Worcester Magazine June 11 - 17, 2021

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | CULTURE § ARTS § DINING § VOICES

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WCLOC, WORCESTER BLACK HISTORY PROJECT AND BRICKBOX THEATRE JOIN FORCES FOR PLAY AND DISCUSSION. PAGE 13

‘The Niceties’

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IN THIS ISSUE Worcester Magazine 100 Front St., Fifth Floor Worcester, MA 01608 worcestermag.com Editorial (508) 767.9535 WMeditor@gatehousemedia.com Sales (508) 767.9530 WMSales@gatehousemedia.com VP, Sales & Strategy Andrew Chernoff Executive Editor David Nordman Editor Nancy Campbell Content Editor Victor D. Infante Reporters Richard Duckett, Veer Mudambi Contributing Writers Stephanie Campbell, Sarah Connell Sanders, Gari De Ramos, Robert Duguay, Liz Fay, Jason Greenough, Janice Harvey, Barbara Houle, Jim Keogh, Jim Perry, Craig S. Semon, Matthew Tota Multi Media Sales Executives Deirdre Baldwin, Debbie Bilodeau, Kate Carr, Diane Galipeau, Sammi Iacovone, Kathy Puffer, Jody Ryan, Regina Stillings Sales Support Jackie Buck, Yanet Ramirez

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Elizabeth A. Hylton, left, and Martha Hultgren rehearse a scene from the play “The Niceties,” which premiered at The Huntington Theatre Company in Boston in 2018.

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On the cover

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Out(side) looking in – Worcester sculptor has his fi rst New England exhibition Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Native Worcesterite Steve Budou has had his work shown in exhibits across the country over the last few years — from Ohio to New Mexico. However, this July will be the fi rst time his sculpture will be featured in an exhibit in New England.

The Jamestown Art Center in Rhode Island is running "Spacing Out(side)," an outdoor exhibition from July to October.

Budou’s piece, named for his studio space in Troy, New York, will be one of the three sculptures on display in public spaces around Jamestown.

Troy is a part of a series of steel pieces by Budou called "Vasanzio," inspired by his time in Rome. The ancient city has no shortage of artistic inspiration, but for Budou, what caught his attention were the trees. Visiting a park, Budou said, “I started thinking of the structure of the trees and how they’re able to stand up.” The seed of an idea germinated before growing into the fi rst in the "Vasanzio" series.

“In Troy,” said Budou, “I wanted to explore what it means to feel a sense of gravity in the body. To stand erect, to resist gravity, requires a continual eff ort. How does that tension, the invisible interplay of structure and instability, translate in a sculpture?” He said he hopes that the piece will help the viewer explore the sense of their own bodies in space, and examine the concept of how matter stands upright, carries weight and

Vasanzio Troy – named for Budou’s studio in Troy, New York – will be on display as part of Jamestown Art Center’s exhibit, Spacing Out(side). STEVE BUDOU

moves through the world.

Budou did not initially set out to become an artist. “Art was something I did for fun,” he said, having always enjoyed drawing. He said he didn’t have a formal art background, aside from a college minor in visual design he picked up in his senior year.

When asked about how he started working with steel, Budou credits Worcester’s Technocopia. He said he always likes to give “a shoutout” to the nonprofi t makerspace for helping him learn the basics of welding. This allowed him to be hired at a metal shop in New York and refi ne the skills that

let him create steel pieces like Troy. It was after he was accepted into a drawing residency in Spain that he began experimenting with sculpture.

Steel lends itself best to this fl uid style of sculpting, where new pieces can be more easily welded on, whereas concrete is determined by the mold he

makes beforehand. “I don’t know what it’s going to look like until I pop it out of the mold,” said Budou. Concrete, he said, is an ideal material for “exploring the density of space.”

“I was struck with building something off the ground,” said See SCULPTOR, Page 5

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A small scale steel sculpture, “Cadizian Possession V.” STEVE BUDOU PHOTOS

Sculptor Continued from Page 4

Budou, “How gravity, balance and construction all come together.” He still draws though — saying he fi nds a direct connection with sculpture, “which is like drawing in [a three dimensional] space.”

Sculpture as a medium is traditionally associated with materials like clay or marble.

