Arts

Arts

Cutting Edge Exhibit Down by the Riverside

by Betsy Miller Picture Shirley Bassey singing her hit song This is My Life in one of her dramatic costumes.   Now imagine her singing the same song at different points in her career, all captured on video that has been fragmented by an artist, who further fractures the images with

By Editor

Arts

Louise Lecavalier: Daredevil Dancing at Jacob's Pillow

Dance review by Bess J.M. Hochstein Photos: Andre CornellierLouise Lecavalier is petite, more than 50 years old, sinewy and muscled, and a dare devil dancer with a stage presence that grabs your attention and never lets it go – not only when she is moving with complete physical abandon, but

By Editor

Arts

From Cuba to Becket: DanzAbierta's U.S. Debut at Jacob's Pillow

Dance review by Bess J.M. Hochstein Photos by Carlos Furman In DanzAbierta’s hour-long  work, MalSon, the dancers wear gray and black and the sole scenic prop is a gray block, about the size of an super-deep mattress. All color comes from video intermittently projected on the back of

By Editor

Arts

Todd Reynolds on the 10th Annual Bang on a Can Festival

The rock band Wilco, which hosted the recent Solid Sound festival, was not the first musical group to commandeer MASS MoCA. In 2002—just three years after the museum was founded – Bang on a Can, a group of musicians and composers dedicated to commissioning, performing, creating, presenting, and recording contemporary

By Editor

Arts

Commentary: Mr. Rodgers' Neighborhood

by Scott Baldinger In 1966, when asked what he thought of the music of the Beatles, Richard Rodgers churlishly replied, “I find it monotonous…I don’t think there’s anything creative or original about it.  Their music won’t last.”  When told about this, Paul McCartney responded that he

By Editor

Arts

Shorts: A Filmmaking Roundtable and A Juried Contest for Young Filmmakers

The Columbia Land Conservancy  and The Chatham Film Club are seeking entries for a juried competition. Filmmakers 16 to 25 are invited to submit original shorts (max. 30 minutes) about land conservation, agriculture, land-use planning, environmental education, or outdoor recreation, all aspect of the Conservancy's work. A jury

By Editor

Arts

Review: "Moonchildren" Shines at BTF

Comedy is so much harder to get right than tragedy: making an audience laugh is more difficult than making them cry. The veteran actress Karen Allen, in her directorial debut at Berkshire Theatre Festival, gave herself a formidable challenge: to resurrect Moonchildren, a 40-year-old comedy about Vietnam era youth culture,

By Editor

Arts

Mark Morris Directs Milhaud's Operas-Minutes at Tanglewood

Berkshire audiences are long-accustomed to seeing Mark Morris Dance Group at both Jacob’s Pillow (since 1982) and at Tanglewood (since 2003). This year—MMDG’s 30th anniversary—the company bookends the season, with its pre-BSO-arrival Tanglewood performances last week and its season-closing appearance at Jacob’s Pillow August 24

By Editor

Arts

U.S. Debut of Carte Blanche at Jacob’s Pillow: Frosty Moves from Norway

Dance review by Bess J.M. Hochstein Ella Baff is a dance-world star-maker. Each year she travels the globe, reaching out to artists unknown in the United States, extending invitations for them to perform at Jacob’s Pillow. Each spring, in the Festival calendar, she presents the results of her

By Editor

Arts

Crandell Celebrates Anniversary with Special Screenings

This weekend, the Chatham Film Club, which bought Chatham's historic Crandell Theatre last year, is celebrating its one-year anniversary as owners with a weekend of special movie events, including two rarely seen Buster Keaton silent films, with live musical accompaniment, and the local premiere of Project Nim, a

By Editor

Arts

This Week at Jacob’s Pillow: Jane Comfort and Company

Dance preview by Bess J.M. Hochstein “Dance theater,” like its cousin “performance art,” can be a weighted term. Purists of either discipline – dance or theater – tend to view it as a bastardization of both. In the hands of a smart, engaged choreographer/director such as Jane Comfort, who has

By Editor

Arts

Ragtime Concert Picnic, a Family Affair

“It’s amazing how many people don’t know what ragtime music is,” says Gwen Gould, Founder and Conductor of the Columbia Festival Orchestra.  “It’s full of energy.  It’s delightful,” says Ragtime expert Dan Paget.  “It’s syncopated sound,” says Webster’s Dictionary, the music considered modern when

By Editor