Berkshires Calendar magazine Summer/Fall 2021 edition

Berkshires

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YOUR LINK TO THE SEASON’S OFFERINGS SUM/FALL 2021

WHAT’S HAPPENING

NOW

Day Trip: The Big E is back!

Black Berkshires Fall Events Pick Your Own And much more

A FREE publication from theberkshireedge.com

“You are by far the most proactive, hands-on financial advisor I have ever had. I should refer to you as my wealth developer rather than financial advisor. It is no wonder to me that BMM is Best in the Berkshires!” Michael Forte This is a testimonial of Berkshire Money Management (BMM) by a client of the firm.

BMM has not provided any direct or indirect compensation for this testimonial.

Berkshire Money Management, Inc. 161 Main Street, Dalton, MA 01226 • 322 Main Street, Great Barrington, MA 01230 Recognitions or awards should not be construed as an endorsement or a recommendation to retain BMM by the ranking entity or any regulatory authority. Any rankings or awards cited were provided by independent third-parties based on their predetermined evaluation criteria. BMM neither provided any financial remuneration to these third-parties nor exercised any influence or control over the criteria used or the results generated.

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A SAMPLING OF THE SEASON’S OFFERINGS

S U M / FA L L 2 0 2 1

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42 48

64

70

6 Great Barrington

FEATURES & DEPARTMENTS

14 Stockbridge

42 Out & About: Black Berkshires

16 West Stockbridge

47 Events

18 Sheffield

48 Music

20 Lenox

52 Theater & Performance

22 Lee

55 Dance

24 North Adams

56 Visual Art

26 Williamstown

60 Outdoor Fun

28 Southern Vermont

62 Fall Fairs & Festivals

31 Pittsfield

64 Out & About: Pittsfield Cemetery

36 Salisbury, Connecticut

67 Pick Your Own

38 Hillsdale, New York

70 Day Trip: The Big E

TOWNS

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Berkshires

The Berkshires are back!!

Calendar .com YOUR LINK TO THE SEASONS’ OFFERINGS

Vol. 4. No. 2

The Berkshires are back! It’s beginning to feel normal again around here, and we are thrilled to offer you this overflowing cornucopia of Berkshire attractions.

The Berkshire Edge welcomes you to this issue of Berkshires Calendar magazine—focused entirely on places to go and things to do.

We publish three issues a year—May 1, August 1, and November 1.

This current issue gives you an overview of what’s happening in the Berkshires (and a bit beyond) in August, September, and October 2021.

This magazine is a publication of The Berkshire Edge, a full-service online newspaper that you can read for free at theberkshireedge.com. This magazine is just the tip of the iceberg. There’s even more online.

For the region’s most complete, varied and wide-ranging listing of events, everything from high culture to community dinners, visit our online calendar at berkshirescalendar.com. Our listings are complete because we invite the public to post their own events for free . . . and they do.

PUBLISHER

Marcie L. Setlow

VICE PRESIDENT BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

James E. (Jim) Gibbons

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Leslie M. Noyes

ART DIRECTOR

Kelly A. Cade

ADVERTISING DIRECTOR

Rose A. Baumann

A publication of

Our online calendar is updated daily and easy to use. Search by date, category, venue, name of group or town, and all the events will be sorted and arranged for you. Find in-depth information, including dates and prices, for every event or venue, and click through to the box office to buy tickets or make reservations. Each listing also has a map to help get you there.

In our beautiful online magazine section at berkshirescalendarmagazine. com, you can find expanded versions of what you see here in print, plus many more articles with interesting and useful information.

edge

Berkshire

the

news & views worth having

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

David Scribner MANAGING EDITOR

Terry Cowgill

And while you’re there, check out the rest of The Berkshire Edge for the latest news, opinions, reviews, real estate information, a wedding directory, and insight into life in the Berkshires. Plus poems, essays, cartoons, serialized novels and lots of other surprises.

ASSISTANT MANAGING EDITOR

Best regards,

Amy Krzanik ADMINISTRATIVE ASSISTANT

Nicole Robbins

The Berkshire Edge, LLC P.O. Box 117, Great Barrington, MA 01230

Marcie L. Setlow, Publisher P.S. Yes, the Berkshires are open again, but individual schedules remain volatile. We tried to give you the most updated information here, but you’d be wise to check websites before you plan your activities.

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info@theberkshireedge.com theberkshireedge.com Contents Copyright © 2021 The Berkshire Edge, LLC; theberkshireedge.com and BerkshiresCalendar.com No portion may be reproduced in whole or in part without the express written permission of the publisher.

more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

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YOUR

Wingate ltd. creating exquisitely beautiful spaces both inside and out.

Interior Design • Landscape Architecture • Design/Build Jenifer House Commons, Great Barrington, MA • wingateltd.com • 413-644-9960 • Open daily 10 - 5

Naumkeag at Night, David Edgecomb

Contributors Spotlight ANDREW BLECHMAN Andrew Blechman is a former Great Barrington selectman and member of the Finance Committee. He is the author of two nationally reviewed books for Grove Atlantic, and has written for the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Smithsonian Magazine, The Atlantic, among other publications.

His pup, Gingersnap, a wolverine-honey badger mix, is perfect in every way.

JULIA DIXON Julia Dixon is a freelance writer, creative economy consultant, and artist based in North Adams, Mass. In addition to The Berkshire Edge, she has written articles and columns for Berkshire Magazine, The Berkshire Eagle, CommonWealth Magazine, and Americans for the Arts. She produced the Bennington County Cultural Plan in 2019 and has contributed to creative economy research projects throughout New England.

DAVID EDGECOMB David is a photographer and IT professional who lives in beautiful Becket. He is the founder and facilitator of Berkshire Photo Gathering, a group of photographers that meets monthly at the Berkshire South Regional Community Center in Great Barrington to network, share knowledge, and support one another. The Group welcomes new members. More at: berkshirephotogathering.com.

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CONRAD HANSON Conrad Hanson is a resident of the nearby Hudson Valley. His life-long passion for history and architecture has manifested itself in a number of different arenas, as writer, nonprofit executive and real estate agent.

More stories and photography on his favorite subjects— architecture, gardens and arenas— can be found on his blog or his Instagram account.

LEAR LEVIN An award-winning film director and director of photography for nearly four decades, Lear Levin has made feature-length documentaries, short films, TV specials and thousands of memorable commercials. He also worked extensively in lifestyle television. His work is part of the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York.

GABRIELLE K. MURPHY Gabrielle is a Berkshires-based photographer. While she enjoys shooting a wide variety of subjects, she is especially drawn to capturing the beauty of the natural world. She is a member of Berkshire Photo Gathering.

HANNAH VAN SICKLE Hannah Van Sickle is a Berkshire County native who resides deep in the woods of South County where she spent summers as a child and is now raising her own daughters. An English teacher by training, Hannah now works as a freelance writer, academic tutor and writing coach.

more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

PHOTO CREDITS: Cover: courtesy The Big E, Christopher Evans P 1: courtesy The Big E; Kelly Cade; David Edgecomb; courtesy Redlight Management P 6: Kelly Cade P 8: Kelly Cade P 10: Kelly Cade P 13: Kelly Cade P 14: Kelly Cade P 16: Lear Levin; David Edgecomb P 18: Kelly Cade; R. Cheek P 20: Kelly Cade P 22: Kelly Cade P 24: Kelly Cade P 24: courtesy The Norad Toy & Candy Company P 26: Kelly Cade; courtesy The Clark Art Institute P 28: courtesy Hildene; courtesy Mt. Anthony Country Club P 31: Kelly Cade; Leslie Noyes; courtesy Hancock Shaker Village P 32: Courtesy Downtown Pittsfield, Inc.; courtesy Berkshire Museum P 33: Kelly Cade P 36: Kelly Cade P 38: Kelly Cade P 40: Kelly Cade P 42: courtesy Great Barrington Historical Society P 43: Wikipedia.org; David Edgecomb P 44: Andrew Blechman P 45: Andrew Blechman; Adobe Stock, pooka Olga P 46: Photo illustration by Bria Goeller, www.GoodTrubble. com P 47: Andrew Eccles; courtesy Shakespeare & Company; courtesy Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center P 48: courtesy Tanglewood; Marc Borggreve P 49: Steve Moore; Louis Bichan; Jamin Ealovega P 50: courtesy Berkshire Theatre Group; courtesy The Nields P 51: Douglas Mason; courtesy Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center P 52: courtesy Shakespeare & Company P 53: Daniel Rader P 54: courtesy Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center P 55: courtesy Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival P 56: courtesy The Clark Art Institute P 57: courtesy Berkshire County Historical Society; courtesy Norman Rockwell Museum P 58: courtesy Lauren Clark Fine Art P 59: courtesy The Collection of Lyman Orton and the Vermont Country Store P 60: David Edgecomb P 61: Gabrielle K. Murphy; Adobe Stock, Nadezhda P 62: Adobe Stock, gtranquility; Gabrielle K. Murphy; courtesy Hudson Valley Wine & Food Festival; courtesy MOTT P 63: Gabrielle K. Murphy; Adobe Stock, Jenifoto; Adobe Stock, Nataliia P 64: Lear Levin; Detroit Publishing Co. P 65: Lear Levin P 66: Lear Levin P 67: Adobe Stock, Юлия Буракова; Adobe Stock, Mira Drozdowski P 68: courtesy MOTT; courtesy Berkshire Grown P 69: Adobe Stock, america_stock P 70: courtesy The Big E P 72: courtesy The Big E

Berkshire Botanical Gardens, Gabrielle K. Murphy BerkshiresCalendar.com

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great barrington

best small town in America

Clodkwise from top left: Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, Berkshire Busk! jazz quartet performance, friends gather on Railroad Street after dinner.

It’s the Rome of the South County.

Home to 7,100 people, Great Barrington is the southern Berkshires’ business and cultural hub. Visitors come for the fun shopping, superb restaurants, world-class entertainment, year-round outdoor recreation, and the recreational (and medical) cannabis dispensary that opened a year and a half ago Theory Wellness.

The dispensary, which was the first such shop to open in the Berkshires, has been a hit (so to speak) with customers who like their weed legal and carefully sourced—and there are millions of them within driving distance who lack legal access to this popular herbal remedy in their home states. In the past year, four more have opened in Great Barrington. Three of them—woman-owned Calyx, Farnsworth Fine Cannabis and Great Barrington Recreational Cannabis are right downtown on Main Street, and a fourth—Rebelle—is on Route 7 just south on town. Not all residents are happy about the “Best Small Town in America,” as Smithsonian Magazine named it in 2012, becoming “the pot capital of the Northeast.” Others point to the millions of

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dollars that have flowed into town coffers from a 3% municipal tax and a 3% community impact tax on cannabis sales.

Great Barrington was founded in 1766, and its historic districts and quaint residential neighborhoods are within walking distance of open spaces. This is the birthplace of civil rights leader W.E.B. Du Bois, and an outdoor interpretive trail at his boyhood homesite is open to visitors.

Great Barrington is blessed with a number of lively performing spaces which makes the town into an entertainment mecca. The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, is the anchor for the cultural life of the town with a full schedule of music, theater, films and other events. Church-turned-performancespace Saint James Place is now open for gatherings, events, and performances. The Guthrie (as in Arlo) Center on Division Street, a place to enjoy intimate folk concerts, still has a limited summer schedule. The Triplex Cinema downtown, where three screens have grown into four, is open again. Great Barrington is home to Bard College at Simon’s Rock, an innovative fouryear liberal arts “early college” plus Bard Academy for ninth more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

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and tenth graders. Berkshire Community College also has a presence in town. The nearby village of Housatonic features renovated mill buildings, dance studios and art galleries.

Great Barrington was a local pioneer in the farm-to-table movement, and wonderful restaurants are scattered throughout town. All restaurants are serving, following Massachusetts re-opening guidelines, including Baba Louie’s, Prairie Whale, Café Adam, the solar-powered Barrington Brewery and Restaurant, and Number 10 adjacent to the Mahaiwe.

Meet friends for coffee or tea and a bite at Rubi’s, Fuel, and Patisserie Lenox, all on Main Street, or ExtraSpecialTeas on Elm, or the new twoflower café and bakery on Railroad Street.

Or for a drink with light fare at Mooncloud on Railroad Street or Miller’s Pub on Main Street. The Berkshire Food Co-op in its new downtown digs on Bridge Street and Guido’s on Route 7 south of town are both open seven days a week year round for top-notch produce, meat, fish and more. Soco Creamery, on Railroad Street, serves great local ice cream. Or Robin’s Candy on Main for your sweet tooth. Again this summer, Railroad Street, right downtown, will limit traffic on Friday and Saturday evenings so local restaurants can serve al fresco. And Barrington Courtyard, through the arcade of the Barrington House building on Main Street, has set up a friendly outdoor eating plaza where Tangier Café, Miller’s Pub, GB Eats, STEAM and Fiesta Bar and Grill are serving, with Baba Louie’s for pizza in its own outdoor space just adjacent. New this year: live street

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From left: window shoppers at Crystal Essence, Yellow House Books. Below: Black Lives Matter mural spearheaded by Dorree Ndooki and funded by the Railroad Street Youth Project in an alleyway off of Main Street.

musicians on weekends, thanks to Berkshire Busk!. And the Town of Great Barrington Summer Concert Series continues Friday evenings through August at the gazebo behind Town Hall.

Cruise Main and Railroad for charming owner-run shops, such as Lennox Jewelers for jewelry and watches, Griffin for clothing and gifts, and Emporium and Antique Soul for vintage jewelry and collectibles. Original art can be found at the Lauren Clark and Vault galleries, as well as Bernay Fine Art. Craft stores One Mercantile, Evergreen, and the new branch of An American Craftsman display pieces by artisans from the Berkshires and around the world. Books new and old can be found at The Bookloft (in new quarters on State Road) and Yellow House Books, respectively. Two long-time Railroad Street favorites—The Gifted Child and Church Street Trading Co.—closed this year, but two interesting pop-up shops— Workshop for local creative work and Westerlind for outdoor wear have arrived. And the Flying Church is finally open. (Ask a local to explain.)

Great Barrington is becoming a mecca for home furnishing shops and design studios. Wingate, opened in 1998 just north of town on Route 7, has grown to become one of the biggest home furnishings and design showrooms in the Berkshires.

Sett, a tabletop shop, is on Main Street. Samantha Gale Designs is also on Main, showcasing “the vintage beauty of the farmhouse style.” Just off Main is Hammertown, offering furnishings, “approachable design services,” and more.

Destination Design Center on South Hillside Avenue designs and installs kitchens, baths, cabinets, and window treatments, among other things. Find new fixtures for your kitchen and bath at Waterware on Crissey Road just north of town and at S & A

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Experience

Montessori

Riverfront Trail—Great Barrington Land Conservancy’s newest community trail is open dawn to dusk, year-round.

Showplace at 40 Maple Drive just southwest of town.

Interior design studios are also prominent in the downtown landscape. William Caligari Interiors is a full-scope design studio, servicing clients in the Berkshires and beyond. Sue Schwarz operates her design studio Gallery 315 Home from a new office in Saint James Place. British-born fabric guru Jennifer Owen works out of her eponymous design studio on Railroad Street, and Jess Cooney has opened a new studio on State Road. Are you contemplating a makeover? Professionals are standing by.

Now get up out of that designer easy chair and get some exercise! Hike up Monument Mountain north of town or try the Housatonic River Walk, a national recreation trail. Work out at the Kilpatrick Athletic Center at Bard College at Simon’s Rock or the Berkshire South Regional Community Center. Both facilities are open with some mask and reservation requirements. Take dance classes at Berkshire Pulse in the village of Housatonic. But, whatever exertions you may undertake, if you should sprain an ankle, or have a more serious medical emergency during your stay, Great Barrington’s award-winning Fairview Hospital and its efficient ER are there to help.

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13

stockbridge

Norman Rockwell was—and still is—here

From top: The Mission House, The Lost Lamb.

If Stockbridge seems strangely familiar, blame Norman Rockwell, who spent his last 25 years living and working right in the heart of town. He created some of his most visionary and socially engaged work here, without losing the touch that had already made him the beloved painter of small-town American life. At his death, he bequeathed his studio, archive, and many paintings to establish a museum of his work, now the Norman Rockwell Museum on 36 acres outside the town center.

Visitors have returned to the classic rockers on the porch of the venerable Red Lion Inn on the corner of Main and Route 7.

The Inn has been there since the 1770s, when an influx of white settlers was displacing the native Mohican population for whom the town had been created (as Indian Town, complete with an English missionary) in 1737. When the railroad arrived in 1850, so did the wealthy summer folk. Artists and writers came too, among them Daniel Chester French, sculptor of the Lincoln statue at the Lincoln Memorial and the Concord Minute Man, whose home and studio, Chesterwood, is open to the public.

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The Mission House, house, museum, and garden tell the story of the Stockbridge Mohicans and missionary John Sergeant.

Naumkeag, designed by Stanford White, is a 44-room Berkshire cottage fantasy a mile from the town center with extensive gardens. From a perch a couple of miles from the town center, the nonprofit Kripalu Center for Yoga & Health, opening August 19, affords a stunning view over the Stockbridge Bowl and offers day-visits and residential stays that focus on yoga, creative expression, wellness and self-discovery.

Some drive, some walk, some cycle: most of Stockbridge’s attractions are within easy reach. The self-guided walking tour of the town is highly recommended by the Stockbridge Chamber of Commerce. On the tour, don’t miss the 1884 former Town Hall (you may know the interior from Rockwell’s The Marriage License).

The Stockbridge Library is a particularly fine small-town library, and some of the portraits of former citizens on the walls date from the 18th century; you’re welcome to stop in.

The Austen Riggs Center, a therapeutic community, an open psychiatric hospital, and a center for education and research now in its one hundred and first year, is unobtrusively located right in the center of town; Norman Rockwell and his wife were patients.

Stockbridge is also home to some exceptional nature trails just south of town. Park at the end of Park Street, take the footbridge across the Housatonic, and take your choice of trails: a paved, handicapped-accessible trail that runs beside the river; a trail that leads up to Laura’s Tower, with a three-state view; and—not to be missed on a hot day—the trail into Ice Glen, with glacial boulders and icy caves that exhale geo-airconditioned air. If you prefer strolling to hiking, head to the outstanding 16-acre Berkshire Botanical Garden just west of town.

