Arts

Arts

Back In The Saddle: Laura Chester Rides Out the Storm of Transition

All photos courtesy of Trafalgar Square BooksBy Nichole DupontLaura Chester does not like to dwell in the past, especially her own. That's why the veteran author and horsewoman decided to write a book about it; to get some of that stuff out. But make no mistake, Riding Barranca,

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Arts

Go Gershwin! "The Way You Wear Your Hat" at TriArts Sharon Playhouse

By Robert Burke Warren Not many musicians can unseat a diva, much less an entire evening of divas, but TriArts Sharon Playhouse artistic director John Simpkins says composer George Gershwin is the man for the job. The venerable Sharon, Connecticut theater usually opens its summer season with an all-female

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Arts

Berkshire International Film Festival: An Orgy of Film and Style (and Food)

By Jeremy D. Goodwin The most concentrated dose of entertainment and in-season chic to hit south Berkshire every year just may be the Berkshire International Film Festival. The entertainment comes courtesy of some 70-plus films crowding four venues; the in-season chic is served in large helpings at

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Arts

Old Crow, New Song: Old Crow Medicine Show at MASS MoCA

by Robert Burke WarrenLike a longtime married couple who’ve survived everything from overfamiliarity to substance abuse to trial separation, Nashville-based Old Crow Medicine Show deserves a standing ovation just for showing up at MASS MoCA on Tuesday, May 28. Attendees will keep the applause coming, however, from opening

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Arts

Dancing the Myth: From Isis to Isadora

By Robert Burke WarrenThis Mother’s Day weekend, two deeply devoted dance organizations combine their resources, offering audiences a chance to celebrate life, love, beauty, and the feminine energy that brought us all here. Kaatsbaan International Dance Center in Tivoli hosts the Isadora Duncan International Institute Dancers’ From Isis to

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Arts

The Incredible, Flexible Tom Chapin

“It’s hard for people to know what to make of me," singer-songwriter and stalwart folkie Tom Chapin says with a laugh, alluding to his remarkably varied five-decade career as a troubadour for adults, a multi-Grammy-winning children’s entertainer, Emmy and Peabody-winning television personality,

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Arts

Old-Timey Future Rock: The Lisps Present "Futurity" at MASS MoCA

Indie rockers do not often traffic in hope, but the Lisps are not your run-of-the-mill, irony-wielding indie combo. With their acclaimed Civil War-era steampunk rock musical Futurity, at MASS MoCA on Saturday, April 27th at 8 p.m., the Brooklyn-based band brings heartfelt storytelling

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Arts

At Vassar: Focus on the Polaroid Years

“Industry is best," said scientist, visionary, and prolific inventor Edwin H. Land, “at the intersection of science and art." His revolutionary Polaroid SX-70 camera, marketed from 1972 to 1981, epitomizes this maxim. While Land invented instant photography in 1947, the elegant, portable, and inexpensive SX-70 brought

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Arts

Let There Be Light: Electric Paris Shines at the Clark

There's no question that April in Paris is on the top of the list in terms of romantic destinations. But Paris at any time of the year isn't too shabby either. The legendary City of Light is featured in Electric Paris (on display now through April

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Arts

Bulgarians Invade Lenox

(L-R) Kevin Coleman, Ivan Dobchev, JoJo Hrstova, Walton Wilson Photos by Enrico Spada Walton Wilson has been cradling his head in his hands for about a half hour now, his face completely hidden from view. The character he’s portraying in an informal performance of Anton Chekhov’s Uncle

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Arts

Chris Thile and Brad Mehldau: A Fine Bromance at the Mahaiwe

Perhaps it’s the macchiato. Singer/mandolinist and MacArthur “genius grant" recipient Chris Thile (at left), a musician for whom adjectives “tireless" and “extraordinary" spring to mind, drinks at least one a day. Rural Intelligence catches the thirty-two-year old in his East Village apartment, fresh

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Arts

The Wondrous Words of Junot Diaz

Novelist Junot Diaz exudes an otherworldly level of awesomeness. The author and 2012 MacArthur Foundation "genius" grant recipient is on the phone discussing his third book, the linked short-story collection This Is How You Lose Her, which chronicles the relationship detonations in the life of Yunior, a

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