Budou’s primary materials are wood, steel and, most recently, concrete. His process diff ers depending on the material, but is not without certain commonalities. “I make models fi rst,” Budou said, describing his process for larger pieces like Troy. “If it works on a larger scale, I will make the individual pieces and begin arranging them.”

Models, however, do not equate to a blueprint, he said.

Confi guring the pieces of a sculpture at full size allows for a new perspective that can change the entire direction of the work. A fi ve-inch gap on the model may not work as a fi vefoot gap on the real thing. Naturally, the approach changes de-

pending on the size of the piece. Components of small steel sculptures or models can be bent by hand in a way that larger ones can’t, which impose its own design limit. This is starkly visible when looking at Budou’s smaller sculptures, which are composed of curves and soft edges, as opposed to large pieces like the "Vasanzio" series, made up of straight lines and sharp angles.

There is another mundane consideration — size for transport. Budou’s fi rst large scale piece was made just small enough to fi t inside the rented truck. “It was one of those weird, really practical things that goes into making the sculpture,” he said, an example of “how real world parameters aff ect the end product.”

Budou is only just getting started, his drive growing with each project. “Each one has just really led the next,” he said, “and I get more excited.” And more sculptures are likely on the way, with the only limit being his imagination — and the size of his truck.

Troy will be on display as part of Jamestown Art Center’s Spacing Out(side) outdoor exhibition from July to October.

Budou working on installing another of the Vasanzio series in Wayne, Nebraska. STEVE

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Arukah plays its debut show at Electric Haze in Worcester Robert Duguay Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

New musical projects are always exciting. Whether it’s done by a sole musician or a full band, it’s intriguing to see what they come up with in an artistic way. Being the latter, Arukah is set to arrive on the local scene.

The band’s name is taken from a Hebrew term meaning “health” in a broader sense that pertains to soundness of mind and wholeness of being. They also describe their music on their Facebook page as “extracting funky fractals from a swampy cosmic apple,” whatever that means. People will be able to experience this when Arukah plays its fi rst ever show at 7 p.m. June 11 at Electric Haze, 26 Millbury St., Worcester.

The band consists of music scene veterans Dennis Angelo on guitar, Mark Munzer on the keys, Brian O’Connell on bass and Brian Epstein on drums, with Angelo, Munzer and O’Connell sharing vocal duties.

They each met through various instances that revolve around playing in other bands and meeting up at a particular festival..

“We all kind of came from diff erent walks,” Epstein says.

“I’ve known Mark for a long time, we’ve been playing in a Grateful Dead tribute band called Playing Dead since 2006 when he joined up. It’s been 15 years that we’ve known each other, I didn’t meet Dennis until later. We actually met at Knuckleball, which was that festival out in New York that happened when Phish’s Curveball got canceled. That pop-up festival happened at the last minute, I went out there with my other band, Electro Politics,

Arukah PROMOTIONAL IMAGE

and Dennis was out there with The New Motif.

“We met out there, talked a little bit and then we kept in touch,” he said. “I played a couple shows with The New Motif as a sit-in because they were in between drummers for a little while so that’s pretty much how my connection with Dennis happened. After he left The New Motif, he reached out to

me to put something new together. I met Brian through Dennis, I may have met him once before but it was just briefl y in passing. I’d never really played with him before and we got together at the start of 2020 before the pandemic started.”

Munzer actually didn’t join the band right from the start.

There was a diff erent keyboar-

dist involved but when the pandemic hit he weaved himself out, which opened the door for Epstein to reach out to his other bandmate.

“We had two rehearsals with a diff erent keyboard player,” Epstein says. “It was me, Dennis, Brian and another guy but when the pandemic happened we all sort of went our separate ways so we weren’t really doing

anything. The keyboard player kind of never materialized, the three of us kept in touch with each other but we lost touch with the other guy so I brought Mark in. Since then, we’ve just been collaborating with everybody’s original music and getting a setlist together.”

“It kind of seems a bit like lightning in a bottle, actually,” Epstein adds. “Great players, really good material and a lot of buzz.”

Obviously Playing Dead is a tribute band with no original music, which makes it vastly diff erent from Arukah for Epstein from the get go. Electro Politics has more similarities when it comes to improvisation but the new band has more structure within its material.