In the evening, the Berkshire Theatre Group, just east of downtown, is presenting performances both indoors at the 122-seat Unicorn Theatre (masks required as of this writing) and outside in a tent (no masks for vaccinated patrons).

Once Upon A Table is a cozy spot for lunch or dinner in “The Mews,” an alley right off Main Street. Those with a sweet tooth will also want to check out Peace, Love & Chocolate, right next door. Alice’s Restaurant, which was nearby, exists now only in song (Arlo Guthrie’s song, released in 1969). The new Tiffany’s Café has taken up residence at the Elm Street Market, also just off Main. The recent arrival of The Lost Lamb, “a French-style patisserie and snackerie,” is good news for croissant lovers—and lovers in general. The Lion’s Den, a basement bistro known for burgers and local brews at The Red Lion Inn (all roads lead to—and from—The Red Lion Inn), is temporarily closed, but finer dining is available upstairs. Many other first-rate restaurants and congenial eateries are located south of town along the road to Great Barrington and in other surrounding towns. more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

NEW EXHIBITIONS ON VIEW

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Land of Enchantment Fantastical Sculptures

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James Gurney, Garden of Hope, 1995 ©James Gurney

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west stockbridge

it’s happening

From left: chicken sculpture, performance at TurnPark Art Space.

West Stockbridge lies between Stockbridge and the New York border, only 40 minutes from New York’s Capital District but a world away, with hills, ponds, and streams beckoning the city dweller with visions of the countryside. There is something about a village (pop. 1,650) with a small river in the middle of it: that would be the Williams River, flowing through the town beneath flower-bedecked bridges as if it were the Arno of the Berkshires. Don’t let the dreaminess of the setting deceive you, though, because West Stockbridge is hopping, with plenty to see and do and eat and drink.

The opening of No. Six Depot in the old railway station in 2013 started it all. No. Six is a small-batch coffee roastery, café, art gallery, and event space that serves as a gathering place for both locals and visitors; the sandwiches are delicious, and their coffees show up on menus throughout the Berkshires. The lively downtown area is home to stylish restaurants, including Rouge, one of the best in the region, and one-of-a-kind shops, too. One-of-a-kind, as in Charles H. Baldwin & Sons, which has been preparing extracts for cooks for 125 years; boomers will think they’ve gone back in time, amidst the retro novelties and candies. Not far away, Truc Orient Express offers authentic Vietnamese food in their eatery, as well as Vietnamese crafts such as pottery, silk scarves and jackets, and lacquer work.

A highlight among West Stockbridge restaurants has been the Tap House at Shaker Mill, a family-friendly restaurant with a diverse and delicious American menu. It’s temporarily closed at this writing. Check web site for re-opening dates. For a quick build-your-own or creative specialty sandwich, swing by the Public Market on Main Street. This is also a great spot to grab snacks and drinks on your way to picnic at Tanglewood.

An exceptional bookstore awaits browsers: Shaker Mill Books on Depot Street has a large but choice selection of rare, used, and out-of-print books, including a great collection of

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books about the Berkshires. The Book Mill next door holds even more books, and is open during the summer and early fall.

Hotchkiss Mobiles Gallery is another West Stockbridge gem; Joel Hotchkiss has been designing ingenious mobiles since 1978, and the gallery will open your eyes to where the concept has gone since Calder. Another local creative, Elaine Hoffman, is the ceramicist behind Hoffman Pottery, where you’ll find colorful, whimsical pieces for the home and garden.

Sandy Klempner@HOME, on Main Street, has a fine selection of vintage treasures for home decoration; look in the window and you’ll be drawn right in. Flourish Market is where you’ll find everything from newly-refreshed vintage furniture to modern lighting, along with jewelry and other giftable goodies.

SALA is jeweler Stephanie Iverson’s new storefront, where you’ll find all of her fine silver pieces along with other artisans she loves from the U.S. and Mexico.

An exciting new arrival in the heart of town is The Foundry, now in its third year of presenting diverse programming in support of a mission “of bringing divided communities together through the performing and visual arts and creating space for emerging work and often unheard voices,” in the words of Artistic Producing Director Amy Brentano. The ongoing Town Hall restoration project is another sign of the town’s vitality, too.

Just a short walk away from the town center on Moscow Road is the 16-acre TurnPark Art Space, which combines a sculpture park, exhibition venues, and a beautiful marble amphitheater for outdoor performances. A trail runs along the Williams River and by striking sculptures from the Soviet Nonconformist Art Movement of the 1950s-1980s. If you can’t forget you came for nature as well as culture, or simply want to relax, just join the canoeists, anglers, or strollers in the spell of the gently flowing river as it winds through this unusually attractive town.

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sheffield

a quiet town, with ukuleles and cannabis canopy

Clockwise from left: Bartholomew’s Cobble Reservation, Campo de’ Fiori, Sunset Meadows Vineyards.

The town of Sheffield lies just north of the Connecticut border in the Housatonic River Valley, with gentle mountains on both sides. It’s only 100 miles from New York’s Central Park as the crow flies, or two and a half hours by car, and it’s where the Berkshires officially begins.

After almost 300 years, it’s still a rural town with a comfortable pace of life. Second homes both new and old mix in nicely with working farms. Part of the town lies along Route 7, and the charming village of Ashley Falls is just a few miles to the southwest. The Colonel John Ashley House there, where the enslaved Mum Bett (later Elizabeth Freeman) lived before suing for and winning her freedom in 1781, is a stop on the Upper Housatonic Valley African American Heritage Trail. The grounds of the Ashley House are open now, but the house itself is not.

Sheffield is also home to visitor-friendly Big Elm Brewing and the Berkshire Mountain Distillers and the new Massachusetts branch of Sunset Meadows Vineyards (all offer tastings), a prominent clay works (Sheffield Pottery), a surprising number and variety of antiques dealers, and a great place for furniture upholstery and window treatments at M Designs. Campo de’ Fiori has hand-made terra cotta pots (complete with moss) and a range of decorative and useful items. There’s always something going on at Dewey Memorial Hall, an impressive fieldstone and marble structure on the Sheffield green, with many activities now outdoors.

The Stagecoach Tavern, as its name implies, got its start in an earlier age; now it’s a place to go not only for food and drink but jazz and events; it’s part of the Race Brook Lodge cluster of buildings in a woodsy setting off Route 41.

If you like your music with strings attached, you might like to visit the Magic Fluke, where they make ukuleles, banjos, violins, and more. The shop is open for visitors and orders are also accepted by phone and online. Many visitors head straight to the Marketplace Café on Elm Court in the center of town for indoor

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and outdoor dining and takeout. The chef-owners created a popular catering business in 1993—the first such farm-to-table enterprise in the Berkshires—and have branched out into four “retail” locations, each with its own style (the others are in Pittsfield and Great Barrington). Two hot new shops started by young entrepreneurs, right next to each other on Main Street, are causing a buzz—Roberto’s Pizza and Bakin’ Bakery. And, should you get a yen to go fishin’, visit Berkshire Bass on Main Street for tackle, apparel, and guided tours.

They legalized it: Sheffield is the site of Massachusetts’s first licensed outdoor cannabis growing facility, Nova Farms, “boasting 80,000 square feet of sun-grown, organic cannabis canopy,” according to the company. Cannabis canopy is simply the extent of contiguous vegetative growth—like the rain forest, but with marijuana. Theory Wellness is also undertaking outdoor cultivation at Sheffield’s Equinox Farm, well known as the first organic market garden in western Massachusetts. And a new retail and cultivation facility called The Pass is now open on Main Street (Route 7) north of town. In Sheffield, the times, they have a-changed.

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19

lenox

still gilded after all these years

From top: Town Hall, Casablanca, Alta.

Set out on foot in downtown Lenox and you’ll be passing—and perhaps entering—the stylish shops, galleries, and eateries that beckon from every street and side street. You can walk to Shakespeare & Company’s campus and Ventfort Hall on nearby Kemble Street, and Tanglewood itself is just a mile and a half away.

When did Lenox become fashionable? In 1821, to be precise, when a son of the Sedgwick family moved here from neighboring Stockbridge. He was soon joined by his sister, best-selling novelist Catharine Sedgwick, who was the region’s first literary luminary.

Some of their friends from Boston started building grand “cottages” in the neighborhood, and one rented a cottage of the humble kind to Nathaniel Hawthorne and his family in 1850.

Although the Hawthornes only stayed for a year and a half, the author of The Scarlet Letter wrote Tanglewood Tales on the grounds of what would later become the summer home of the Boston Symphony; the name “Tanglewood” is Hawthorne’s own invention.

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In addition to the Bostonians, wealthy New Yorkers like Edith Wharton built some 75 impressive country houses in Lenox and Stockbridge in the latter 19th and early 20th century, and some of them, including Wharton’s (The Mount) are open to the public.

Ventfort Hall, built for J.P. Morgan’s sister in 1893, even has a museum dedicated to the Gilded Age in several of its 50 rooms.

Canyon Ranch Spa occupies another “cottage” (with extensive add-ons for recreation and wellness). Blantyre, a member of the Relais & Chateaux network, has re-opened after an $80-million renovation and now boasts a Café Bouloud restaurant. And, after a $130-million renovation, the former Cranwell has emerged as an all-inclusive wellness retreat called Miraval Berkshires and the more à la carte retreat called Wyndhurst Manor & Club.

Tanglewood, the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, is the jewel in the Lenox crown—the place for premier classical music performances as well as concerts by big names in rock, folk, and pop. The setting is as spectacular as the music, and a picnic on the lawn at Tanglewood has been a tradition for many visitors over the years. This summer, the BSO is offering a shortened season with all performances held in the Shed to allow for ample spacing between picnickers.

Shakespeare & Company will host its season in two outdoor theaters on its Lenox campus.

There’s great shopping in Lenox. Popular upscale clothing retailer The Casablanca Group has three stores in Lenox: Casablanca and Swtrz on Church Street and Shooz on Housatonic Street. (Their fourth boutique, GB9, is located in, you guessed it, GB.) Catwalk, one of the Berkshire Humane Society’s two resale outlets (the other’s in Great Barrington), is on Church Street. Steilmann, on Walker Street, carries women’s European fashions, and trendy CERI Boutique has opened a women’s clothing store on Housatonic Street. Purple Plume, MacKimmie Co., Glad Rags, and design menagerie are other well-known shops. Lenox Print & Mercantile, also on Housatonic, offers vintage treasures as well as crafts by over 60 local artisans. An American Craftsman on Walker Street features the work of many artisans working in wood, clay, fiber, metal, glass, leather, and mixed media. The Bookstore & Get Lit Wine Bar is open, although not yet offering readings. (Check out the Lenox Library instead.) And on Route 7, just north of town, is the Arcadian Shop, the Berkshires’ leading outdoor sports retailer.

Lenox eats well. Alta, Bistro Zinc, and Nudel are three good reasons. The more casual Firefly, has re-opened under new owners. Haven Café and Bakery on Franklin Street at the foot of downtown has excellent light fare for breakfast, lunch, and weekend brunch. A special treat for the palate is right off Route 7: superb chocolates and great coffee and cocoa await you at cozy Chocolate Springs Café. Saveur magazine recognized chocolatier Josh Needleman as one of the top 10 in the United States. Lenox is still gilded, but in a good way.

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21

lee

eat, shop, learn

From left: 52 Park Restaurant & Tavern, glass blowing at Ozzie’s Glass Gallery.

Paper mills and marble quarries built the town of Lee, with help from nearby forests and power from the Housatonic. (Learn more about Lee and marble online at BerkshiresCalendarMagazine.com.) The heyday of industry is past, but Lee has held its own, not least because an exit off the Mass Pike makes it “the gateway to the Berkshires.” Lee may be unpretentious, but it has small-town feel and eye-appeal in spades. The steeple on the First Congregational Church is the tallest wooden spire in New England: lift up your eyes.

The town hosts an astonishing range of restaurants.

Cuisines range from sophisticated farm-to-table fare such as Starving Artist Café to seafood (Salmon Run) to Greek, Vietnamese, Chinese, Peruvian, Italian, French, and Indian establishments, as well as humbler eateries where you can get a hot dog on the go, pick up a pizza (try Timothy’s), or join the locally sourced customers for a plate of corned beef hash at Joe’s Diner or a tall draught beer at Moe’s Tavern, or bistro food in a cozy setting at The Morgan House, serving since 1853. 52 Park Restaraunt & Tavern offers a variety of outdoor dining options.

The former Chez Nous has a new name (Café Triskele), and a new menu (more informal). Canna Provisions, off the Mass Pike as you head into town, offers a full line of THC and CBD wellness offerings (legal weed, in plain English). And for all your building and renovation supplies, don’t miss Dresser-Hull.

The eclectic collection of shops downtown is complemented by the more than sixty stores at Premium Outlets, with namebrand merchandise at discount prices, just one mile east of town via U.S. Route 20. Premium Outlets is the most popular attraction in Berkshire County, with about two million annual visitors, some of whom then head into Lee and environs to find things that can’t be found anywhere else. Ozzie’s Glass Gallery on Route 102 towards Stockbridge is more than a gallery with

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beautiful, affordable pieces, including jewelry and pipes (the latter upstairs); it’s a chance to see Michael Ozzie, a native Lee artisan, in action blowing glass; he’s happy to explain to you what he’s doing, too.

Slightly out of town but worth the trip is family-owned High Lawn Farm. Stop by their Farmstead Creamery for a refreshing ice cream cone at one of their picnic tables while you enjoy their beautiful Jersey herd grazing in the fields. You can also stock up on their full line of fresh dairy products.

While not as eminent in the arts as its Berkshire neighbors, Lee has its own distinction. From a renovated former fiveand-dime on Main Street, the College Internship Program (CIP) offers a year-long curriculum focusing on creative and educational development in the visual and performing arts for young adults with Asperger’s, autism, ADHD, and other learning differences. The Spectrum Playhouse in a converted church and the Good Purpose Gallery on Main help integrate these individuals into the community. In South Lee on Route 102, the Saint Francis Gallery, also in a converted church, features an eclectic mix of emerging and established local artists.

Young animators aged 5 to 95 will find AniMagic, a museum of animation run by a former Special Effects Oscar-winner, a fun experience. Animation classes are also available.

Lee will appeal to nature lovers too. October Mountain State Forest, the largest in Massachusetts, is just north of town.

It offers camping, hiking, picnicking, and non-motorized boating.

There’s also the Goose Pond Reservation in a dreamy setting south of Lee. The Appalachian Trail crosses adjacent National Park Service land, and Goose Pond itself, a mountain lake with exceptionally clear water, is ideal for canoeing, kayaking, and fishing. And if you’d like to try fishing, or simply floating, on the region’s rivers, Berkshire Rivers Fly Fishing can help. more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

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23

north adams

if you build it . . .

From top: MASS MoCA, artwork display on Eagle Street.

If Rip Van Winkle had just awakened from that twenty-year nap he took, he might remember that MASS MoCA had just opened (in 1999) as he closed his eyes; no doubt he would have thought it a folly. Welcome to 2021, Rip, and join the more than 160,000 people who visit MASS MoCA annually—in non-COVID years. It’s made North Adams one of the Northeast’s premier cultural destinations.

It was not always so. North Adams was built on manufacturing, thanks to power generated by the Hoosic River flowing right through the center of town. Shoes, bricks, hats, cloth, marble, and the iron plates that sheathed the Monitor in the Civil War poured forth from North Adams’s busy factories.

When the Depression shut many of those factories down, the

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Sprague Electric Company arrived to save the day. Sprague’s development and manufacture of components for early NASA launch systems and the consumer electronics industry provided employment for more than 4,000 workers in the post-war period, until foreign competition in the 1980s led to the closing of the firm and a sharp decline in the town’s economic fortunes.

Many former New England mill towns have never recovered from such setbacks. For North Adams, recovery came from a surprising source: contemporary art. Sprague Electric’s beautiful and extensive brick buildings, dating from the 19th century, lay idle. Thomas Krens, then director of the Williams College Museum of Art, saw an opportunity. MASS MoCA was born and has been growing in space and scope ever since; in 2017 the already vast museum doubled its exhibit area by renovating still more of the former Sprague facility. The Museum hosts both temporary and permanent exhibits, spaces for artists in diverse media to create large-scale works, and musical events.

After a COVID closing, MASS MoCA is open again every day through October 11, closed Tuesday and Wednesday beginning October 12. September 2021’s FreshGrass Festival is on.

The town now begins to thrive once again. Galleries, restaurants, and shops have sprung up to cater to visitors.

The ongoing River Revival project re-imagined the Hoosic as a community resource. The town (technically a city, the smallest in Massachusetts), now has a vibrant Cultural District and a Downstreet Arts Initiative. The creative economy has spread to other former factory facilities as well, now home to artisans and specialized producers of everything from food to beer. more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

The former Norad Mill west of downtown is now honeycombed with businesses and shops. Freia Yarns, which produces hand-dyed yarns, relocated there from California, and for DIY knitters, the Spinoff Yarn Shop, located in the same building, is worth a trip up to the third floor (there’s an elevator—and a view). For new (and old) tunes, swing by Belltower Records for an eclectic selection of new and used LPs, CDs, tapes, and stereo equipment.

If downtown gets too trendy for you, nature beckons on all sides with hiking trails, picnic spots, and recreational opportunities. Got trout? If not, Berkshire River Drifters will take you to where the browns and rainbows lurk. Fresh local produce can be found at the weekly Farmers Market—it’s one of the biggest in the Berkshires. Orders are accepted on the website Monday through Wednesday from 10 a.m. for local delivery or for pickup on Saturday.

Looking for a novel place to stay? Consider The Porches, which bills itself as (brace yourself) “an intimate 47-room boutique property whose retro-edgy backdrop and industrial granny chic décor combine to create a strikingly colorful style all its own.” It’s across the street from MASS MoCA. Trendy TOURISTS, located down by the riverside where an old motel once stood, brings you close to nature (there’s also a pool).

To eat, try PUBLIC for original, farm-fresh takes on American classics and a wide selection of craft beers; Grazie for the best Italian food up north (and its sister bodega right next door, Tres Ninos Taqueria); and the Capitol on Main Street (“upscale comfort food” now available for takeout and outside dining), all within walking distance of MASS MoCA, which itself has a nice café for coffee or lunch. For pizza, try Ramunto’s, which offers delivery and takeout. If you prefer food for the mind, the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts (MCLA) is not far, and it too has caught the art bug with its innovative undergraduate art programs and MCLA Gallery 51.

