide-ranging lineup of soloists and ensembles will visit the Linde Center for TLI Presents programs, beginning with the Tanglewood debut of the Beijing Guitar Duo (Meng Su and Yameng Wang) in a program that shows the expressive range of classical guitar and includes works by Telemann, Giuliani, and Chinese American composer Tan Dun (Sept. 25, 7 p.m.). Award-winning Moldovan accordionist Radu Ratoi follows with a varied recital that reveals the remarkable expressive range of his instrument with pieces by Rameau, Bach, Philip Glass, Gubaidulina, Tchaikovsky, and others (Oct. 23, 7 p.m.). 

Broadway comes to the Linde Center by way of two-time Tony-nominated singer and actress Christine Andreas ("My Fair Lady," "Oklahoma!," "The Light in the Piazza"), who brings classic and contemporary selections from the American songbook in her show S'Wonderful with Grammy-nominated composer and pianist Martin Silvestri. In a new format for TLI, this event will feature cabaret-style table seating with bites and beverages available for purchase (Nov. 13, 7 p.m.). Later that weekend, the Grammy-winning and four-time nominated wind quintet Imani Winds, renowned for blending classical masterworks with newly commissioned works and diverse musical influences, performs an adventurous chamber music program (Nov. 15, 3 p.m.)

Founded by retired Boston Ballet principal dancer John Lam, who led TLI 101: Dance at the Linde Center in July, Lam Dance Works returns to Tanglewood for an intimate evening where dance, live music, and the human voice illuminate memory, identity, and our shared humanity. The program features works by internationally acclaimed choreographers Peggy Baker, Jorma Elo, and Yury Yanowsky, with Artistic Director Lam offering audience insights before each work and a post-performance conversation with the artists. (Nov. 21, 7 p.m.).  

Newly installed as a Berkshire tradition, BSO Holiday Brass returns to the Linde Center for four presentations, including a morning performance geared towards families (Dec. 18–20).  

Colombian cellist Santiago Cañón-Valencia, Silver Medalist and "Audience Favorite" at the 2019 XVI International Tchaikovsky Competition, presents a recital that pairs music by Bach and George Crumb with several of his own compositions (Feb. 26, 7 p.m.). Concert pianists Alessio Bax and Lucille Chung, each in-demand soloists in their own right, offer an afternoon concert featuring repertoire for four hands, including works by Bach, Mendelssohn, Debussy, Poulenc, and Piazzolla (March 7, 3 p.m.).  

Actor and singer Jarrod Spector, most recently seen on Broadway as King George III in "Hamilton," shares his musical journey in "Jukebox Life," a cabaret-style evening of Broadway, rock n' roll, and crooner classics that traces his career from winning "Star Search" at age six to the bright lights of Broadway (April 9, 7 p.m.). 

In a highlight of the season, pianist and composer Conrad Tao and choreographer and dancer Caleb Teicher give two performances of their collaborative and original program Counterpoint. The stylistically diverse music of "Counterpoint" includes the Aria from Bach’s Goldberg Variations, Art Tatum’s brilliantly virtuosic stride piano, Arnold Schoenberg’s ironic/modernistic take on the Viennese waltz, a delicate miniature from Tao and Teicher’s More Forever, and threading it all together, Gershwin’s  perennially beloved "Rhapsody in Blue." Tao and Teicher’s earlier work," More Forever," is a Bessie Award-winning, New York Times critic’s pick which was lauded for "constantly extending the sonic aspects of dance" (April 17, 7 p.m., and April 18, 3 p.m.). 

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