Cultural Pittsfield This Week: Aug. 18-Sept. 3

03:56PM / Thursday, August 27, 2020Print Story | Email Story

This Saturday and Sunday, Aug. 29-30 is Tax-free Weekend in Massachusetts. Retail items of up to $2,500 - purchased in the state for personal use - will be exempt from sales tax on these two days. Special deals in downtown Pittsfield include a double tax-free discount at Carr Hardware, an end-of-summer sale at Dory & Ginger, and more!

Tune in to WAMC Northeast Public Radio this Saturday, Aug. 29 at 7 p.m. to hear Songs of Comfort, a live concert held at Hancock Shaker Village starring Anjimile, Emanuel Ax, Billy Keane, Yo-Yo Ma, and Chantell McFarland, with remarks by Deval Patrick. The audience will consist of local essential workers including teachers, nurses, firefighters, farmers, police officers, grocery store workers, food bank volunteers and more.

FUN & LEARNING

Tanglewood in the City will light up The Common Park on Friday, Aug. 28 for four screenings, limited to 50 people each: 11 a.m., 2 p.m., 5 p.m & 8 p.m. These FREE screenings will be an archival performance of Beethoven's ninth symphony performed by the Boston Symphony Orchestra. Pre-registration is required: email events@milltowncapital.com (please indicate your first two preferred screening times and number of people in your party). Picnics are encouraged; social distancing is required!

Berkshire Opera Festival presents its first ever virtual concert! Comprised of musical selections from across the operatic spectrum and beyond, "From Stage To Screen: The Show Must Go On(line)" will feature performances from the internationally renowned cast of BOF's (now canceled) 2020 production of Don Giovanni. The concert will premiere on Vimeo on Friday, Aug. 28 at 7:30 p.m., and will be available for on-demand viewing through Friday, Sept. 4.

The 53rd annual Hilda Vallin Feigenbaum Memorial Lecture will be given by National Public Radio (NPR) political reporter Mara Liasson. The topic is Election 2020: America at the Crossroads and will be held virtually on Sunday, Aug. 30 at 7:30 p.m.

Plus...

Radiance Yoga Classes | Berkshire Yoga Dance & Fitness Classes | Antil Fitness Classes | Classes w/Berkshire Music School | Berkshire Fitness & Wellness Classes | Classes w/IS183 Art School | Painting Tutorials w/Berkshire Paint & Sip | Drumming Classes with aimee@gaiaroots.com | View All 1Berkshire Town Halls | ONGOING Godspell at The Colonial | ONGOING BLM Call for Art | THU-MON Tours at Arrowhead | FRI DLE Virtual Breakfast Club | FRI PillowTalk: Black Creatives w/Theresa Ruth Howard | NOW-SAT The Hills Are Alive with Rodgers & Hammerstein at Barrington Stage | SUN Barnyard Yoga at Hancock Shaker Village SUN Leslie Kritzer: Is It Over Yet? at Barrington Stage | MON 1Berkshire Virtual Entrepreneurial Meetup | MON Word X Word: Grouped MON-TUE Ann Hampton Callaway: Diva Power at Barrington Stage | TUE Art, Women, Nature & Hope | WED The Death of Expertise w/Tom Nichols | THU Live Storytelling w/BCC Alums THU Creative Photographic Composition w/IS183 at Hancock Shaker Village

FAMILY FRIENDLY

Join Berkshire Music School at its Fall Open House on Saturday, Aug. 29 from 10 a.m. - noon, on the lawn at 30 Wendell Ave. This
free, socially distanced event will feature mini-classes and demos for all ages. Faculty and staff will be available to answer questions
and register students for private lessons and small group classes. Registration fees will be waived for students registering for fall classes at the event.

Berkshire Museum is celebrating the limited-time return of The Art of Warner Bros. Cartoons with a round of trivia questions pulled from the world of animation, followed by a round designed to test your knowledge of life under the sea. Tuesday, Sept. 1 at 6:30 p.m.!

The annual Backpack Challenge will be held at all four Pittsfield Haddad Dealerships on Wednesday, Sept. 2 from 1-4 p.m. FREE backpacks filled with school supplies will be handed out to local students via this drive-through event. Please remember to wear a mask upon arrival. Backpacks will be handed out on a first come, first served basis. This event is brought to you by The Berkshire Eagle and Haddad Dealerships.

Plus...

SHOP LOCAL / EAT LOCAL

Roots Rising's Virtual Farmers Market is open for viewing all week long! Online shopping is available from Monday at 12 p.m.- Tuesday at 7:30 a.m., or until the maximum order limit is reached. If you would like to volunteer to help Roots Rising with Saturday packing and delivery, click here.

RESOURCES

It's not too late to take The 2020 Census! You can respond online, by phone, or by mail. Your response matters! Census results help determine how billions of dollars in federal funding are allocated to states and communities each year, and determine how many seats in Congress each state gets.

Plus...

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Pittsfield's DPW Czar Talks Snow Plowing

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
05:04AM / Wednesday, February 11, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Staffing shortages continue to stretch Pittsfield’s public works employees thin during winter storm events.

On Monday, Commissioner of Public Services and Utilities Ricardo Morales updated the Public Works Committee on snow operations. Last winter, snow maintenance and winter overtime were overspent by nearly $1.2 million, and Pittsfield saw a total of 4.77 feet of snow.

"We place safety over everything else when we do the work we do, and one of those main things is to ensure that we have safe access for emergency vehicles. Then we consider equity, efficiency, and cost control," Morales explained.

"… We have to do the work we're doing and if the budget is at the end of the day, at the end of the year in the negative, then we have to make sure that we can replenish that by some other means and that's why, very often, almost every year, I have not seen a year where we have not done this, we come back to the City Council to ask for funds to replenish some of the funds spent on snow and ice."

The region saw more than a foot of snow earlier this year, and it continued to fall on Tuesday. Snow accumulation is significant because of freezing temperatures.

This winter season to date, 4.5 feet of snow has fallen on Pittsfield, and contractors worked more than 4,000 hours.

Morales cited contractor availability, contractor rates and insurance, staffing shortages, and increasing weather unpredictability as the main challenges for snow removal operations in fiscal year 2025. Staffing shortages continue in 2026, as the Highway Division has seven vacancies, causing "a major issue" when it comes to maintaining around-the-clock staffing during storms.

Contractors have been brought in to supplement with larger vehicles, and Deputy Commissioner Jason Murphy and other employees have been plowing while they should be focused on quality control. Morales pointed out that the city has worked with contractors to provide better pay and insurance standards for this winter season.

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