N O R T H A DA M S, M AS S .

S E P T E M B E R 24 -26

Dispatch Trombone Shorty (acoustic) & Orleans Avenue Béla Fleck My Bluegrass Heart featuring Michael Cleveland, Sierra Hull,

Justin Moses, Mark Schatz, Bryan Sutton Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin orange)  Sam Bush Steep Canyon Rangers: FreshGrass Artist-in-Residence Sarah Jarosz  Aoife O’Donovan  Watkins Family Hour Noam Pikelny  Bonny Light Horseman Alison Brown  Amythyst Kiah

 September

24–26, 2021 

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25

williamstown

a college town and then some

Tucked into Massachusetts’ northwest corner, Williamstown is one of America’s first college towns; the town and the college both date to 1791. Williams College, consistently ranking at or near the top of America’s liberal arts institutions, is the town’s largest employer. You don’t have to have a connection to Williams, though, to enjoy what the town— and the College—have to offer.

You could begin on Spring Street, the commercial center, where you’ll find galleries, stylish clothing stores, coffee shops with fast Internet connections, and restaurants that cater to the tastes of college students, locals, and visitors alike. Nature’s Closet has Patagonia and a wide selection of outdoor footwear, and is also home to the popular Smoothie Spot. Check out the Greylock Gallery next door, which specializes in contemporary American landscapes by emerging and established artists.

You could pick up a book at the light-filled Williams Bookstore or at Chapter Two Books, a used bookstore that benefits the town’s library. Dive into Spoon next door for a refreshing frozen yogurt, gelato, or sorbet, or an ice cream cone at Lickety Split. Coffee, tea, and baked goods can be found at Tunnel City Coffee across the street. A new arrival near the top of the street is Unlimited Nutrition, specializing in protein shakes and flavored teas, and, at the foot of the street is the newly built and well-appointed Williams Inn, which offers dining in its Barn Kitchen & Bar.

If you have recreational cannabis needs, Silver Therapeutics is ready to serve you seven days a week from a little mellow shop a mile east of downtown.

Williamstown is also home to the long-established but still adventurous Williamstown Theatre Festival; its 2021 season presents live productions, all outdoors in various locations around town. Images Cinema, on Spring Street, is one of the few remaining independent movie theaters still going strong.

It’s a non-profit community theater that presents a wide range of independent, foreign and classic films. The theater is now open, but you can support it by viewing their virtual releases.

The galleries of the Williams College Museum of Art have re-opened, as has the The Clark Art Institute, with advanced timed-visit tickets required for non-members. Come enjoy its extraordinary permanent collection, groundbreaking special exhibitions, and striking architecture by Pritzker Prize-winning architect Tadao Ando. The Clark campus boasts 140 acres of lawns, meadows and walking trails.

There’s a lot of wild country around Williamstown, with well-maintained trails to get you out into it. The Williams Outing Club publishes an excellent guide to North Berkshire recreation, and the Williamstown Rural Lands Foundation trail kiosk at Sheep Hill on Cold Spring Road south of town offers complete information on all local trails, including those in the Hopkins Forest, the nearby Mount Greylock Reservation in Adams, and Field Farm. For rural family fun, especially with younger children, Ioka Valley Farm, on route 43 south of town in Hancock, has approachable farm animals and farm-related activities to engage in.

Williamstown eats well. Fine restaurants like Mezze, south of town on Route 7, source local foods. Coyote Flaco, also on Route 7, serves a Mexican menu. There’s Indian cuisine at Spice Root on Spring Street, and Thai and Japanese at Blue Mango next door. If you’re just looking for lunch, the Spring Street Market & Café and Pappa Charlie’s Deli are standbys for dining and takeout. The Neapolitan-style pizza at Hot Tomatoes on Water Street is exceptional, and you can enjoy it under the trees beside the Green River at picnic tables behind the restaurant.

Looking for a watering hole? The Water Street Grill serves many craft beers on tap, good food, and a warm ambience.

For Chinese fare, Chopsticks is just east of town on Route 2.

Berkshire Palate, also on Route 2 east, is a good choice if you’re looking for lunch between museums or dinner. Right next door is Korean Garden, which recently relocated from North Adams.

(Pro tip: get the hot stone bi bim bab.) If you’re cooking for yourself, stock up at Wild Oats on the same stretch of road.

From left: Tunnel City Coffee, gallery at The Clark, Williams College buildings on Main Street.

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DISCOVER WILLIAMSTOWN

A unique village where art, culture, and natural beauty thrive.

Fall Foliage from Stone Hill

GROUND/WORK

THROUGH OCTOBER 17 Explore the works of six international artists in the Clark’s first outdoor exhibition

Clark Art Institute

Nairy Baghramian, Knee and Elbow, 2020. Marble, stainless steel.

Courtesy of the artist and Marian Goodman Gallery Williams College Museum of Art, photo by Carol Stegeman

Welcoming Fall on Williams College campus

williamstownchamber.com 413.458.9077 destinationwilliamstown.org

CLAUDE & FRANÇOIS-XAVIER LALANNE: NATURE TRANSFORMED THROUGH OCTOBER 31

See the first North American museum exhibition in 40 years devoted to this madly inventive and irresistible world of objects Claude Lalanne, La Dormeuse (The sleeping woman) (detail), 2004. Bronze, galvanized copper. Private collection © 2020 Artists Rights Society (ARS), New York / ADAGP, Paris

NIKOLAI ASTRUP: VISIONS OF NORWAY THROUGH SEPTEMBER 19

Discover the paintings and prints of one of Norway’s most beloved artists

Nikolai Astrup, Growing Season at Sandalstrand (detail), linoleum and woodblock, 1923; print, 1923.

Savings Bank Foundation DNB / The Astrup Collection / KODE Art Museums of Bergen.

WILLIAMSTOWN, MASSACHUSETTS CLARKART.EDU Ground/work is made possible by Denise Littlefield Sobel. Support for Ground/work is provided by Karen and Robert Scott, Paul Neely, the Terra Foundation for American Art, and the National Endowment for the Humanities. Support for Claude & François-Xavier Lalanne: Nature Transformed is provided by Denise Littlefield Sobel, Sylvia and Leonard Marx, and the Kenneth C. Griffin Charitable Fund. Nikolai Astrup: Visions of Norway is generously supported by the Savings Bank Foundation DNB.

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southern vermont Robert Frost arrived in Vermont 101 years ago with the idea of growing apples, writing poetry, keeping bees, and providing a home base for his family. He bought an old stone farmhouse in South Shaftsbury, just north of Bennington, and he wrote “Stopping By Woods on a Snowy Evening” there one summer morning in 1922. Frost’s nearly two decades in Bennington County are the subject of a special exhibition, At Present in Vermont, running through November 7 at the Bennington Museum, and his first Vermont house has been turned into the Robert Frost Stone House Museum, open to visitors under the auspices of Bennington College. You can visit his family gravesite, too, behind the beautiful Old First Church in Old Bennington. The Church is currently closed to visitors, but the graveyard is always open and contains a number of beautifully carved 18th-century stones as well as the poet’s ashes.

The Bennington Battle Monument, a 306-foot limestone obelisk commemorating a pivotal Patriot victory of the Revolutionary War, dominates the landscape from its perch at the top of maple-lined Monument Avenue. The Bennington Museum devotes a room of its rich and eclectic collections to the Battle, and an adjacent gallery is home to the largest collection in the world of paintings by Grandma Moses (Anna Maria Robertson). If you bring children, be sure to take them into the transplanted schoolhouse where the artist learned her ABCs in the 1860s; it’s meant to be played in as well as learned from.

In the 19th century Bennington emerged as an important and innovative industrial center, a heritage it still proudly continues.

Timber frames, airplane components, snowshoes, craft beer, jewelry, and stoneware from famous Bennington Potters are among the many products manufactured here. The Potters’ funkyelegant retail store is located right next to where its wares are made.

The Potters’ physical store is closed at present, but the online shop is open. You can still shop in person for fine Vermont jewelry and crafts at Hawkins House on North Street in Bennington.

from the Berkshires to the Greens

While a major downtown redevelopment is nearing completion a new brewpub, Farm Road Brewing, now occupies one of the corners of the town’s central crossroads.

The Blue Benn Diner has recently reopened under new owners. This classic 1940s railcar diner is great for breakfast and lunch and has a menu for all tastes. For lunch, Sunday brunch, or dinner, the Mt. Anthony Country Club offers locally sourced seasonal dishes and beautiful views.

The Vermont Arts Exchange has resumed its public events schedule, although Bennington College is keeping its public programs virtual for now. Oldcastle Theater Company, now in its own building near the center of town, has live productions through September 12. If you like covered bridges, Bennington has three of them. Scoot right through them all (one car at a time) on the way to North Bennington, if you’re willing to meander across the Walloomsac River three times.

North Bennington was writer Shirley Jackson’s home for the latter half of her life, but the natives insist that the village was not the setting for “The Lottery” (Raising Demons and Life Among the Savages, her hilarious accounts of child-rearing in the 1950s, are another matter). The fanciful Park-McCullough Historic Governor’s Mansion in North Bennington was built in 1865 with money made in California and Panama by an attorney who had grown up in the modest town of Woodford just east of Bennington. The trails in the adjacent McCullough Woods are a popular spot for walking. The mansion’s grounds are open daily; “The Big House” is open for self-guided tours Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays until Columbus Day. The Appalachian Trail crosses through Woodford five miles east of Bennington on its way up the spine of the Greens. The Vermont section, known as the Long Trail, was the inspiration for the AT, in fact. Robert Frost and his family were among the first to hike it when it opened in 1922.

From left: Robert Todd Lincoln’s historic home Hildene, golfing at Mt. Anthony Country Club.

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Arlington, just above Shaftsbury on Route 7A, is home to the woodsy West Mountain Inn, the stately Arlington Inn, and the recently reopened Rockwell’s Retreat; the painter Norman Rockwell lived and worked in a house and studio near a covered bridge over the Battenkill before moving south to Stockbridge in the ’50s.

Once a summer retreat, Manchester is now a four-season leisure and shopping destination. Hotels, inns, and B&Bs abound, led by establishments like the Mt. Equinox Resort and The Inn at Manchester. Some, like the Wilburton Inn and the Barnstead Inn, also host fun musical events. A range of restaurants caters to visitors and locals alike, from the tavernstyle Firefly (choice of locals) to tonier establishments like the Copper Grouse inside the Taconic Hotel.

Robert Todd Lincoln’s historic home, Hildene, perched on an escarpment, overlooks the Valley of Vermont; don’t miss the deeply moving President Lincoln exhibit upstairs or the fully restored Pullman car, queen of the railroading era and a stop on Vermont’s African American Heritage Trail, a short walk from the main dwelling.

And then there is shopping. Charles F. Orvis got it started in 1856 when he opened a store dedicated to fly-fishing and accessories for the great outdoors. The flagship store is still there, and it has the distinction of being the oldest still-operating mail order business in America. Manchester Designer Outlets are home to many leading clothing brands,

whose easy-to-get-to stores make bargain hunting a pleasure.

For books and gifts, there’s the well-stocked Northshire Bookstore in the center of town, which, hosts frequent readings by leading writers. There are also stores for cooks, wine-lovers, art-lovers, antique-hunters, and for sports enthusiasts of every stripe.

In nearby Dorset, in the fateful summer of 1776, the idea of Vermont as an independent republic was born in Cephas Kent’s tavern. In today’s Dorset, the aura of the 18th century lingers. The tavern is no more, but the splendid Dorset Inn has dominated the town green since 1796. If you’re “from away” and are thinking of buying and running a Vermont country store like the wonderful 200-year-old Dorset Union Store (and bakery) on the green, read Ellen Stimson’s Mud Season first; she bought and ran that very store and lived to write (and laugh) about it. The Dorset Theatre Company, in residence this summer (July 9 – September 4), at the Southern Vermont Arts Center’s outdoor stage in Manchester, plans a hybrid season of a world premiere audio play and socially distanced live events.

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Weddings IN THE

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pittsfield

the city at the center

A city of 45,000, Pittsfield is the geographic and commercial center of the Berkshires, with a proud history of manufacturing—and the contemporary challenges and opportunities that the decline of that sector has brought.

Cultural initiatives have lifted the city’s mood and kindled its aspirations to become a hub for the arts. The opening of cannabis dispensaries Temescal Wellness west of town and Berkshire Roots and Bloom Brothers to the east has also lifted moods. The recent opening of the $13.8 million Berkshire Innovation Center, after eleven years of planning and building, is another sign of the city’s resilience.

Pittsfield’s downtown is now its Upstreet Cultural District, anchored by the beautifully restored 1903 Colonial Theatre, part of Berkshire Theatre Group, and the innovative Barrington Stage Company, which normally attracts almost 60,000 patrons per year to its four downtown venues and has become the incubator of shows that regularly go on to stages in Boston and New York. These theaters are offering events this season in both indoor and outdoor spaces. The Whitney Center for the Arts, established by Pittsfield native Lisa Whitney in 2012 and located in the creatively repurposed 1865 Thomas Colt House, is normally another beehive of culture: it presents art shows, intimate theatre and music performances, and special events. It’s temporarily closed, but offering online exhibits.

The vibrant Pittsfield visual arts scene features public art, galleries, studios, and cooperatives, and the First Fridays Artswalk (5 to 8 p.m. on the first Friday of the month).

Clockwise from top: The Common, shopping at Circa, Hancock Shaker Village.

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BerkshiresJazz presents the Berkshire Jazz Showcase, free and outdoors, August 7 and 8.

Located in the center of town on North Street, the Berkshire Museum, a wonderful resource for the community, is open for in-person visits. Like many small-city museums, its holdings range across subjects and fields of knowledge, but highlights, including an aquarium, natural history specimens, a mummy, and the Feigenbaum Hall of Innovation, make it a great place to take children to discover worlds beyond their screens. The new, immersive “Curiosity Incubator” gallery is a portal to greater awareness of the human family. Catch the new exhibit starting August 6, The Land of the Thunder Dragon: Bhutan Through the Lens of Mead Eagle Photography.

Right next door to the Berkshire Museum is Museum Outlets, a fun store for gifts. If you’re in the market for furniture, Paul Rich & Sons, also on North Street, has 30,000 square feet of floor space to look at, most of it American made (and no assembly required), and Circa Berkshires, a few blocks away, offers a treasure trove of hand-picked Danish and Mid-Century Modern furnishings. You never know what you may find at ReStore at 347 Columbus Avenue; the store carries donated home improvement products, building materials, and more.

Profits go to Habitat for Humanity.

In the mood for more shopping? You’ll want to pop into Township Four on North Street. Technically a florist, but really so much more, the deceptively small store is bursting with gorgeous tableaus featuring handmade candles, soaps, and scents; hand-printed tea towels and greeting cards; buildyour-own terrarium kits, seeds, gardening tools, etc. Right next door is one of Pittsfield’s newest shops, Familiar Trees, offering vintage, antique, and contemporary books and art objects.

Pittsfield isn’t all urban: the 11,000-acre Pittsfield State Forest offers fall camping and hiking, and the Canoe Meadows Wildlife Sanctuary, Lake Onota, and Bousquet Mountain Adventure Park also provide fun outdoor experiences.

From top: Dory and Ginger, Berkshire General Store, Berkshire Museum. Top right: North Street.

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Partners in education with Williams College, Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts, & Bard College at Simon's Rock

Expand your mind with OLLI all year round!

If you’re looking for a pleasant spot to serve as a base for Berkshires experiences, the Bonnie Brae Campground, now under new management, has cabins and RV sites north of town near Pontoosuc Lake. Buy a bike at Berkshire Bike & Board on East Street and explore!

Let Whitman keep Brooklyn; Herman Melville had Pittsfield.

The native New Yorker bought a 1785 farmhouse in 1850 and settled in for some serious writing—and an intense affair with the mistress of the neighboring manor. He named his new digs Arrowhead after the many Indian ‘points’ that turned up in his fields, and it’s now a museum run by the Berkshire Historical Society dedicated to his 13 years’ residence under its roof.

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The Land of the Thunder Dragon:

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Muh-he-con-ne-ok: The People of the Waters That Are Never Still

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Visitors can see the room where Melville wrote Moby Dick, with its view north to Mount Greylock, whose profile is said to have evoked for the author the whale that obsessed Captain Ahab. He built a porch on the north side, too, and called it a piazza; you too can sit and look. The house is open Thursday through Monday with call-ahead reservations and online ticketing; a guide takes you through. (See this magazine’s online article about Arrowhead at BerkshireCalendarMagazine.com.)

You’ll have to eat and you’ll have to stay: you can do both at trendy, 45-room Hotel on North, another repurposed downtown building that successfully blends new and old; its stylish bar, restaurant and shops, and this summer—dining outdoors—attract both a local and out-of-town clientele.

For eating and drinking, there are 50 other restaurants, cafés, and wine bars to choose from. Meet a friend for coffee at Dottie’s, pick up lunch at the Marketplace Café, drop into Mission for a locally sourced seasonal menu or a glass of wine, or settle into Methuselah and sixteen taps of craft beer, artful cocktails, and artful eats. The bar Thistle and Mirth has great beer and great company, and has expanded into the storefront next door to offer imbibers a new ramen restaurant. If you’re still pub-crawling, finish up at The Lantern Bar and Grill, a venerable and recently reopened Pittsfield institution. If you’re going to have something to eat before heading to Barrington Stage in the center of town, District Kitchen & Bar, Patrick’s Pub, and Trattoria Rustica are close by.

Pittsfield is a good movie town. The Regal Cinema at the Berkshire Mall four miles north of downtown has ten screens, reclining seats, reserved tickets, and popular movies. The renovated, five-screen, Dolby 7.1 Surround Sound-equipped Beacon Cinema downtown on North has very comfortable reclining seats, and shows operas in the Met’s “Live in HD” series.

