Arts

Arts

MASS MoCA Finds The Faith In Documentary Films

By Rachel Louchen The Rural Intelligence region is flush with independent theaters that eschew the commercial box office smashes dominating the chain cinemas in order to highlight smaller fare like simulcasts and critics' choice films. Documentary films are among the most popular, and MASS MoCA has long responded with

By Editor

Arts

Darlingside Rising: Indie Folk Quartet Brings Harmony to Pittsfield

By Robert Burke Warren When Rural Intelligence last spoke to Massachusetts-based indie folk band Darlingside, they were upstarts who’d charmed noted producer Nate Kunkel (Maroon 5, James Taylor) into flying from L.A. to produce their debut CD, Pilot Machines, and were thrilled to be opening for The

By Editor

Arts

A Winter Warm-up: Berkshire Festival of Women Writers Prepares For March With A Week Of Workshops

By Amy Krzanik “The most common way people give up their power is by thinking they don't have any." --Alice Walker. As this quote flashes on the screen, so begins Miss Representation, the 2011 documentary that shines a harsh light on how the American media portray woman—

By Editor

Arts

Bettye LaVette: Powerhouse Song Interpreter Goes Soul Deep

By Robert Burke Warren Legendary R & B vocalist Bettye LaVette, a 52-year veteran of the concert stage, wants to set the record straight about her reputation as a superlative song interpreter; when she appears at Helsinki Hudson on Saturday, January 11, she will not “inhabit" her material.

By Editor

Arts

A 'Wonderful Life' Hits Home

By Jeremy D. Goodwin The woman sitting by the hearth looked so calm and comfortable, so part of the scenery, I wondered whether she was a volunteer who’d been stationed there deliberately. Before the start of Shakespeare & Company’s thoroughly entertaining production of the holiday classic It’s

By Editor

Arts

Pizzarelli Parlor: John Pizzarelli Brings the Family to the Mahaiwe

By Robert Burke Warren Singer, guitarist, and showman extraordinaire John Pizzarelli plans to say good-bye to 2013 with even more class than usual. The Grammy nominee, who plays close to 150 dates a year, routinely leaves audiences smoldering with his quartet, drawing on a wide array of everything from

By Editor

Arts

In Local Living Color: Vince Pomilio’s Thornbush Grid

By Dave King Vincent Pomilio no doubt cleans up nicely, but in his New York City studio he’s the archetype of the painter at ease, answering the door in splattered painter’s pants and a white t-shirt that clearly doubles as a paint rag. On the day I

By Editor

Arts

Season of the Son: Teddy Thompson Closes Out 2013 at Helsinki Hudson

By Robert Burke Warren In a career spanning almost a decade-and-a-half, Teddy Thompson, the only son of folk icons Richard and Linda Thompson (pictured below in earlier days), has worn several hats; he’s been a sideman for Rosanne Cash and Rufus Wainwright, an acclaimed recording artist

By Editor

Arts

In Their Own Image: Inuit Art at Vassar Focuses on the Indigenous Experience

By Robert Burke Warren In recent years, the “official" history of indigenous North Americans – as told from European perspectives – has fallen under increased scrutiny. Potent critiques of the “textbook take" are increasingly common, and slowly but surely, the narrative is changing; the term “Native American" has displaced

By Editor

Arts

The Queen of Arts: Kim Taylor Joins the President's Committee

By Nichole Dupont When President Obama calls, Kim Taylor answers. The Lenox resident and longtime trustee and employee (some 30 years) of the Boston Symphony has just been appointed to the president’s committee on the Arts and Humanities. Taylor joins a powerhouse gang that includes actor Sarah Jessica Parker,

By Editor

Arts

"First Flight" at Shakespeare & Co: Berkshires Duo Takes Off

By Robert Burke Warren We live in a noisy, often dissonant age. Harmony is all too rare, so when we happen upon it, we’re captivated, especially if it emanates from the up-and-coming Tyringham, MA, duo (and devoted couple) Oakes & Smith. They’re bringing that sweet sound

By Editor

Arts

Dramatic, Ecstatic Klezmatics Bring Danceable Joy to the Mahaiwe

By Robert Burke Warren When trumpeter-composer Frank London formed the Klezmatics in the East Village in 1986, he and his bandmates sought to revitalize and update klezmer music, the Yiddish folk/American jazz amalgam popular in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. At the band’s first gigs,

By Editor