“I love The Dead and I love that style of music but I’ve always had an itch to play originals,” Epstein said. "Electro Politics has done that for me in some aspects but our music is very improvisational, almost 100%. We have songs, we’ve written a lot of material and we play a lot of it but the focus in that band is heavily reliant on creating things on the spot.

Arukah has aspects of all of that, it’s got the improvisational aspect that we bring in from all of our infl uences. There’s also a lot of comprehensive songwriting and that’s where the diff erence really lies.

“The songs are well thought out,” Epstein adds. “It’s a focus on both good songwriting and improv.”

For folks who venture out to Electric Haze on Friday, they can expect some catchy tunes and a sonic arsenal being unleashed. They can also expect to be wanting more after the show concludes.

See ARUKAH, Page 9

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 7

David Saint Fleur talks about creating ‘Heartbreak Anthem’ with Galantis, David Guetta and Little Mix Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

David Saint Fleur gets excited talking about “Heartbreak Anthem,” the new song by the Swedish DJ duo Galantis, French DJ David Guetta and British girl group Little Mix, for which he was a writer and producer. “It’s on fi re,” says Saint Fleur, a Worcester native and Burncoat High School graduate who currently works as a music producer and an A&R executive for Warner Music Group. “It’s breaking every record … It’s

never done less than a million (streams) a day since it came out.”

His enthusiasm is understandable, seeing as the song is currently exploding on the Billboard dance and electronic music charts and on streaming services, but it would also be understandable if he were a little jaded. After all, he’s had hits and worked with big names before, including Bebe Rexha, Dolly Parton and 24kGoldn.

But no, his excitement and enthusiasm for the song and the people he worked with to put it together is evident the moment

he starts speaking.

“I come from Worcester,” he says, “I remember where I was when I fi rst heard the name David Guetta. I was standing in the Greendale Mall. A friend said he was going to David Guetta, and I was like, ‘who is that?’ … I was 21. Now I work with him every day.”

But “Heartbreak Anthem’s” road to success took more than enthusiasm. To pull so many headlining names together to create a song took more than a year of work and coordination, all born from the two basic needs: The desire to put Galan-

tis and Guetta together on a record, and the most basic driving force in the record industry: The need for a hit.

“We need a big song,” says Saint Fleur, “so I went to London and did a massive writing camp at Tilleyard Music, the biggest studio in the world.”

Saint Fleur said he worked to organize the session with Tilleyard’s head of publishing, Jason Sharpe, with whom he had organized an earlier camp for Guetta. How a camp like this works is 40 or so songwriters and music professionals were brought together to create

songs from 50 original tracks from Galantis. From that, the group hashed out around 40 songs, of which Saint Fleur felt “Heartbreak Anthem,” one of the last songs they did, was the strongest.

Which is funny, because the only rule that Galantis DJ Christian Karlsson had put forward was, “no heartbreak songs,” and the songwriters were clearly having a little fun writing something that was meant to be an anti-heartbreak song.

See ANTHEM, Page 9

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Anthem Continued from Page 7

“I thought it was funny,” says Saint Fleur. “But it’s also (expletive) genius.”

A pop song like “Heartbreak Anthem” always comes with a large number of “writers” on the credits, but they all have a role in the song’s creation. The original tracks were created by Karlsson and his partner, Henrik Jonback. In the original original room, songwriters Christopher “Vodka” Tempest (who worked with Saint Fleur and Worcester musician Sam James earlier on the Bebe Rexha song “Beautiful Life”) Yk Koi & Lorenzo Cosi (who work together as SONDR), and Sorana Pacurar (who co-wrote the Chainsmokers’ song, “Takeaway.”)

Saint Fleur brought the song back to Los Angeles, and shared it with Galantis, who loved it, but the song wasn’t quite ready. He had Thom Bridges create a house music version of the song, and Johnny Goldstein made a disco version. Those versions were given to Guetta, who preferred the disco version, which became the base of the fi nal recording, although the vocal chops from the house version were also retained.

“David Guetta works like a starving artist, man” says Saint Fleur of Guetta’s work ethic. He says the DJ took the song and worked it some more, including adding the drop which is one of the song’s best hooks. Saint Fleur says Guetta actually sent him back four different versions of the song, but

Arukah Continued from Page 6

“They can expect a couple of things, they can expect to walk away with some really memorable hooks,” Epstein says of

getting someone to do the main vocals was tougher.