For a glimpse into a different way of living, 700-acre Hancock Shaker Village beckons from outside of town along Route 20 in Hancock. The Shakers created a religious, utopian farming community here in the 1780s around the ideas of pacifism, celibacy, and communal living. No Shakers remain, but their way of life forms the basis for a living history museum, with 20 authentic Shaker buildings and rich collections of Shaker furniture and artifacts. At the same time, it’s a working farm, with extensive gardens and heritage livestock. And you can do yoga with the goats; check their website for even more fun events, including art exhibits and a concert series.

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salisbury, connecticut As the northwestern most town in Connecticut, Salisbury is where Litchfield County meets the Berkshires. It’s home to two prep schools, but also wild and mountainous black bear habitat. Salisbury has a small-town feel, with full-time and part-time residents whose lives often take them into Manhattan, just a little over two hours by car and also reachable by rail from Wassaic, only fifteen minutes away. Who, upon seeing a little place with a “For Sale” sign on a well-kept lawn, wouldn’t feel a little tug?

Salisbury is a welcoming town, whether or not you own real estate there. It thrives on the mixture of people it attracts, from celebrities (Meryl Streep has lived there for years) to the shaggy hikers who come down a half a mile off the Appalachian Trail to pick up supplies at LaBonne’s Market. Begin with a walk down Main Street and follow your nose to Sweet William’s Coffee Shop Bakery, famous for pies, pastries, and cookies. Right across the street is the General Store, which also doubles as the town’s pharmacy. Around the corner is browser-friendly Johnnycake Books, specializing in rare and collectible volumes.

Go a little further and you’ll soon be on the Railroad Ramble, Salisbury’s scenic Rail Trail.

Outdoor activities draw many people to the area. If you can hike half a mile—uphill, that is (the hike is listed as ”moderate to strenuous”)—pluck up your courage and try the trail to Lion’s Head for spectacular views over the surrounding countryside.

The trailhead is only a mile out of town on Bunker Hill Road (there’s a parking lot marked “Hiker Parking” where the road comes to an end); the road begins at the Salisbury Town Hall in the center of town.

There are six lakes, with names like Wononscopomuc, Washinee, Washining, and Wononpakook (brush up on your Algonquian before you visit). Deep, beautiful 348-acre Wononscopomuc (also known as Lakeville Lake, in very plain

the quiet corner, with bears

English) is the site of the well-run public beach, known as the Salisbury Town Grove. There’s a $10-per-head fee for nonresidents. Boat launching (at an additional $10) and various watercraft rentals are also available. The fishing is excellent, and Connecticut licenses are available at the Grove.

A landmark in Salisbury is Lime Rock Park. The 2021 major event season concludes with the 39th annual Historic Festival on Labor Day weekend, September 3 – 6. Lime Rock is one of Salisbury’s “hamlets,” but don’t look for thatched cottages. Since 1956 the 1.5-mile track at Lime Rock Park has been a mainstay on the American racing circuit, and it’s also where amateur drivers can drive and dream and (if they qualify) compete.

But perhaps you took the advice of the New York Times and travelled to Salisbury simply to dine at The White Hart Inn on dishes prepared by celebrated British chef Annie Wayte. The Inn houses Provisions, a stylish café and sandwich spot open every day starting at 7 a.m. for take-out only now. For sit-down dining, you have your choice of the casual Tap Room and its outdoor patio, the Garden room and the elegant Dining Room, all open for dinner Thursday through Monday starting at 5 p.m. and all serving what the restaurant characterizes as “elevated Britishinspired comfort food” that highlights seasonal ingredients sourced from nearby farms. The food is both exotic and local— a good reflection of the town itself.

From left: Sweet William’s Coffee Shop & Bakery, Main Street.

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hillsdale, new york

where New York meets the Berkshires

From left: Berkshire Pottery, Roe Jan Brewing Company.

Heading east on Route 23

from the Taconic through Hillsdale towards Great Barrington is a well-worn path for many visitors to the Berkshires. Nowadays, though, the traffic goes both ways, or stops before it gets there, as Hillsdale has become a destination that Berkshire residents and urban visitors alike are increasingly drawn to.

The formerly sleepy farming town is now a second-home magnet with a vibrant artistic and commercial culture in which part-timers are as invested as year-rounders. Passiflora hung out a lonely shingle in 2009, billing itself as “an eclectic mix of all things contemporary, quirky, and chic” (primarily housewares and personal care products, with an emphasis on local artisans); 12 years later it’s still going strong. Interior designer Matthew White renovated an 1855 commercial building on the village square into what is now the Hillsdale General Store, with an emphasis on stylish, functional housewares. The same building is also home to Cross Roads Food Shop, a farm-to-table restaurant that serves a great breakfast. They’re serving breakfast all day, and lunch beginning at 11:30 a.m. with seating both inside and out.

White then went a step further, starting up HGS Chef, which sells cookware and offers in-person cooking classes with top chefs, in another made-over building across the street. Right next door, Tiny Hearts Farm, which organically farms 15 acres in Copake, is selling vegetables and flowers.

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A great recent arrival on the scene is the Roe Jan Brewing Company on Anthony Street not far from the town center: fresh beers and a menu with steaks from a wood-fired grill and tasty salads, along with wines and cocktails. They’re serving indoors and out, all at respectable distances.

The Hillsdale House, right in the center of things, came alive last year after a makeover. The Village Scoop, which the owners of Passiflora created in the space formerly occupied by a tattoo parlor, serves non-alcoholic cocktails as well as exceptional artisanal ice cream. But, if your hair has gone to hell during the pandemic, you can still get a haircut in Hillsdale, too, at least if the pole outside Trudy’s Beauty Shop is spinning; basic women’s or men’s haircuts $20, beards extra.

And whatever your home needs may be, there’s a Herrington in Hillsdale who can help. For your construction and renovation supplies, visit Ed Herrington, Inc., just west of the intersection of Routes 7 and 23, and their Hillsdale Tile Design Center just east of it. Then when construction is done, C. Herrington Home + Design, right at the intersection, with a beautiful retail shop and professional design services, can turn that house into the home of your dreams.

Not all the action is in the village. Rodger’s Book Barn, off the beaten track but well worth the ramble, has 50,000 “old and unusual” books on its well-organized shelves. Mirror Mirror, located on Route 23 between the Route 22 junction and the town center, offers both vintage clothing and housewares.

And Sideshow Clothing Company has moved from Hudson, N.Y., to the space right next to Mirror Mirror, buying and selling vintage clothing both in the shop and online.

The Swiss Hutte Inn & Restaurant, on Route 23 near the Massachusetts line, has new owners—experienced restaurateurs with a great track record in both city and country locations. Stay tuned for exciting new developments there. more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

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Little Apple Cidery

Turn south on Route 22 and you’ll see O’s Hillsdale Country Diner on your left; the O is for Otto and the food falls in the “fine diner dining” category. The local Stewart’s is there too, if you need to refuel your car or yourself. North on Route 22, take a left to find Little Apple Cidery. Taste and purchase custom crated hard ciders from the Orchard Bar, tours available.

East of town on Route 23, Berkshire Pottery has been crafting hand-made wares in a 19th century Dutch barn. Their pottery combines old world craftsmanship with modern practicality.

For D.I.Y. food, try the Hillsdale Supermarket (“home of the one-dollar sale”), a classic full-service IGA right near the village square. It’s locally owned and has an excellent meat department; stock up your larder for less. Spend your savings at Hillsdale Fine Wine & Spirits, right behind the IGA. Random Harvest is a worker-owned neighborhood market, café and community space that offers food and goods sourced directly from more than seventy local producers; if you’re coming in from the Taconic, it’s a convenient stop just east of Craryville on Route 23.

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out and about

BLACK BERKSHIRES A hidden and not-so-hidden legacy

BY ANDREW BLECHMAN

The story of being Black in the Berkshires is largely untold. It’s a legacy of injustices endured, freedom attained, dissipating segregation . . .

In 1771, Berkshire County property tax records show there were:

• 19 enslaved humans of African descent in Sheffield;

• 7 enslaved humans of African descent in Stockbridge;

• 3 enslaved humans of African descent in Egremont.

People were enslaved in the southern Berkshires, living out their lives as human chattel, since at least the 1740s. Further north as well—a surviving bill of sale records the 1761 purchase of “a negro girl named Pendar” for £50 by Col. Williams of Pittsfield. That there weren’t far more slaves was a matter of simple economics: the area was generally poor and markets too far to bother ramping up surplus farm production.

But Connecticut was closer to larger population centers and held more enslaved peoples. In 1779, the Connecticut Courant (predecessor of today’s Hartford Courant) ran the following advert for a paying subscriber and slaveowner in Sharon, Connecticut:

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“TWENTY DOLLARS REWARD. Runaway from the subscriber in October last, a Negro Wench named ZIL, about 15 years old, small of her age, pretends she is free, the last she has been heard of she was going to Lenox. Whoever will return her to her master shall receive the above reward . . .”

Such ads were commonplace.

Connecticut was the last colony in New England to abolish slavery in 1848 and at times had more enslaved men and women than any other state in New England. Runaway slaves from Connecticut and New York State (which didn’t vote to abolish slavery until 1817) frequently headed for the Berkshires, where slavery existed alongside free Blacks. That’s right—enslaved Blacks and free Blacks lived parallel lives in the Berkshires. Little Zil “pretended to be free” because some Blacks here were. more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

Opposite page: Summer lake outing, 1894-96. Photo by Rev. Chauncey Hatfield of Clinton A.M.E. Zion Church. From left: W.E.B. Du Bois, Elizabeth “Mum Bett” Freeman, murals created by the Railroad Street Youth Project celebrating the life and legacy of W.E.B. Du Bois are mounted along the Railroad Street alleyway in Great Barrington.

Given that the county borders Connecticut and New York, the Berkshires were something of a temporary melting pot.

Walking down Main Street in Stockbridge one might encounter enslaved Blacks, free Blacks, Dutch and English landowners, Mohawks and Mohicans, speaking a polyglot of languages.

The story of being Black in the Berkshires is largely untold. It’s a legacy of injustices endured, freedom attained, of human hatred and human kindness, of lasting yet dissipating segregation, of limited economic opportunity, of one people and two races, living in parallel, separated by little more than ignorance and legacy.

Two ships silently passing in the night. It’s the story of a white race burdened by prejudice; a Black race anything but ignorant of its white neighbors, often working in their homes as domestics, washing their dirty linens and underwear, cooking their meals, and raising their children, first as chattel, later as waged labor. As W.E.B. Du Bois wrote, “We who are dark can see America in a way that white Americans cannot.”

If you’re white, chances are you don’t know a lot about this history. As Wray Gunn, an elder in the local Black community with deep local roots here that date back to the American Revolution, says: “The Berkshires are rich in Black history that is little known and sometimes misunderstood.”

It’s a history peopled by giants the likes of W.E.B. Du Bois (or “Willie” as he was known locally; last name pronounced in the American way), a towering international figure and pioneer in the field of Sociology and the American Civil Rights movement. And Mum Bett, who threw off the shackles of human enslavement with a bravery and chutzpah almost biblical in proportion and renamed herself with a moniker monumental in its clarity, a name with a significance that would never tarnish as it rang through the ages: Elizabeth Freeman.

Sprinkled among these leviathans of our shared cultural history are a fascinating amalgamation of artists, patriots, and the everyday amongst us, who rose above the petty slights and substantial impediments underwritten by institutional racism.

Agrippa Hull, he of quick wit and talented business acumen, born of slavery in Northampton, who served as orderly to military engineer Gen. Tadeusz Kosciuszko during the Revolutionary War and became the largest Black landowner in Stockbridge.

The Rev. Samuel Harrison, born enslaved, who would become a highly regarded minister of the Second Congregational Church in Pittsfield and chaplain to the 54th Massachusetts Regiment which was celebrated in the Oscar-winning movie Glory.

James Weldon Johnson who wrote the Black National Anthem while summering at his home in Great Barrington. James VanDerZee, who grew up in Lenox and became famous as the chronicler through his photographs of the Harlem Renaissance.

And the sympathetic whites. The Sedgwicks of Stockbridge who helped free and then employ Ms. Freeman. Norman Rockwell, who refused the complicity of silence and used his prodigious talents to portray human decency and profanity, using local Black children as models for several of his most powerful works. Jacob’s Pillow, which incorporated Black dance troupes and choreography from its earliest beginnings.

Much of this story, while enjoying a renaissance of interest, is physically missing. In Berkshire County, Black people weren’t generally a prosperous lot. Many of the landmarks associated with their history no longer exist, many of them literally paved over. But if you drive through the county with a healthy dose of curiosity, the history remains for those willing to find it.

Elizabeth “Mum Bett” Freeman

It’s uncomfortable to imagine the indignities of being enslaved, the fear of bodily harm and sexual violence with no recourse, an existence as chattel, human property devoid of dignity and self-determination, expected to deliver a lifetime of uncompensated involuntary labor, prisoner to the whims and brutality of one’s legal owner. In such a world, it’s difficult to imagine the bravery of one who stands up against impossible odds to say, “No more!” Rosa Parks on that Montgomery public BerkshiresCalendar.com

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out and about: black berkshires

From left: Elizabeth Freeman is buried in the Sedgwick Pie in Stockbridge. Elizabeth Freemen was enslaved on this property (The Ashley House) for more than three decades. bus comes to mind. But there’s an earlier example of such bravery, one against even greater odds, and at a time when deliverance was hardly imaginable.

“Any time while I was a slave, if one minute’s freedom had been offered to me and I had been told I must die at the end of that minute, I would have taken it—just to stand one minute of God’s earth a free woman, I would.” —Elizabeth Freeman

It is the story of Bett, enslaved in the home of Col. John Ashley in Sheffield since she was six months old. Perhaps it was, as recorded, the enduring of a painful blow from a hot oven shovel from Ashley’s violently tempered wife, Hannah, that finally pushed Bett over the edge. She marched into the winter night from Ashely Falls to Sheffield, where she visited the home of noted attorney and future Massachusetts Supreme Court justice, Theodore Sedgwick, to ask for her freedom. Bett had heard Col. Ashley and his male friends discussing the new state constitution, with its proclamations of equality. Sedgwick agreed and tried Bett’s case for freedom in the local courthouse in Great Barrington. Bett won her freedom in August of 1781 and inhaled her first breath of freedom right here in South County. She took the name Elizabeth Freeman, and spent her remaining days employed by the Sedgwicks, who soon moved to Stockbridge.

Ms. Freeman is buried directly alongside other members of the Sedgwick family in the “Sedgwick Pie”—the family’s historically significant circular burial plot in the Stockbridge cemetery. Her gravestone reads, “She was born a slave and remained a slave for nearly thirty years . . . . She was the most efficient helper and the tenderest friend. Good mother, farewell.”

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Visit the Col. John Ashley House. The small grounds in Ashley Falls are open year-round. Although the home is closed in winter, a visitor can still consider Ashley’s slaves sleeping in unheated outbuildings and on the kitchen floor near the fireplace during the coldest months. Driving north through Sheffield, you can see the old Sedgwick white-pillared home on Main Street (privately owned) to your right in the center of town. The courthouse where Ms. Freeman earned her freedom is now gone, in its place another public edifice of note: the Great Barrington Town Hall. The Sedgwick home on Main Street in Stockbridge is privately owned, but the cemetery is open to the public and the Sedgwick Pie is definitely worth a visit. (The grave of Agrippa Hull is also in the cemetery.) And consider visiting the Elizabeth Freeman Center website, reading about the good work that they do in our community—and possibly contributing.

W.E.B. Du Bois

Du Bois was born right downtown on Church Street. He went to school at the old Great Barrington High School that stood behind the present Berkshire Co-op Market. Great Barrington is where he chose to bury his infant son, and then his wife of four decades, as well as his daughter. It’s where the local Congregational Church along with three other churches, encouraged by Du Bois’ schoolteacher, sent this unusually bright yet impoverished native son to college at the historically black Fisk College. Du Bois would continue to Harvard, where he became the first African American to earn a Ph.D.

Great Barrington is also where Du Bois encountered his first slight as a Black man, during a high school Valentine’s Day fundraiser. Du Bois frequently wrote about his birthplace with a sense of longing. One could wonder if he regretted moving more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

to Ghana at the age of 93, only to die there less than two years later, buried in African soil, yes, but not beside his wife and children in the soil of his beloved Great Barrington.

“I was born by a golden river in the shadow of two great hills, five years after the Emancipation Proclamation.” —W.E.B. Du Bois

If you haven’t read Du Bois’s writings, please do. When it comes to America and race, they’re tectonic in their significance.

“The problem of the 20th century is the color line,” he wrote in The Souls of Black Folk in 1903, the same year that Sheffield established what was widely seen as a Jim Crow segregated school. And he had this to say as well: “The United States will either destroy ignorance, or ignorance will destroy the United States.” Potent stuff. If you’re new to Du Bois’ writings, consider following along in a community read of The Souls of Black Folk with the help of renowned Du Bois experts from around the country. It’s awesome.

The celebration of Du Bois’s legacy in Great Barrington— despite his being the most significant son of the Berkshires and having been nationally honored on two postage stamps—has been strangely complicated. Although his homesite on the edge of town was declared a National Historical Site in 1976, it took thirty more begrudging years for local residents to honor him with road signs announcing Great Barrington as his birthplace.

It took another two decades and several attempts to get a public school named for him. No, it didn’t help that he was a Black man in a racist society. It also didn’t help that he became an avowed communist in his final years. And yet, given the experience of American Blacks during his lifetime, one might find this late conversion understandable from a place of frustration.

While Du Bois’s words live on, breathing with a clarion urgency as loud as the day he wrote them, his physical legacy in Great Barrington is mostly gone, much of it literally paved over.

None of the five homes he lived in in Great Barrington survives.

One is now the parking lot at the top of Railroad Street, another is beneath Taconic Avenue. A third is a green lawn on Church Street, a fourth the parking lot beside First Congregational Church. To feel Du Bois’s presence, one must dig a little deeper.

Visit the Mahaiwe Cemetery south of town on Route 7. There, you will find a Great Barrington Historical Society marker beside the graves of his wife, and two children. Call the North Star Bookstore right next door and make an appointment to explore the Du Bois Center within. Run by Du Bois expert and bookstore owner Randy Weinstein, the center is a treasure trove of Du Bois writing and more. Turn down Route 23 and drive towards South Egremont. Just past the Route 71 turnoff for the airport, you will see a parking lot on the right beside a grove of pine trees. This is the Boyhood Homesite of W.E.B. Du Bois, a National Historic Site maintained by the University of Massachusetts Amherst.

