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The Millbrook Mystique: Inside Fitch’s Corner Horse Trials

Rural Intelligence's preview of the Fitch's Corner Horse Trials first ran in July 2010. We've updated Dan Shaw's original story to reflect this year's event. Horse shows are a wonderful combination of sport and style, and nowhere are the equestrians

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In Chatham, Judy Grunberg is a Force of Culture

Growing up in Manhattan, Judy Grunberg and her friends used to wait outside the big Broadway theaters at dawn to make sure they got the one-dollar standing-room-only tickets when the box office opened. “As a young girl, I saw so many of the famous Broadway musicals with

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Community

Bard’s SummerScape Spiegeltent Is a Seasonal Sensation

Every summer, a bit of magic occurs on the Bard College campus. In what is normally an empty field across from  Frank Gehry's gleaming Fisher Center, the Spiegeltent arises. Surrounded by trees strung with twinkling lights, its irresistible façade beckons passersby, promising untold merriment within. This is no

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In Memoriam: Robert Willis, Owner of Lakeville's Cafe Giulia

Restaurants occupy a very special place in the life of our rural towns because they bring us together, providing  a convivial alternative to quiet nights at home. Restaurateur Robert Willis created just such a place (twice) in Lakeville, CT called Cafe Giulia, which happened to serve very delicious and unfussy

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Community

And the Rockets' Red Glare, But Where?

Are you ready to rumble? That’s a big part of the appeal of fireworks. More than just a visual display with audio accompaniment, a good fireworks show is a truly visceral experience; you can feel the big blasts – they rattle through your skeleton and make your heart beat harder.

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Artist Tom Patti's Berkshire Museum Commission Is a Glass Act

Portrait by Paul Rocheleau; photos of the installation courtesy of Tom Patti Design At age eight, Tom Patti lost the sight in his right eye when a spinning contraption he was building came apart and a sharp piece flew into his face. Perhaps because of that accident and how it

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Community

Discover the Brahmins and Bohemians of Litchfield County

Litchfield Antiques Show & Open Your Eyes Studio Tours June 23 & 24 The northwestern corner of Connecticut can seem highfalutin' to the untrained eye with so many power players from the art and design worlds (Anne Bass, Diane von Furstenburg, Agnes Gund, Michael Leva, Oscar de la Renta,

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Community

Community: 20 Questions for Ella Baff of Jacob's Pillow

Ever since Ella Baff moved to the Berkshires in 1998 to head Jacob’s Pillow, one of the world’s leading proponents of dance and the oldest dance festival in America, the Becket-based cultural organization has surged forward by leaps and bounds. During her tenure, the Pillow was designated

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Community

Spencertown Academy Enters the Fifth Decade of its Third Life

There’s a large, warm spot in Clare Verenazi’s heart for the Spencertown Academy Arts Center. “Spencertown Academy was where my husband went to school in the 1940s, and he walked there and home everyday,” says the 78-year-old Chatham resident. “We’d enjoy Christmas pageants and year-

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Community

Let The Good Times Roll, With Two Types of Horsepower

There are two ways to think about vehicles: as purely functional modes of transportation, or as beautiful, even sensual, means of conveyance that get you from here to there in style. Lucky are those who adhere to the latter sentiment, as this weekend they can enjoy two neighboring events that

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Community

Mount Lebanon HerbFest Unveils the Secrets of Shaker Swamp

From the Native Americans to the Shakers, from the Tilden Pharmaceutical Company (1824–1960) to today’s alternative-healing practitioners and locavore chefs, the residents of New Lebanon, NY, have benefited for centuries from the town’s greatest natural resource: herbs. "Austerlitz has blueberries, West Stockbridge has zucchinis, and

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Ventfort Hall's First Annual Spring Antiques Show

One of the goals of Rural Intelligence has always been to break through the imaginary glass walls that divide Berkshire, Columbia, Dutchess, and Litchfield counties and to foster a sense of regional community and promote interstate commerce. Thus, we were overjoyed to learn that Ventfort Hall (Mansion and Gilded Age

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