Now devoid of structures save for remnants of the foundation of his family home (the house adjacent to the parking lot is not the homesite), there is however a short trail through the woods with interpretive signs explaining Du Bois’s legacy.

In downtown Great Barrington, check out the colorful and poignant Du Bois murals in the wide alleyway between Railroad Street and the Triplex parking lot, painted by the Railroad Street Youth Project. Walk down Church Street and check out the sign marking where Du Bois was born. And the River Garden dedicated to Du Bois at the River Walk, where the street meets the Housatonic River. Du Bois wrote frequently about the river and the need to protect it from further degradation.

Clinton A.M.E. Zion Church

For 130 years, this church on Elm Court one block from Main Street served as a “spiritual, cultural, and political heart of Black life” in the southern Berkshires. The restoration project, which will turn the church into a cultural center dedicated to educating the public about the life and legacy of W.E.B. Du Bois

Left: Du Bois River Garden on River St. in Great Barrington. Inset: stamp printed in 1998. Right: Wray Gunn, Chair of the Clinton Church Restoration, stands outside the A.M.E. Zion Church on Elm Court in Great Barrington.

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out and about: black berkshires from the Berkshires volunteered to serve in the regiment than from anywhere else in the Commonwealth. A plaque on Lee’s Memorial Hall pays homage to several who served, never to see their families nor the beauty of the Berkshires again.

Lenox

Kamala Harris walking next to a silhouette of Ruby Bridges from Norman Rockwell’s “The Problems We All Live With.” and the Berkshires’ rich African American history, needs your help. Please check out its website and consider contributing.

The church renovation is very much incomplete, but you can pay your respects from outside and stroll around this historically Black neighborhood.

James Weldon Johnson

Johnson, a novelist, poet, songwriter, and Civil Rights activist, is best known for writing “Lift Every Voice and Sing”—also known as the Black National Anthem. He was a frequent patron of the Great Barrington Public Library. He summered for years at a summer home called Five Acres in Great Barrington, now private property, and his writing cabin, still there, will be restored by the James Weldon Johnson Foundation which has also joined with Bard College at Simon’s Rock to support an annual artists-inresidence program.

Stockbridge

In addition to the Sedgwick Pie, the Stockbridge Cemetery is the final resting place of Agrippa Hull, a free Black who fought in the Revolutionary War. His portrait also hangs in the Stockbridge Library. You might also consider visiting a littleknown monument to the Mohican Indians who once lived in Stockbridge before being displaced. You can find it on the left just outside town as you drive west down Main Street towards the golf course.

The Norman Rockwell Museum houses many of the artist’s Civil Rights-era drawings and paintings. Rockwell, who was a sponsor of the original Du Bois Memorial Committee, used local Black children as models for his seminal magazine covers “The Problem We All Live With” and “Moving Day”.

Lee

The 54th Massachusetts Regiment, all Black except for white officers, fought bravely for freedom, as chronicled in the movie Glory. What is not typically known is that more Black men

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The town’s most famous Black son is James VanDerZee, who received white recognition late in life for his seminal photographs of the Harlem Renaissance. His work gained international recognition in 1969, when it was included in an exhibit at the Metropolitan Museum of Art titled Harlem on My Mind. His photos have been exhibited locally by the Lenox Historical Society and the Lenox Public Library. His boyhood home was taken by eminent domain to build the Route 7 bypass around Lenox. Every time you drive towards Pittsfield and past Hubbard Lane about a mile south of the Lenox Commons shopping area, you’re driving through where his boyhood home once stood.

Pittsfield

The Samuel Harrison House in Pittsfield was the home of Reverend Harrison, who served as chaplain to the Massachusetts 54th Regiment. Beautifully renovated as a community project just a decade ago, it’s open to the public by appointment.

Dalton

The Hoose House, which had a succession of Black owners, and nearby Wizard’s Glen, reputed to be a stop on the Underground Railroad, provide an interesting window on African American life in Berkshire County.

History, as we know, is often found in books. If you want to know what it was like to be Black in the Berkshires one hundred years after the Civil War, you’ll find poignant tellings in African American Heritage in the Upper Housatonic Valley (a highly recommended read). In one essay, “Life in the Invisible Community”, the late Elaine Gunn, a longtime local schoolteacher, writes about trying to purchase a home in Great Barrington and the blatant racism she faced while doing so.

She also wrote the following about dining in mid-20th-century Pittsfield: “One restaurant had two doors . . . . Blacks always went in on the left and were seated on the left. A solid wall separated the two dining areas. The right side of the restaurant . . . all the tables had reserved signs on them.”

FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE VISIT THE FOLLOWING WEBSITES: Local Black history: africanamericantrail.org/plan-your-trip/trail-guides/ africanamericantrail.org housatonicheritage.org/heritage-programs/afam-trail/ The Du Bois Center at UMASS Amherst: duboiscenter.library.umass.edu/about-du-bois-library/ more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

events

fall in love with the Berkshires —all over again. By Hannah Van Sickle

Autumn in the Berkshires is an experience to behold: the dog-days of August serve as summer’s last hurrah, while cool evenings usher in the bittersweet transition to sweater-weather. Leaves crunch audibly underfoot—whether strolling on sidewalks or traversing well-trodden trails—as the undulating Berkshire Hills deliver the most spectacular performance of all, turning magnificent shades of gold and ochre, vermillion and crimson. Meanwhile, the perennial promise of world-class attractions remains constant. So take your pick—from bushels of local apples to dozens of cultural destinations— and devour fall in the 413.

Clockwise from left: Pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet at Tanglewood, Hang at Shakespeare & Company, Paul Taylor Dance Company at PS21 and the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center.

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music

live performance continues

The likelihood of Serge Koussevitzky being dubbed a trend-setter—way back in 1937, when he spelled his urban orchestra from the city come summer—is slim. Still, the tradition of Tanglewood (named for the eponymous tales penned by Nathaniel Hawthorne from a cottage on the property’s perimeter) and music enjoyed al fresco remains the backbone of late-summer in the Berkshires—which means it’s not too late to pack a picnic!

Live music at Tanglewood, summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, continues through August 16th. The final two weeks of the season—one that invites patrons to reconnect, restore, and rejoice (after a silent 2020 summer season)—include performances by the BSO and guest conductors Herbert Blomstedt, Karina Canellakis, and Anna Rakitina and featuring soloists Joshua Bell (violin), Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Jean-Yves Thibaudet (piano), and Leonidas Kavakos (violin). Classical music not your style? Lend an ear on Friday, August 6 when TLI Full Tilt—featuring the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Brandford Marsalis—takes to the stage of the open-air Koussevitzky Music Shed. Friday, August 13 marks the return of John Williams’ Film Night, a beloved highlight of the summer season, that brings the Boston Pops—under the batons of Maestros Williams and Keith Lockhart who share the podium—for a delightful program of music and film clips from Hollywood’s Golden Age to contemporary favorites. It’s a special evening of movie magic you won’t want to miss.

Rounding out the symphony season are a pair of concerts by the Tanglewood Music Center Orchestra and the Tanglewood Music Center Conducting Fellows. The Popular Artist Series returns with performances by Brandi Carlisle with special guest Mavis Staples (August 21); Judy Collins and Richard Thompson with special guest Jesse Colin Young (August 22); and Wait Wait . . . Don’t Tell Me!, NPR’s oddly informative news quiz hosted by Peter Sagal with judge and scorekeeper Bill Kurtis (August 28).

The inaugural season of Jams in the Hamlet, held just over the New York line in Hillsdale Hamlet Park, continues on the third Saturday of each month from 5 – 7 p.m. Singer Kerri Powers (a regular at folk festivals from Boston to Telluride) and songwriters Lisa and Lori Brigantino (Brooklyn’s Park Slope sisters) take to the stage on August 21 for an evening of jams spanning Folk and Blues to Rock, Old-Time, Americana, Pop and more. Grammy-nominated Brady Rymer and Claudia Mussen will perform on September 18, featuring rockin’ live music for kids.

Listeners are invited to bring a chair, spread out on the lawn, and enjoy refreshments for purchase from Roe Jan Brewing Co., Little Apple Cidery, Mama Lo’s BBQ, and Bacon’s Pizza. Jams in the Ham draws to a close on October 9 with a Community Talent Night at Pumpkin Fest.

The Town of Great Barrington Summer Concert Series will continue on Friday evenings through August from the gazebo behind Town Hall. Bring a blanket and plan to linger while local legends like The BTUs (August 6); Extra Special Teas with Allen Timmons (August 13); Lee Rogers & Friends (August 20); and the Bobby Sweet Band

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Anna Rakitina

Leonidas Kavakos more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

(August 27) take to the stage for free performances, weather permitting. Swing back by the same venue on Saturday mornings for a family-friendly concert with David Grover at 10 a.m. Your kids will thank you.

The Egremont Barn, an intimate setting one town over from Great Barrington, is jam-packed into September. Have the good fortune to grab tix for The Lucky Bucket Band (bluegrass straight from Omaha) or The Lucky Five (a self-described hardswinging jazz band). Other acts include The Picky Bastards, music from (actress!) Lauren Ambrose and the Leisure Class, Willy Nile, Honeysuckle, and Wild Leek River with opener Zach Bryson. Catch Jessica Kirson, if comedy is more your style, and join American Idol fans for Lee DeWyze (winner of the show’s 9th season) with opener D’Arcy. Go for the music, stay for the relaxed atmosphere, and enjoy the great food and cocktails (plus goats, known to roam the property).

Don’t miss The Foundry, a multi-disciplinary arts venue in the heart of West Stockbridge. Celebrate young talent at the Emerging Artists Series, every Tuesday night at 6:30 p.m.

Friday and Saturday evenings—well into September—bring the global sounds of Habibi (Farsi-sung tunes, anyone?) and Alisa Amadour (Latin-influenced folk rock) to this small-town stage.

Alexis B. Suter Band, Charming Disaster, Billy Wylder, Nelson Patton, and the (virtuoso fiddler) Jason Anick Acoustic Trio are also on tap—so head to the Green with snacks and drinks in tow, or book a table to enjoy the full bar menu. Plus food trucks!

Pittsfield’s Barrington Stage Company branches out for two nights of song in August. Check out three-time Tony Award nominee Joshua Henry (August 16) for a soulful evening of music from Broadway to Motown. Andy Karl and Orfeh: Legally Bound (August 23) promises an eclectic mix of pop, rock, rhythm and blues-plus showtunes, sure to excite and delight!

Lee DeWyze

Jason Anick Acoustic Trio

Tannery Pond Concerts

move from the eponymous venue at Darrow School to St. James Church in Chatham. A pair of August performances feature Philip Edward Fisher, piano; Sami Merdinian, violin; and Yves Dharamraj, cello, on August 14, and Haochen Zhang, piano, on August 28. September 18 brings Paul Huang, violin, and Helen Huang, piano, to the stage while Yegor Dyachkov, cello, and Ilya Poletaev, piano, close out the season on September 25. Reservations— and proof of vaccination—are required.

Haochen Zhang BerkshiresCalendar.com

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Bobbie’s Summer Series, outside on The Great Lawn at Berkshire Theatre Group in Stockbridge, comes to a close with Michael Wartella (August 6) and Jay Unger & Molly Mason (August 7). Meanwhile, the Colonial Concert Series: Featuring Broadway Favorites continues outside under the Big Tent at the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield. Join Stephanie J. Block: Returning Home (August 21); Kate Baldwin & Graham Rowat: Dressed Up Again (August 28); and An Evening With Rachel Bay Jones (September 4).

Head to Chesterwood in Stockbridge, home of Lincoln Monument sculptor Daniel Chester French, for Arts Alive!, a series of one-hour-long outdoor programs showcasing talented musicians including Gina Coleman and the Misty Blues Duo (August 7); the Rev Tor Trio (August 21); and the Joe Rose Jazz Ensemble (September 4).

Modern Opera Fest at PS21: Performance Spaces for the 21st Century in Chatham, N.Y., presents Ipsa Dixit on September 4, a theatrical chamber opera for soprano, flute, violin, and percussion. Called “a twenty-first century masterpiece” by The New Yorker magazine, composer Kate Soper and director Ashley Tata blend monodrama, Greek theater, and screwball comedy to skewer the treachery of language and question the authenticity of artistic expression. Savage Winter will close out the festival on September 8. Composed by Douglas J. Cuomo and directed by Jonathan Moore, this is a fiercely contemporary chamber opera that reimagines Wilhelm Müller’s poetry cycle Winterreise.

And don’t miss PS21’s House Blend Concerts, conjured by pianist Alan Feinberg and featuring celebrated soloists and groups August 8, 19, and 26.

Michael Wartella

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The Patio Stage at Sharon Playhouse is alive with cabaret performances. Enjoy Friday night Dinner Cabarets and Sunday afternoon Brunch Cabarets with guests ranging from Broadway star Hugh Panaro to the inspirational gospel sounds of Michael Brown; comedian Kerri Lousie and star of stage, screen and tv John Davidson; plus local legend Wanda Houston who, in a brand new show, tell the tales and stories of the roles that are traditionally for men that she loves to sing—among others.

Berkshire Opera Festival presents an evening of music at The Mount, home of Edith Wharton. Much Ado About Shakespeare (August 11), will feature texts by the great bard, sung by members of BOF’s cast of Falstaff. Go early and stroll the author-designed gardens, one Italian, one French, plus a molded Grass Steps cut into a sloping hill.

Head to Chatham’s MacHaydn Theatre for music “in the round,” in a series of musical Limited Events ranging from Exiled: The Evolution of Kurt Weill (James Benjamin Rodgers); Within The Sound of My Voice: The Songs of Linda Ronstadt (Elizabeth Ward Land); Showstoppers (MacHaydn Company); Touch; and Laura’s at the Helm (Laura Helm) through September.

Experience the garden after hours with Music Mondays at Berkshire Botanical Garden in Stockbridge. Lend an ear for the best sounds from the Berkshires—and the greater Boston area— in the gazebo among topiaries in Lucy’s Garden. Bring a blanket, pack a picnic, and enjoy beer and wine for purchase from (local) Big Elm Brewery (rain or shine, through September 20).

Hancock Shaker Village plays host to Back Porch Music and The Nields—one of the most exciting of the new breed of contemporary folk-rockers—at 7 p.m. on August 21. No picnics

The Nields more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

FreshGrass Festival

allowed but sit on the lawn, bring a blanket or lawn chair and visit Bimi’s Cafe, open with an expanded menu including beer and wine.

PS21 and Basilica Hudson join forces in September (17 – 19) for the 10th Anniversary edition of Basilica SoundScape.

Co-presented with The Creative Independent, this outsidethe-box festival promises an immersive, innovative weekend of art, music and culture. Head to PS21 in Chatham for a lineup that includes some of the most innovative and genre-pushing musicians, visual artists and writers working today, with unique collaborations across disciplines.

September also marks the return of FreshGrass to North Adams—for the Bluegrass Festival’s 10th Anniversary at MASS MoCA—featuring a mix of traditionalists and innovators on four stages throughout the museum’s sprawling 16-acre campus.

The lineup for this year’s three-day festival happening September 24 – 26, includes: Dispatch (acoustic); Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue; Béla Fleck My Bluegrass Heart (featuring Michael Cleveland, Sierra Hull, Justin Moses, Mark Schatz, and Bryan Sutton); Watchhouse (formerly Mandolin Orange); Sam Bush; Steep Canyon Rangers (FreshGrass Artist-in-Residence); Sarah Jarosz; Aiofe O’Donovan; Watkins Family Hour; Noam Pikelny; Bonny Light Horseman; Alison Brown; Amythyst Kiah; Darol Anger; Hawktail; Dedicated Men of Zion; A Tribute to Sister Rosetta Tharpe featuring Felicia Collins, Willi Carlisle, CJ Field, and more. Festival programming also includes FreshScores, a silent film with original live music; FreshGrass commissions and world premieres; instrument and industry workshops; pop-up performances and retail; and local Berkshire food and spirits vendors. All festival tickets include admission to MASS MoCA’s galleries. Not to be missed.

And back in Great Barrington, the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center moves into live events again. Among its many offerings are two interesting music programs, American

Christopher Cross songwriter Christopher Cross on October 1 and Roseanne Cash on November 6.

Saint James Place, around the corner from the Mahaiwe, will be home to a number of musical events: Stockbridge Sinfonia, Berkshires’ intergenerational community orchestra, will perform on August 15. On September 25, Festival Latino of the Berkshires celebrates its 25th anniversary and 2nd year in Great Barrington with free events at Saint James and at the town hall park; Aston Magna Music Festival offers a concert of Bach, Marais and Leclair at 3 p.m. on Sunday, September 26 (the same concert will be offered the evening before at Hudson Hall in Hudson, N.Y.) Clarion Concerts will perform with saxophonist Steven Banks on October 23. And Crescendo will present a choral/instrumental concert Music Across Borders on October 29.

And BerkshiresJazz is jumping back into “live” programming with three events before Labor day. The Berkshire Jazz Showcase on August 7 at 1 p.m. is a free outdoors event on the Pittsfield Common featuring outstanding local bands. The hot swing band Svetlana and the Delancey 5 will be at The Gateways Inn in downtown Lenox Sunday, August 15. And then, at Saint James Place in Great Barrington on August 28, Berkshire Jazz Insight presents a quartet featuring flutist Andrea Brachfeld, named Jazz Flutist of the Year for 2015 by Hot House Jazz Awards. Sill in development but definitely happening are the second annual Lenox Jazz Stroll (September 11) and the Pittsfield CityJazz Festival, October 8 – 17.

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theater & performance indoors, outdoors, and under tents

All the world’s a stage,

Christopher Lloyd plays King Lear at Shakespeare & Company through August 29.

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across the Berkshires and beyond, making live theater a reality— not merely a midsummer night’s dream—well into autumn. Whether driven by locale (indoors or outdoors); venue (world-renowned or community based); or genre (side-splitting comedy or true-to-life tragedy), choices abound for the theater buff who happens upon the region this season.

more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

Who Could Ask For Anything More at Barrington Stage Company.

Barrington Stage Company sizzles through summer with a trio of world premieres. Boca, an evening of short comedies, continues through August 22; Sister Sorry (August 12 – 29) is loosely based on a stunning true crime confession; and A Crossing (September 23 – October 17), presents a timely new dance musical. Special events, including Celebrating Black Voices (a week-long celebration of local Black artists, featuring poetry, storytelling, jazz, talent shows, and more) and a staged reading of Andy Warhol in Iran, will transpire under the big top in downtown Pittsfield.

Christopher Lloyd takes to the (outdoor) stage at Shakespeare & Company where the long-time actor plays King Lear—in the 500-seat New Spruce Theater—through August 29. The more intimate Roman Garden Theatre plays host to Yasmina Reza’s contemporary play, Art, through August 22.

Debbie Tucker Greene’s dark and poetic comedy, Hang, makes its regional debut in the Tina Packer Playhouse (September 10 – October 3) followed by The Chairs, an absurdist play of the first order by master innovator of the genre, Eugène Ionesco.

Catch Berkshire Theatre Group’s family-friendly community production of The Wizard of Oz—a reimagined musical full of world travelers, festive carnivals, and spectacular sideshows—outside under the Big Tent at the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield before it closes on August 22. Nina Simone: Four Women imagines a conversation, often through music, between Simone and three African-American women, outside in the courtyard of the Unicorn Theatre (August 13 – September 5).

Swing by Herman Melville’s Arrowhead for ReWritten, an immersive performance that explores the often-silenced intimate relationship between authors Nathaniel Hawthorne and Herman Melville (August 13 – 15). Co-created and performed by Tom Truss and Matthew Cumbie, this play reimagines an intergenerational queer love story that helped shape American literature.

Chester Theatre rounds out summer at Hancock Shaker Village with Tiny Beautiful Things, written by Nia Vardalos (My Big Fat Greek Wedding), a celebration of the simple beauty of being human, based on the “Dear Sugar” advice column written by Cheryl Strayed (August 19 – 29).

Catch the East Coast premier of The Christopher Boy’s Communion, at The Great Barrington Public Theater, as David Mamet asks difficult questions and provides hard answers about how much parents will risk and trade to redeem one of their own (through August 8).

Arts Alive! at Chesterwood continues with author Harold Holzer presenting Lincoln’s Favorite Shakespeare featuring actor Rufus Collins (August 4); authors Brendan Mathews and Nathan McClain (September 25); and a special performance to celebrate Indigenous People’s Day (October 10).

Performance Spaces for the 21st Century, or PS21, welcomes I am every woman, featuring Nicole Ansari (founder of Actors Rising) directing local actors in rehearsal and performance of monologues on the subject of memory and identity (August 15).

Enjoy the Drive-In Stage at Sharon Playhouse from the comfort of your car. From Swinging With The Rat Pack (August 7) BerkshiresCalendar.com

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theater & performance find more at berkshirescalendar.com The benefit performance Broadway in the Berkshires returns to the Mahaiwe with host Richard Kind featuring a dazzling line-up of Broadway performers (August 2).

And Cecily Strong, of Saturday Night Live acclaim, will offer an exclusive preview of her new memoir, This Will All Be Over Soon—a raw, unflinching story of loss, love, laughter, and hope— moderated by SNL costars Heidi Gardner and Bowen Yang, in a pair of performances (August 7).

and The Sounds of Swing and Soul (August 21) to Laser Encounter (August 27 – 28)—think Pink Floyd Laser Experience set to strains of the Electric Light Orchestra—and The Rave Ons (September11), suffice it to say there’s something for everyone (plus the Hartford-based Connecticut Virtuosi Chamber Orchestra, September 18). And total peace of mind as you stay snug and safe in your vehicle.

Summer Youth Theatre comes to the Northwest Corner, courtesy of Sharon Playhouse. Family favorites, sure to delight audiences of all ages, include Frozen Jr. (August 1); Sharon Playhouse Starts Showcase (August 15); and Seussical Kids (August 22), a testament to the powers of friendship, loyalty, family and community—narrated by everyone’s favorite, The Cat in the Hat.

The return season at Mac-Haydn, Columbia County’s Musical Theatre in the Round, presents a reconfigured stage this summer that promotes distance while keeping audience members engaged. Five performances take to the Main Stage, including Pippin; She Loves Me; Man of La Mancha; Beehive: The ‘60s Musical; and The World Goes ‘Round, for live performances into October. The MacHaydn Children’s Theatre presents, The Most Incredible Thing (in which Hans Christian Anderson’s story of

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the same name comes to life in an inspiring new musical telling

by David Maglione) for one week (August 20 – 28).

A bit further north but still nearby, the Oldcastle Theatre Company in Bennington, Vt., is back to live performance again.

Shakespeare’s Will by Vern Thiessen and directed by Nathan Stith will run from August 6 – 15. A moving, funny, and poetic celebration of the life of Shakespeare’s wife Anne Hathaway, it tells the stories of a woman who loved her husband and children deeply, made incredible sacrifices, and maintained her strength throughout life’s challenges with—and without—the most famous playwright in history. Then, running September 3 – 12, will be The Turn of the Screw by Jeffrey Hatcher from a story

by Henry James and directed by Jillian Armenante—the story of a Victorian-era governess who is haunted by ghosts of her predecessor and the former groundskeeper. But, are the ghosts real or merely figments of her imagination?

And the Dorset (Vt.) Theatre Festival is presenting Queen of The Night on its outdoor stage at the Southern Vermont Arts Center, August 10 – September 4. In this world premiere, written

by Travis Tate, father and son brave the wilderness in a poetic comedy about family. more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

dance

summer’s fleeting jetés and glissés

Ted Shawn turned to dance

as a form of physical therapy, following a bout of temporary paralysis brought on by diphtheria. The serendipitous prescription-turned-passion not only led the young man to restored mobility, but also to a ramshackle farm in Becket.

There, the notable pioneer of American modern dance built a foundation for his company of male dancers and the country’s oldest dance festival, Jacob’s Pillow (so named for a pillowshaped rock, somewhere on the 220-acre property).

This season, Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival will present live performances followed by on-demand online presentations of works captured onsite. Performances on the Henry J. Leir Outdoor Stage (formerly the site of Inside Out), include Dallas Black Dance Theatre (August 4 – 8); LaTasha Barnes presents The Jazz Continuum (August 11 – 15) ; Streb (August 18 – 22); Ballet Coast to Coast (August 25 – 29); and The School at Jacob’s Pillow Performance Ensemble (August 14). Site-specific performances, across the company’s sprawling campus, include Okwui Okpokwasili & Peter Born (who present the world premiere of Swallow the Moon, an installation guided by a sonic score that tells the story of a young girl with hair so powerful it allows her to receive and send messages through time) (August 6 – 7); Cirque Barcode & Acting for Climate Montréal (who perform August 13 – 14 in and around nature as a way to reconnect with their local environment); jumatatu m. poe (in which the eponymous choreographer along with collaborator Jerome “Donte” Beachman distill decades-long research of J-Sette performance, a “high step” march popularized by the women’s majorette teams at historically Black colleges in the United States) (August 26 – 28). Plus a pair of socially distant celebrations: Soul Line Dance Party (August 21) and Festival Finale (August 28).

Cirque Barcode & Acting for Climate Montréal

PS21 is the venue for the U.S. premiere of Branché, an acrobatic circus performance for all ages that happens in and around trees, by a pair of Montréal based circus companies— Cirque Barcode & Acting for Climate Montréal—working towards a sustainable future by combining performing arts and environmentalism, with minimal impact (August 7). The legendary Paul Taylor Dance Company will be in residence for three weeks, rehearsing and performing works from its repertory of modern classics, to culminate in a special PS21 Gala performance on August 6 and a public performance on August 7.

Another chance to catch the Paul Taylor Dance Company is at the Mahaiwe, where the troupe will perform September 3 and 4.

Dallas Black Dance Theatre

visual arts

the closest look in a long time

Nikolai Astrup, Growing Season at Sandalstrand, linoleum and woodblock, 1923; print, 1923, color linocut and woodcut with hand coloring on paper. Visions of Norway at The Clark Art Institue.

For those who wish to venture indoors, fear not: galleries across the region have flung their doors open to the public, some for the first time in months. From north to south, east to west, wend your way through the verdant hills of a region that attracted some of America’s finest artists—including Norman Rockwell and Daniel Chester French—not to mention world-class art connoisseurs like Sterling and Francine Clark, whose extensive collection of European and American paintings, sculptures and decorative arts is on display in Williamstown at The Clark Art Institute. Still feeding your inner nature buff?

Outdoor installations abound—we’ve got you covered.

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more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

SculptureNow returns to The Mount with a brand new exhibition of 30 large-scale contemporary sculptures that dot the scant 50-acre property surrounding Edith Wharton’s Gilded Age mansion in Lenox. Explore this exhibit on your own using SculptureNow’s exhibition app (available for download at SculptureNow.org) or join one of the monthly, artist-led tours.

Ongoing through October 13.

Chatham’s PS21 landscape perks up thanks to a public art installation by James Casebere, whose work has been shown at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, MoMA, and London’s Tate Gallery among others. The artist’s Solo Pavilion for Two or Three, a large-scale architectural installation, is on display through October.

Taking Flight: An Outdoor Sculpture Exhibit on the lush grounds of Berkshire Botanical Garden promises to delight audiences of all ages. Renowned collector and friend of the Garden, Beth Rudin DeWoody, has curated a marvelous collection of (avian themed!) sculptures by notable and emerging contemporary artists, each offering a unique expression of the season’s fanciful theme (daily through October 31).

Pittsfield’s Berkshire Museum is open for visitors with a new exhibit, Muh-he-con-ne-ok: People of the Waters that are Never Still. This exhibition showcases the past, present and future of the Stockbridge-Munsee Community by presenting historic and contemporary objects combined with oral and written histories.

The exhibit, presented in collaboration with the Berkshire County Historical Society, Bidwell House Museum, Stockbridge Library, Trustees of the Reservations, Housatonic Heritage, Williams College, and the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans, runs August 1 – January 9.

The gallery at Berkshire Botanical Garden is filled to the gills with the strikingly detailed paintings—in oil on canvas as well as watercolor—by Marc Dennis. Revolution reflects the New York-based artist’s fascination with his own silence when spending time in the woods. Hence, the intent is to communicate beauty as a series of experiences (through September 6).

The Clark Art Institute in Williamstown welcomes visitors to two new exhibits for summer. Visions of Norway marks the inaugural North American exhibition of the paintings and prints of Nikolai Astrup (through September 19) while Dürer and After affords art aficionados the unique opportunity to assess Albrecht Dürer’s centuries-long artistic legacy (through October 3).

While in Williamstown, The Clark’s Lunder Center at Stone Hill plays host to Community Access to the Arts and CATA’s annual art show, I Am a Part of Art featuring more than 150 paintings and drawing by artists with disabilities from across Berkshire County (through September 12).

The Norman Rockwell Museum hosts a trio of exhibits (think variations on a theme!) sure to dazzle and delight.

Rockwell fans will enjoy, Real and Imagined: Fantastical Rockwell

At Arrowhead, where Herman Melville penned Moby Dick, the Berkshire County Historical Society presents Lifting the Veil: Customs Surrounding Mourning in the Berkshires.

This exhibition examines mid-19th century rituals and objects related to death and dying in the Berkshires and beyond and offers a closer look at the historic practices surrounding death, burial, and those left behind.

Narcissus, Angelo & Jesse Sinisi, Stone and Steel, 7.5′ tall, at the Norman Rockwell Museum, Land of Enchantment A Fantastical Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition.

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visual arts find more at berkshirescalendar.com featuring the keen observations of America’s preeminent persuasive visual commentator.

Work spanning Rockwell’s career, inclusive of covers for The Saturday Evening Post and other magazines, advertisers and products will be on view.

And then there are two more: Enchanted: A History of Fantasy Illustration explores the most comprehensive exhibition of fantasy illustration featuring paintings, etchings, drawings, and digital art. Journey from the Middle Ages through ancient mythology, fairy tales, and heroes and villains to contemporary artwork from Game of Thrones and The Lord of the Rings, including 140+ works of art created by more than 100 artists over five centuries.

The third exhibition, Land of Enchantment: Fantastical Sculptures, is a juried show— featuring 25 sculptures of fantastical creatures by regional artists—installed across Museum grounds. Imaginative original works of varied materials are inspired by the featured exhibition’s themes of classical and contemporary fantasy illustrations (all through October 31).

Wend your way through TurnPark Art Space in West Stockbridge where a pair of gallery shows complement the sculpture-studded grounds. FITCH & HEGNER: Wildebeest, a series of (uber imaginative) photographs by Doug Fitch and Chehalis Hegner, will hang in the Gate House Gallery. Then, in the Garage Gallery, view costumes—created for the June 19 Summer Solstice Celebration—on exhibit in THE LONGEST DAY by Uta Bekaia (both through October 31).

Virginia Bradley Studio announces a Joint Open Studio featuring a trio of local artists.

Painters Virginia Bradley, Chris Malcolmson, and sculptor William Casper welcome visitors to 234 Long Pond Road in Great Barrington to view works created over the past year. Held indoors and out, across 1800 spacious square feet; 12 – 6 p.m. (August 13 – 14).

Also in Great Barrington, the third annual Lines and Color show continues at Bernay Fine Art through August 15. Featured artists include Hideyo Okamura, Dana Piazza, Karin Schaefer, Lynda Schlosberg. This is followed by Be Still - Still Life and Beyond (August 20 – September19) featuring works by Stephanie Blumenthal, Ann Getsinger, Mike Glier, Scott Prior, David Ricci, and Nancy Simonds. Moving into fall, Works on Paper opens September 24, works by seven artists will be featured in the show: Mike Glier, Phil Knoll, Sandy Litchfield, Sue Muskat, Dana Piazza, Joy Taylor, and Barbara Takenaga.

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Lauren Clark Fine Art in Great Barrington celebrates August with an intriguing exhibit showcasing the work of artist Keith Emerling called Plated Dishes. Emerling—a photographer, painter, and chef—combines all three skills in his work; he cooks elaborate meals, photographs them and then creates paintings of them.

This is a don’t-miss for art lovers and foodies alike!

Above: Keith Emerling, Salad, Radicchio, Beef Fillet, oil on linen, 30” x 30”.

more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

Film Festivals are back

The Birches, 1940, by Luigi Lucioni is included in the Robert Frost, At Present in Vermont exhibit at the Bennington Museum.

Schantz Galleries in Stockbridge features a museumlike collection of stunning contemporary glass art. Until Labor Day the galleries are open Friday, Saturday, and Sunday with appointments encouraged, and Monday and Thursday by appointment only. After Labor Day by appointment only.

A local arts tradition, now in its 29th year, is the Stockbridge Summer Arts & Crafts Show. Taking place this year August 21 and 22 on the grounds of the Stockbridge town offices and Bidwell park, the show will present the works of over 80 juryselected artists and artisans. Always great fun!

Especially exciting this year is a new county-wide arts festival that will debut in September. The five designated cultural districts of Berkshire County—in Great Barrington, Lenox, North Adams, Pittsfield, and Williamstown, as well as Art Lenox— announce the 2021 ArtWeek Berkshires, to celebrate the arts throughout the county with creative events September 16 – 26.

In the area of visual arts, a key element of ArtWeek Berkshires will be Open Studios: individual artists will invite the public into their work spaces, either in person or virtually, to share their creative processes.

And for those eager to venture a bit further north (actually only 18 miles above Williamstown), the North Bennington Outdoor Sculpture Show (NBOSS) is a premier cultural event in Southern Vermont, featuring outdoor sculpture throughout the historic village of North Bennington. The 24th annual NBOSS will be on view through November 7 and will feature over 40 internationally recognized and emerging artists from the surrounding area.

Also in Bennington, and well worth a visit, is the Bennington Museum, which this year has mounted Robert Frost, At Present in Vermont an historic tribute to Frost’s life and work as a poet and farmer in Bennington County. Just over 100 years ago, Robert Frost arrived in Bennington County, where he lived in South Shaftsbury from 1920 to 1938. Frost wrote many of his most famous poems and won three of his unprecedented four Pulitzer prizes while living in South Shaftsbury, including “Stopping by Woods on a Snowy Evening,” which he called “my best bid for remembrance,” and “New Hampshire,” in which he lays out his personal theory of poetry and his deep affection for New England. This exhibition celebrates and explores the local legacy of America’s most beloved poet. Through November 8.

Alert to film lovers:

Berkshire International Film Festival (The BIFF) offers five full days of in-person screenings September 9 – 13 at four theaters—Saint James Place, the Mahaiwe, The Triplex, and the Beacon. Tickets available online.

FilmColumbia presents its 21st festival in-person October 22 – 31 at the Crandall Theatre in Chatham.

Tickets available at the Crandall or online.

Expand Your Mind

Opportunities to expand one’s mind abound in the Berkshires. This fall OLLI, the award-winning Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Berkshire Community College, offers an array of in-person, online, and hybrid classes with no tests, no grades, just learning for the love of learning.

Cultural offerings including Shakespeare and the Law, Beyond the Three Bs: Beethoven, Bach and Brahms, Artistic Visionaries: Frank Gehry & Christo, and courses on opera, Euripides, William Faulkner’s The Sound and The Fury, George Elliott’s Middlemarch, and more. Other topics offered include current events, Latin American politics, supply chains post-COVID, a 21st century perspective on evolution, longevity, and science conversations. In addition, OLLI offers a lecture series featuring distinguished speakers on JapaneseAmericans and World War 2 on August 4, foreign policy on August 31, Humor, Laughter and Comedy on September 17, Holocaust Literature & Film on September 20, World Architecture on October 7, and other events. OLLI’s programs are designed especially by and for people fifty years and better, but are open to all.

A summer lecture series at The Mount, Edith Wharton’s turn-of-the-century home in Lenox, continues on Monday afternoons and Tuesday mornings through August. Join the captivating conversation, under an open-air tent, with talk by today’s leading biographers and historians. Topics range from Maggie Doherty on The Equivalents: A Story of Art, Female Friendship, and Liberation in the 1960s to Lisa Napoli on Susan, Linda, Nina, and Cokie: The Ext=raordinary Story of the Founding Mothers of NPR. How’s that for inspiration?

Tuesday Talks continue at Ventfort Hall Mansion and Gilded Age Museum in Lenox. Speakers— appearing live from the library plus Zoom, or via Zoom only—include topics ranging from “America’s Riviera: Gilded Age Houses of the Hamptons” to “The Titanic Epilogue: New York City After the Great Sinking” and “Gatsby in Connecticut.” (4 p.m., through September 7).

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outdoor fun

on, and off, the beaten path

The first hint of autumn happens when paper sacs of peaches—at roadside stands and farmers’ markets—make way for early apple varietals and sticky jugs of local cider. With 946 square miles to explore in the Berkshires alone, the opportunities for outdoor fun are endless. Literally. Whether trekking the Appalachian Trail by foot or discovering the cool shade of Ice Glen, the region is rife with points of interest both on and off the beaten path. Need some inspiration? Head for the hills and breathe deeply—it doesn’t get much better than this.

Hike Monument Mountain, celebrate Herman Melville’s birthday (his 182nd!), and commemorate the day (August 4, 1850) he met Nathaniel Hawthorne for a hike up the craggy peak for a picnic—all in one fell swoop. Reenact their rendezvous with a recitation—and sparkling wine—at the summit. Meet in the parking lot at Monument Mountain, off Route 7 in Great Barrington, at 9 a.m. on August 1.

Jump start your day with Bird Walks with Mass Audubon.

Zach Adams and Dale Abrams share skills to bird by sight and sound, and tips for exploring different habitats in search of swallows, woodpeckers, thrushes, and warblers. All walks last two hours and depart from the main parking lot near The Mount’s ticket booth. Advanced registration required; binoculars recommended (Tuesday mornings through September).

Berkshire Natural Resources Council (affectionately known as “the BNRC”), has been preserving and keeping land in the Berkshires for 50 years. “We keep land so you can enjoy it,” is their motto, and if you want to hike in the Berkshires a visit to their website is a must. The BNRC’s website is lively and interactive—frankly, it’s the best-in-the-biz— with lots of trail recommendations and printable maps(!), but there’s now an even groovier live trail app that works on both iOS and Android.

The maps on the app are interactive with real-time directions to trailheads, and as you hike along the trail you’ll be that moving dot! The BNRC also recommends checking out their social media accounts, which are full of timely tips on bird, animal and wildflower sightings.

What better way to introduce your kids to Berkshire Botanical Gardens in Stockbridge than with Family Fridays. Each week brings a different presenter—some with animal visitors in tow—designed to educate, (delight!), and inspire (11 a.m. August 6, 13, 20, 27). Or, for the flower aficionados among us, the same Stockbridge property plays host to The Grow Show, featuring the peak-summer harvest of flowers, fruits and vegetables by local backyard growers in this upbeat, judged event (August 21 and 22).

Bidwell House Museum in Monterey (formerly Township #1) celebrates 30 years with events that range from a Summer Fundraising Party (August 27) to a Reenactment Weekend designed

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more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

Opposite page: Flag Rock on Monument Mountain.

Right: Family selfie at Olivia’s Overlook, a BNRC trail. to show how the raids conducted by British Regular Forces along with Native and Loyalist allies unfolded in the Mohawk Valley (September 18 and 19). Walking more your style? A pair of Housatonic Heritage Walks include, Walking the Royal Hemlock Trail with Richard Greene (September 11) and A Walk Through History with Rob Hoogs (October 10) both of which explore rough, colonial roads and abundant local flora and fauna.

Now is the perfect time to check out PS21 in Chatham, N.Y., for Pathways 2021: Blazing Trails to a Sustainable Future—where free, outdoor, and socially distanced events are designed to promote community engagement with the arts, access to health and wellness programming, and environmental education.

Movement without Borders, offers invigorating, adventurous 70-minute sessions—open to all ages and levels—focused on mind, body, and spirit (and led by luminaries in contemporary performance and theater luminaries: Pilates with Peggy WallinHart (Thursdays through September 15, 5:30 p.m.); Morning Ballet with Adam H. Weinert, (Saturdays, through September 17, 11:00 a.m.); and Yoga with Sondra Loring, (Saturdays, through September 17, 12:00 noon).

PS21 teams up with the Columbia Land Conservancy to present StoryWalk: Outdoor Reading Adventure for Families. Read along as a picture book unfolds across PS21’s rambling trails and creates an innovative and inviting way for kids and families to combine their enjoyment of reading and the outdoors. Visit the self-guided StoryWalk every day from dawn until dusk; or, drop in on Wednesdays from 10:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. for the unofficial StoryWalk time each week.

Explore the PS21 landscape through the eyes of Claudia and Conrad Vispo on a Hawthorne Valley Farmscape Program: Self-guided Ecology Walk. The program’s directors have installed a well-marked tour of the native wildflowers and beneficial insects that abound along the trails in late summer. Download a map, or pick one up from the roadside kiosk, and follow the pink flags.

Daily, through October.

Walk among the tombstones at Church on the Hill in Lenox with Robert Oakes, local author of Ghosts of the Berkshires.

Learn about the historic site, hear ghastly tales of graveyards throughout the Berkshires, and discover which citizens are rumored to still stalk neighboring properties. Cemetery Stories will be presented on select Saturdays at 5 p.m. (August 21; September 11; October 2, 16, 31). Oakes will also host Scary Stories Around the Fire at Monterey’s Bidwell House Museum, a chance to hear local ghost stories around the bonfire—and from recent caretakers of the historic property (October 9 and10).

This season marks the 20th Annual Housatonic Heritage Walks, guided interpretive walks to the most interesting historic, cultural, industrial, natural and scenic sites in Berkshire County, Mass. and Litchfield County, Conn. Think tours of historic buildings and town

centers, hikes on the Appalachian Trail, walks through industrial heritage sites, a canoe paddling trip on the Housatonic River, bike rides on historic country roads, behind-the-scenes tours at performing arts venues, and strolls through formal gardens and estates. Saturdays and Sundays in September (through October 3).

The Trustees of Reservations invite you to explore Naumkeag—summer “cottage” of the Choate Family dating to 1886—with two options. Date Night at Naumkeag happens every Friday and Saturday night in August; bring a picnic or reserve a table, and enjoy sweeping vistas in a socially distanced fashion.

Naumkeag at Night, on select Thursday evening, offers a chance to unwind with a drink and inspiring scenery.

Make your way through Berkshire Botanical Garden this season with intentional movement. Yoga in the Garden (Thursdays at 4:15 p.m.) is the perfect way to end the day while learning the physical and mental benefits of intentional movement (through September 2).

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fall fairs & festivals

celebrating the harvest season

Whether it’s our rural agricultural tradition or the glories of New England autumns, or a little of both, as summer wanes we have an inviting selection of well-established yearly fairs that take us happily from summer into cooler weather. Here is a list of the most prominent:

CUMMINGTON FAIR Cummington, Mass. | August 26 – 29 The first fair out of the gate as harvest season arrives is The Cummington Fair, initiated in1883 as the Hillside Agricultural Society to promote area agriculture and the arts, and now in its 153rd year. Prizes are given for all kinds of livestock and agricultural products, e.g. the best honey, the best zucchini, or the tallest cornstalk. And also for home works (knitting, quilting), arts and crafts.

Vendor have something for everyone.

THREE COUNTY FAIR Northampton, Mass. | September 3 – 6 The Hampshire, Franklin & Hampden Agricultural Society was formed in 1818, and this year is presenting the 204th installment of the Three County Fair.

Each year, the Fair has evolved to offer a variety of experiences for Fairgoers

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of all ages, from farmers sharing their farming techniques, carnivals, games, thoroughbred horse racing (which ended in 2005), livestock demonstrations, crafts, demolition derbies, music, foods and unique entertainment performances as we prepare for harvest. Come for experiences found nowhere else but at the fair.

THE BIG E Springfield, Mass. | September 17 – October 3 What used to be called The Eastern States Exposition is now called The Bid E, and it is billed as “New England’s Great State fair.” It is the largest agricultural event on the eastern seaboard and the seventh-largest fair in the nation. See a more complete description of what you can find there on page 70 of this magazine.

LENOX APPLE SQUEEZE Lenox, Mass. | September 25 The annual Apple Squeeze returns for a one-day event featuring all things autumn—think apples, food trucks, craft vendors, and live music.

FALL FOLIAGE PARADE North Adams, Mass. | October 3 The 65th Annual Fall Foliage Parade in North Adams. This is a free event and is fun for the whole family. This year’s theme is “There’s No Place like Home in the Berkshires”! The parade kicks off at 1:00 p.m. on Curran Memorial Highway, runs down Main Street, and ends on Ashland Street.

more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

BERKSHIRE BOTANICAL GARDEN HARVEST FESTIVAL Stockbridge Mass. | October 9 and 10 Experience Berkshire Botanical Garden in a whole new light at the 87th annual Harvest Festival. This iconic tradition celebrates autumn in the Berkshires with live music and entertainment, a plant sale and farmer’s market, pony and hay rides, plenty of kids’ activities and vendors (as well as some surprises still in the works!) Plus food trucks and craft beer. Takes place on its designated weekend, rain or shine.

LEE FOUNDERS WEEKEND Lee, MA | September 17 and 18 The Lee Chamber of Commerce presents the 244th anniversary of Lee Founders Weekend. Take to the streets for “A Taste of Lee” followed by fireworks on Friday evening; stake your claim early for a prime viewing spot along Main Street for Saturday’s parade (featuring marching bands galore), plus sidewalk sales and food.

PITTSFIELD FIRST FRIDAYS ARTSWALK Pittsfield, Mass. | monthly Here’s a festival that is not just limited to the fall. On the first Friday of every month, from February through December, from 5 to 8 p.m., you have a chance to take a walk on the wildly creative side of downtown Pittsfield, and enjoy the work of local artists.

Retailers, restaurants, galleries, banks, offices and more open up areas within their business to host an artist for one entire month . . . until the next First Fridays Artswalk when another artist would be featured for one entire month . . . and so on.

Over the boarder festivals to explore: DUTCHESS COUNTY FAIR Rhinebeck, N.Y. | August 24 – 29 According to industry “insiders”, the Dutchess County Fair, now in its 175th year, is the best six-day fair in the country, and the 147-acre fairgrounds with impressive permanent buildings lend themselves to a fascinating array of activities from agricultural and horticultural displays, turn-of-the-century treasures, a working blacksmith shop, a gas-powered engine show, world-class stage performances and more.

COLUMBIA COUNTY FAIR Chatham, N.Y. | September 1 – 6 One of the oldest county fairs in the country, this venerable original remains true to its farming roots and wholesome community spirit. An integral part of the region, the fair celebrates the joys, skill, and hard work of farming, quilting, weaving, riding, cooking, and other arts and crafts. But that doesn’t prevent growth into other areas of entertainment. This year’s fair will again feature Demolition Derbies, Firefighters Parade, Monster Tractor Pull, live bands and other entertainment, a rodeo and lots of food vendor and exhibitors.

HUDSON VALLEY WINE AND FOOD FESTIVAL Rhinebeck, N.Y. | September 11 and 12 The festival is a celebration of the gourmet lifestyle in the Hudson Valley, featuring hundreds of wines from all over New York and the world; more than 100 gourmet specialty food, fine art, and lifestyle vendors; food sampling from some of the region’s best restaurants and live entertainment.

Visitors can learn about wine and food from many cooking demonstrations and Food & Wine seminars throughout the weekend and enjoy the rare opportunity to meet and speak to the wine makers from some of New York’s best wineries.

N.Y. STATE SHEEP & WOOL FESTIVAL Rhinebeck, NY | October 16 and 17 After an entirely virtual fair in 2020, this year’s event will be a combination of on-site and online activities. Visitors can attend in person at the Dutchess County Fairgrounds to visit and shop with vendors, attend Sheep & Goat Shows, shop the Fleece Sale, visit the Breed & Camelid Barns, view a fiber competition or two, and enjoy a variety of author talks. A variety of workshops, demos, and breed talks will be held online. Some offerings will require advance registration.

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out and about

EXPLORING PITTSFIELD’S

“Beautiful City of the Dead”

By Conrad Hanson

W

ith 27,000 permanent

residents within its 142 acres, the Pittsfield Cemetery is the

The Allen Memorial Arch and gate on Wahconah Street, circa 1906.

best example in the region of the 19th century cemetery movement, as well as the most densely populated.

Its origins date to 1849.

At the time, Pittsfield had a problem. The Old Burying Ground, established in 1764 near the present-day Park Square, had run out of space decades earlier. The New Burial Ground, established in 1832 (near First Street) was also filling up rapidly. In less than twenty years, the population in Pittsfield had grown from roughly 3,700 to nearly 6,000 citizens. With textile, paper, and other industries flourishing, it seemed unlikely that the town’s growth would stop.

Plus, both burying grounds were taking up valuable real estate in the business and civic center of the community. A committee of prominent citizens decided the time was right for Pittsfield to establish a “rural cemetery.”

THE RURAL CEMETERY MOVEMENT In America, the rural cemetery movement had begun several decades earlier. Inspired by the Père Lachaise Cemetery in Paris and influenced by the traditions of English landscape gardening, large parcels of land were purchased outside town limits to accommodate the dead. These rural cemeteries not only provided a handsome and spacious environment for eternal rest; they also offered places for city folk to connect with nature. Strolling in idealized rural settings, visitors could admire monuments that reflected both classical architectural and contemporary artistic styles.

Pittsfield’s committee purchased a 130-acre farm and, in 1850, tapped Dr. Horatio Stone of New York City to design it.

A physician, poet, artist and sculptor, Stone was also active as a landscape architect. The plan he developed took advantage of the former farm’s topography and existing groves. Starting at an entry gate on Wahconah Street, he created a long maple-lined drive. He dammed the Onota Creek to create a small lake. As the property rose gently westward, he fashioned fifteen organically shaped burial knolls atop small hillocks with interlaced walking paths and carriage roads. The landscape’s natural assets were accentuated by a fountain and new specimen plantings.

Over four thousand people attended the cemetery’s formal dedication on September 9, 1850. Oliver Wendell Holmes wrote a poem for the occasion. Sales of family plots began the following month.

Over the next 170 years the cemetery grew. Land was acquired, sections were added, the lake was eventually drained and, sadly, the fountain is long gone. What is remarkable, however, is how much of the original design remains intact, its present-day appearance still reflecting Dr. Stone’s vision and foresight.

VISITING THE CEMETERY The Pittsfield Cemetery maintains an excellent website at pittsfieldcemetery.com, and a visit to the website before your visit to the cemetery itself is highly recommended. Or, stop by the cemetery office in a wing of the brick superintendent’s

cottage—inside the Wahconah Avenue gate—for a guide and a map of the grounds.

The massive Allen Memorial Arch and Gate on Wahconah Street, designed by Boston architect J. Phillip Rinn in the Romanesque Revival style and constructed in 1885 of rusticated Great Barrington bluestone, replaced Dr. Stone’s simpler original gate, probably in response to changing funeral customs, which became more elaborate and formal during the Victorian era.

Or perhaps to conform to the tastes the Allen family, who paid for the gate as well as for the fortress-like Pittsfield Athenaeum, a Romanesque structure in downtown Pittsfield.

To tour the cemetery, I recommend parking near the West Fountain Lawn and taking a leisurely stroll along the winding paths and roadways, which is how its designer intended the landscape to be experienced. The maple allée envisioned by Dr. Stone still lines the cemetery road.

Jason Clapp occupies the left side of the double tomb.

As you stroll along, notice the simple double tomb constructed of white marble set in the embankment of Terrace Grove. While the tomb on the left appears undisturbed, fallen pieces of marble lie on the ground outside the tomb on the right, and a jagged opening in the rusted metal door suggests that someone desperately wanted to get in—or out!

The dark-trimmed grey stone structure on the western slope of Chapel Hill is one of the oldest on the property. Completed in the 1860s as a receiving vault and later converted into a crematory, its Gothic Revival style reflects the rural simplicity of the cemetery’s early structures, while the somber stonework and wizened arborvitae lend the building a spooky air.

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out and about: pittsfield cemetery

Byzantine-style mausoleum for Gordon McKay.

Inside the cemetery grounds, you will see several buildings that, like the gate, are not part of the original plan. One of the more prominent is the Calvin Martin Memorial Chapel, designed

by George C. Harding (the architect of Pittsfield’s Berkshire Museum), and dating from 1900.

MONUMENTAL DOMINIONS Looking across the cemetery’s original burial knolls, vertical monuments dominate the view like a garden of chess figures.

Many are obelisks, reflecting America’s “Obeliskmania” originally sparked by Napoleon’s Egyptian campaign of 1798 and persisting through the 19th century. The great variety of caps on the obelisks serve to differentiate neighboring monuments from each other.

One obelisk stands head and shoulders above the rest.

Rising 42 pink and gleaming granite feet above the crest of High Grove, it was built to honor Thomas A. Allen from the same family that built the monumental cemetery gate. The granite for the obelisk was found at a quarry in Missouri conveniently owned by the Allen family. Originally planned to rise 48 feet high, several feet broke off the top during construction.

For those who preferred their monuments a little less “pharaonic,” many examples of classical columns can be found throughout the cemetery. Also, a fair number of Celtic Crosses, which hint daringly toward paganism.

Floating like an exotic lantern on Linden Slope, near the western edge of the cemetery, is the exquisite Byzantine-style mausoleum designed for Gordon McKay by New York artist Mary Tillinghast.

While death may be the great equalizer, as in life some of the dead are more equal than others. Yet Dr. Stone planned two sections of the cemetery for those of lesser means, Pilgrims

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Rest and Free Ground, located at the northwest corner of the cemetery. While these sections appear relatively empty, this is an illusion; many of the interred rest under stones flush with the ground.

Nearby, along the Cemetery’s northern border there are three rows of tightly packed gravestones of various color and condition. These markers, dating as far back as the 1760s, were moved there around 1870 from the Old Burying Ground.

Two sections for Jewish burials run along Onota Street adjacent to the cemetery’s northern border, one purchased

by Congregation Anshe Amunim in 1871 and another by Congregation Knesset Israel several decades later.

Although classical monuments persisted into the late of 19th century, natural forms and references to nature were becoming more popular. See, for example, W. H. Root’s monument, which resembles a “cairn” but was disparagingly described as a pile of rocks. Newer gravestones featured palm fronds, oak and laurel leaf-covered crosses, roses and sometimes ivy trailing luxuriantly across the face of the stones. Some gravestones took the shape of logs or trunks, while portions of other monuments were left in a “rough” or “unfinished “state.

The trend towards naturalism reached its apogee in the late 1920s. In 1927, famous architect John Russell Pope designed the Frances family plot with an understated retaining wall set against a progression of trees and shrubs that bloomed in the spring.

And in 1929 the sons of Frederick Law Olmstead accented the Graves family plot with boulders surrounded by yew, barberry and rhododendron accented by vibrant crocuses.

THE LESS-NATURAL SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME By the time these last two plots were created, the rural cemetery concept had begun to fall out of favor.

The hodgepodge of family plots, with monuments of different shapes and styles, now seemed to lack cohesion, competing with the landscape instead of enhancing it. City parks and museums gave the public alternative destinations for enjoying nature and art.

More than anything else, the rural cemeteries proved expensive to maintain. Lawn cemeteries now took their place, featuring stones of similar size, placed at uniform intervals to allow easier mowing and maintenance. Larger trees and shrubs were eliminated for the same reason. Happily, the newer lawn sections of the Pittsfield Cemetery are not rigid, allowing the newer and older sections to blend relatively harmoniously.

Visit BerkshiresCalendarMagazine.com to read the expanded version of this article. more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

pick your own

BERKSHIRE GROWN FA R M S & O R C H A R D S

CSA FS PYO HIP SNAP

Community Supported Agriculture (Farm Shares) Farm Stand Pick Your Own Healthy Incentives Program SNAP/EBT: Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program

For updates visit: berkshiregrown.org/guidetolocalfoodandfarms/

CENTRAL BARTLETT’S ORCHARD 575 Swamp Rd., Richmond, Mass.

413-698-2559 17 varieties of apples, sweet corn, vegetables, tomatoes, pumpkins, bedding plants, cut flowers and ornamental squash. Apple cider doughnuts, pies and fresh apple cider. Seasonal farm store.

PYO FS THE BERRY PATCH 15589 NY Rt. 22, Stephentown, N.Y. 518-733-1234 theberrypatch.net Premium quality no spray & low spray berries, vegetables & cut flowers available by on-line ordering with contactless pick up at farm stand.

CSA FS PYO BLUE HEAVEN BLUEBERRY & RASPBERRY FARM 246 Skyline Trail, Middlefield, Mass.

413-623-8846 blueheavenblueberries.com on Facebook Tuesday – Sunday 9 a.m. – 4 p.m.

Seasonal pick-your-own blueberries & raspberries after July 1. Call ahead for availability. PYO

BUG HILL FARM 502 Bug Hill Rd., Ashfield, Mass.

413-628-3980 bughillfarm.org PYO organic black currants, black raspberries, blueberries, fall high tunnel raspberries, aronia, elderberries. Visit the beaver pond and explore woodland trails. Please call for camping availability.

FS PYO FREDERICK CHRISTMAS TREE FARM 360 Washington Rd. (Rt. 8) Hinsdale, Mass.

413-655-8551 Fir, pine and spruce Christmas Trees.

Choose and harvest, no pre-cut. PYO GRAY RAVEN FARM 65 C North Main St., Lanesborough, Mass.

413-496-3300 grayravenfarm.net Handcrafted goat milk soaps, goat milk & honey lotions, pure raw honey, seasonal vegetables & fruits.

CSA FS PYO SNAP

HONEY BEE ORCHARD www.honeybeeorchards.com 107 E. Main Street, West Brookfield, Mass.

508-867-9900 PYO apples. Fresh produce, a full Boars Head Deli (meats, cheeses and freshly made sandwiches) baked goods, honey and many other local products. FS PYO IOKA VALLEY FARM 3475 Rt. 43, Hancock, Mass.

413-738-5915 iokavalleyfarm.com The Calf-A is open for pancake meals: weekends, 8 a.m. – 3 p.m., mid-February – early April. Natural home-grown beef (no hormones or antibiotics). Maple syrup, sugar and cream. Christmas trees, PYO or fresh cuts. PYO pumpkins. Winter squash, blueberries. PYO FS

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JAESCHKE’S ORCHARD 736 Crane Ave., Pittsfield, Mass.

413-443-7180 Apples, plums, pears, corn and vegetables. Fresh cider. Greenhouse flowers, potted plants, annuals, and Christmas trees. PYO apples at the orchard, 23 Gould Rd., Adams.

FS HIP PYO SNAP LAKEVIEW ORCHARD 94 Old Cheshire Rd., Lanesborough, Mass.

413-448-6009 lakevieworchard.com Farm stand open Thursday – Monday 9 a.m. – 5 p.m., May 1 – October 31.

Apples, peaches, pears, plums, sweet & tart cherries, red & black raspberries, blueberries, red currants, sweet corn, winter squash, pumpkins, cider doughnuts, pastries, pies, apple cider, honey, homemade Polish foods.

Integrated Pest Mgmt. FS PYO HIP SNAP NATURAL ROOTS FARM 888 Shelburne Falls Rd., Conway, Mass.

413-369-4269 naturalroots.com Horse-powered CSA farm using organic practices to grow a variety of produce, berries, root crops and pastured eggs.

Summer and Winter CSA (HIP/SNAP shares available). Farm store features a variety of local meat, dairy, bread, yogurt, honey, maple syrup, fruit, and more. Open year-round, accepts cash, check, credit cards and SNAP/EBT (by appointment only).

FS PYO CSA HIP SNAP

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WHITNEY’S FARM MARKET & GARDEN CENTER 1775 South State Rd., Cheshire, Mass.

413-442-4749 whitneysfarm.com Open April – December.

Greenhouse, nursery, landscaping, deli, bakery, farm-grown produce, free petting zoo.

FS PYO

MAYNARD FARMS 326 River Rd., Ulster Park, N.Y. 845-331-6908 Offering berries, cherries, apricots, plums, peaches, nectarines, pears, grapes, an extensive apple variety selection and a full line of vegetables. Selling at Great Barrington Farmers Market and Berkshire Grown Winter Market. Sept – Oct PYO. Call ahead for details. PYO

SOUTH

MOON IN THE POND FARM 816 Barnum St., Sheffield, Mass.

413 229-3092 mooninthepond.org Organic, heirloom vegetables, herbs, fruits. Flowers. Heritage, grass-fed beef, veal & lamb, pastured pork, chicken, turkey. Sausages, cured and specialty meats. Bacon, eggs, honey, maple syrup, specialty syrups. Heirloom dried beans, herbs, mushrooms. Hot sauce, chili oil paste. Yogurt, cheese. On-line ordering.

Contactless, drive-thru pick-up Wed & Fri. Local delivery available. Open for visits/hike/walk year-round, 7 days/ week, 8 a.m. – 6 p.m. Farm tours by apt., workshops, classes. Covid safety precautions. CSA FS PYO HIP SNAP

BLUEBERRY HILL FARM 358 East St., Mount Washington, Mass.

413-528-1479 Blueberry-Hill-Farm-Berkshires on Facebook PYO organic blueberries. Hours subject to change; please check Facebook. FS PYO GAETANO’S ORGANIC FARM 453 Main St., Becket, Mass.

413-329-3862 Baystate Certified Organic seasonal fruits and vegetables. Pick-your-own raspberries; eggs; seasonal organic vegetables including lettuce, spinach, chard, and kale. Farm stand opens in April. Call for details. FS PYO HOWDEN FARM 303 Rannapo Rd., Sheffield, Mass.

413-329-8726 howdenfarm.com Sweet corn, pumpkins, and fall raspberries. Pumpkin seeds available for purchase. Delivery by arrangement. PYO

MOUNTAIN PASTURE FARM 818 Surriner Rd., Becket, Mass.

413-623-6455 Certified organically grown wild blueberries, cultivated blueberries.

Organic apples possible, call ahead. PYO

more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

THOMPSON-FINCH FARM 750 Wiltsie Bridge Rd., Ancram, N.Y. 518-329-7578 thompsonfinch.com Organic strawberries, blueberries, apples and bulk seasonal vegetables. NOFA NY Certified Organic. Call ahead for hours and availability. PYO

RIISKA BROOK ORCHARD 101 New Hartford Road Sandisfield Mass.

413 258-4761 www.riiskabrookorchard.com Pick-Your-Own Blueberries starting July, Saturdays & Sundays 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.

Later in the season PYO Apples. PYO

Guide to

SEEKONK TREE FARM & NURSERY 49 Seekonk Road, Great Barrington, Mass.

413-528-6002 seekonktreefarm.com Eggs, maple syrup, berries, garden stakes, wood products and tools. Cut-your-own Christmas trees. Wreaths, kissing balls, roping, greens and holiday shop. Fall-cut flowers, pumpkins & gourds. FS PYO

WINDY HILL FARM 686 Stockbridge Rd. Great Barrington, Mass.

413-298-3217 windyhillfarminc.com PYO and retail blueberries late June – mid-Aug. PYO and retail apples mid-Aug – Nov. Fresh-pressed unpasteurized sweet cider Sept – Dec. Extensive selection of Berkshire grown fruit trees and small fruits. WHF grown Christmas trees available after Thanksgiving. Fresh cut winterberry stems starting in late Oct. Fully operating nursery and garden shop.

Open daily 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Apr – Dec. FS PYO

2021

Local Food & Farms

FARMERS MARKETS • FARM STANDS • FARMS • RESTAURANTS

Discover market information at BerkshireFarmersMarkets.org.

Watch for the 2021 Guide in local shops! or find it online at berkshiregrown.org

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day trip

The Big E: west springfield, massachusetts

By Julia Dixon

That first peek of a towering steel wheel hovering over tent tops. That hint of a brassy marching band heard over the dull roar of a crowd. That salty-sweet aroma of burnt sugar-coated corn wafting through the air. These are some of the

unmistakable sights, sounds, and smells of country fairs.

I

t’s hard to get through a Berkshire summer or fall without going to a country fair. The Gillette Carnival, which has taken place at the Berkshire Mall in Lanesborough for nearly a decade, has rides. The Adams Agricultural, or “Aggie,” Fair, a staple event of north county for 45 years, has animals. The Lenox Apple Squeeze has marked 40 autumnal equinoxes with vendors. And the Fall Foliage Festival, held in North Adams for 64 years, has a parade.

But The Big E, the largest and oldest country fair in our area, has all four.

Technically, The Big E is a multi-state fair. The facility, called Eastern States Exposition, was established in 1916 for the purposes of showcasing and promoting agricultural practices to New Englanders, particularly youth, and this mission remains integral to the organization today. Thousands of students enrolled in 4-H and Future Farmers of America (FFA), two national youth development networks, participate in agricultural competitions and demonstrations every year. Event organizers added entertainment and cultural attractions over time, and the fair is now the fifth largest in North America, with over 1.6 million people attending in 2019.

Located in West Springfield, a 60- to 90-minute drive from just about any Berkshire town, The Big E is the perfect day trip for anyone of any age, but especially those who are young at heart. Open September 17 through October 3, a visit to the fair guarantees carnival rides and games, live entertainment, agricultural events, fantastic shopping, and food—so much food.

The myriad of culinary options alone is worth the trip.

Classic carnival fare vendors selling cotton candy, corn dogs, funnel cake, lemonade, roasted nuts, soft pretzels, turkey legs, loaded fries, and sausage and pepper sandwiches are scattered throughout the grounds. Niche favorites such as Dr. Vegetable’s fried veggies, mac and cheese grilled cheeses from the Granville Country Store, and Moolicious Farm’s ice cream-stuffed donut, or MOO-NUT™, satisfy unique cravings. You will find the biggest of the big—Frigo’s famous one-pound meatball, Angela’s Pizza’s giant mozzarella stick, Wurst Haus’ 18-inch bratwurst—and the smallest of the small (fried jelly beans, anyone?).

And let’s not forget about the fair’s in-house specialties: The Big E cream puff and éclair. These fluffy, buttery delicacies can be found in the New England Center building and, lucky for you, the more you buy the more you save.

Avenue of the States, most easily accessible from gates 1 or 2, features several sit-down eateries including the Sam Adams Beer Garden and New England Craft Beer Pub as well as Storrowton Tavern, the fair’s only indoor restaurant. Then there are the state buildings themselves. Built and owned by the six New England states, these statehouse replicas contain some of the fair’s most popular foods, from baked potatoes and blueberry pie (Maine) to Del’s lemonade (Rhode Island) and Cloud Nine Delights’ kettle corn (New Hampshire).

The state buildings also house an array of featured vendors, many of whom are small business owners and artists selling products that reflect the characteristics of each locale.

Woodzies™, hand-crafted wooden beverage koozies made by Jeff and Fiona Chevalier of Better Wheel Workshops, can be found in the Vermont building. Sherry Fullerton sells moosethemed chocolates, homemade fudge, and peanut brittle at her booth, Mt. Moosilauke Candies, in the New Hampshire building.

And if you’re into the spooky and strange, stop by Jim Dyer’s Rhode Island booth, Fenham Publishing Books & Art. Hailing from Narragansett, he sells supernatural short story collections written by his grandfather, C. M. Eddy, Jr., as well as items from Providence’s Lovecraft Arts & Sciences store.

The crown jewel of Big E shopping is the Better Living Center, a 123,000-square-foot complex where vendors from across the country sell and, more importantly, demonstrate a range of products—from hot tubs and recliners to hearing aids and hand creams. For more shopping, head over to the Young Building to find internationally produced items or the Craft Common at Storrowton Village where a plethora of handmade goods are sold.

History buffs will love Storrowton Village, a living museum complete with nine original 18th and 19th century buildings transplanted to the Eastern States Exposition and staffed

Clockwise from top: midway fun, livestock competition, crafts, fresh cut potatoes, agriculture exhibit, Storrowton demonstration.

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From left: live performances daily, living Soltar fortune teller, adventures on the giant slide. by costumed guides. Sack races and hoop rolling games are held on the village green, and early American craft and trade demonstrations take place in the buildings and grounds.

Volunteer educators recreate everyday life through open hearth cooking, weaving, glassblowing, and tinsmithing. You might even find a blacksmith hammering and heating steel over the coal fire in the Clark Blacksmith Shop. If not, you can still take home a cast iron hook, fork, pair of hinges, or fireplace set from the gift store.

Next door to Storrowton Village is the New England Center, the hub of contemporary crafting at The Big E. Professional and amateur exhibitors compete in various fine arts and crafts categories including pottery, quilting, knitting, basketry, watercolor painting, and photography. Food entries such as candy, honey, granola, bread, jam, sauce, and pickles are sure to make your mouth water or inspire you to try canning in your own kitchen. Competitions that are particularly fun for spectators are the King Arthur pie baking contest; Northeast Gold wine, cider, and perry (fermented pears) competitions; New England regional cheese competition; and the adult giant pumpkin competition, where the winning gourd is likely to weigh in at well over 1,000 pounds.

Special agricultural and livestock events vary depending on which day you go. The Eastern States Exposition Heritage Horse Show, a signature fair event, produces various equestrian competitions in the Coliseum Thursdays through Saturdays beginning September 15, with an opening night Hunter Classic on September 11.

Livestock shows including cattle, sheep, swine, alpaca, llama, and goat competitions are held in the Mallary Complex throughout the fair’s run, but sheep shearing and milking demonstrations take place daily. While there, don’t miss the infamous butter sculpture, a 600-pound cream creation carved by artists Jim Victor and Marie Pelton every year for nearly 25 years.

Further down New England Avenue is the Stroh Building, which features Farm-A-Rama, the fair’s agricultural educational center.

Children and adults will love the chick hatchery and piglet pen, as well as the Hallamore Clydesdale horses and beehive display provided by the Hampden County Beekeepers Association.

And then, of course, is the midway—the main attraction for kids, teens, and adrenaline junkies. With over 50 rides to choose from, you could easily spend all day here. For a full-on endorphin rush, try the aptly named Freak Out, a terrifyingly souped-up swing with a circular base of 16 seats that spins as it arcs back-

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and-forth 70 feet up. Too tame? Try the Mega Drop, a 135-foottall drop tower, or the Speed, a giant steel arm that launches four people on each end through the air like a breakneck Ferris wheel, but those people are in baskets that also flip upside down. Need two more minutes of upside-down terror? The Skymaster, Power Surge, Zipper, Super Loop, and Twin Flip will all do it for you. Just remember to eat after you go.

The midway has plenty of rides for the slightly squeamish including classics like roller coasters, bumper cars, Starship, Tilt-a-Whirl, and the largest traveling Ferris wheel in North America—a 150-foot-high attraction that provides incredible views of the Springfield skyline. Kiddieland, an amusement park for youngsters under 48 inches tall, has its own coasters, carousels, wheels, swings, and slides. And carnival games are a fun way to play with both feet on the ground.

Even if rides aren’t your thing, the midway is a magical place at night; the sparking lights, bright colors, distant music, and sweet smells are dazzling. Weather permitting, the midway is open until 10 p.m. Sunday through Friday and 11 p.m. on Saturday.

If you aren’t too tired, The Big E offers plenty of evening entertainment including a parade through the fairgrounds every afternoon at 5pm, a nightly Mardi Gras parade with floats and bands, and a concert series, headlined this year by Machine Gun Kelly on September 17 and Brad Paisley on September 24. For a complete schedule, visit www.thebige.com/events.

Regular admission tickets are $15 per adult 13 and over and $10 per child aged 6 to 12. If you suspect you may go multiple times this year, a value pass is a better option. $40 per adult and $20 per child grant you access to the fair all 17 days. Those who plan ahead and buy their tickets before September 16 are rewarded with a discount on regular admission, but save those extra dollars—you’re going to need them. Parking, whether in the Eastern States Exposition’s main lot, gate 9, or in private lots on Memorial Avenue, is extra (and cash only). Ride tickets are sold separately but a $25 Midway Magic Pass, also purchased before September 16, buys you an all-access weekday wristband or 26 weekend tickets.

The Big E is just that—BIG. Over two dozen buildings and 175 acres of grass and pavement house thousands of vendors and visitors daily. Traffic can be frustrating, lines can get long, crowds can gather, and your feet may hurt when you get home.

But it’s worth it. How else can you experience all the pleasures of New England in one day, from sunup to sundown? more news and features at theBerkshireEdge.com

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