“Went door to door,” says Saint Fleur. “Bebe Rexha?

Pass. Miley Cyrus? Pass. I talked to every pop artist in the world.” Little Mix was singing a diff erent tune, though, and that proved to be a double stroke of luck, as the band was coming off a wave of publicity from dropping from four to three members and for a much heralded win at the Brit Awards.

Vocal producer Raphaella had each of the three singers – Perrie Edwards, Leigh-Anne Pinnock and Jade Thirlwall – sing the entire song, and then they chose the best verses from each take for the fi nal record.

“We took the best person for each section,” says Saint Fleur.

“Nobody beat Perrie in the chorus, but everybody murdered their part. No one was better than Jade in the verses.

It just made sense. Everything just came together. I was like DJ Kahled on this whole thing.

I got in the studio with the producers every day, four hours a day.”

It’s a dizzying process, making what seems like a simple pop song, and this is only the barest outline of the process.

Still, Saint Fleur positively brims with joy when he recounts each step of the process. He’s come a long way since his days producing recordings for local rappers in Worcester, and he seems grateful for where the journey’s brought him.

“I’m like a big kid,” he says.

“Now I work with the biggest artists in the world. I’ll never get jaded.”

the audience. “They can also expect to be moved by some really high energy, interesting and well thought out jamming.

It’s going to be a true jam band experience but with some songs that they’ll want to listen to again and again.”

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CITY VOICES LETTER TO THE EDITOR

WORCESTERIA

DON LANDGREN WORCESTER BUS FARES DEBATE

Request to the Town of Leicester administration to use American Rescue Plan money wisely Margaret Darling My Mom was born in Leicester 1921. It’s 100 years later and the town still has 7 water/sewer districts.

It is time to take Leicester out of the dark ages and give us one viable water/sewer district. The time is now and the funds are available, please do not waste this opportunity.

The districts are a quasi-private/public entity. The enabling act through the House of Representatives has the final say on so many requested changes. The money from the American Rescue Plan will allow the town to move forward with a single water/sewer system. We won’t get this chance again, please act now.

Margaret Darling lives in the Cherry Valley section of Leicester.

FIRST PERSON There is a GoFundME page set up to help 13-year-old Jaden Jaillet in her battle against acute myeloid leukemia. SUBMITTED

Fundraising effort aims to help Leicester girl, 13, battle leukemia Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

It started with what they thought was a stomach ache.

Just weeks before, Jaden Jaillet, 13, of Leicester had been in Georgia playing in a tournament with CMASS volleyball.

There was no reason to believe that the athletic eighth-grader and straight-A student was sick at all.

But according to her aunt, Stacey Novia, what started as a stomach ache led to a trip to urgent care, and by the time that Jaden and her mother, Angela, had returned home,

they already had a message telling them to go to the emergency room. Jaden’s white blood platelets were extremely high. Within 24 hours, they discovered that Jaden had acute myeloid leukemia.

“It was like getting hit with a brick wall,” said Novia. Jaden has been undergoing treatment at UMass Medical Center for the past eight weeks, not being allowed to leave her fl oor. “She can’t leave the room,” says Novia, “can’t go outside. Any type of infection, and she’d be seriously ill.” The current plan is to transfer JaSee FUNDRAISER, Page 12

The Library of Disposable Art – The pet’s in the mail David Macpherson Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

When I was a kid, I think one of the best parts about the comics I picked up at the drugstore were the ads. I was fascinated about the full-page ads for the Sea-Monkeys. I never bought them, because I didn’t want my mail order animals to have human like faces. If I was to judge from what I would get from the picture, I was going to get small humanlike creatures, and I just didn’t think I could handle that.

There were also all the ads to teach me how to be big and muscled. I was no longer going to have sand kicked in my face, even if I was cool about it. Or I could not just be buff , but have

the martial arts skills to kill a man with a viper technique.

This sounded like a good investment of my fi ve dollars.

Recently, I have dived back into these old mags and I linger on these weird little ads. There was one that made me take pause. It was a small one, only a few inches in size, but gigantic in imagination.

It read: “Baby Raccoons!

One of America’s Favorite Pets!

Has always been and still is.

Easy to care for. $29.95 with cage. Send cashier’s check or money order along with your phone number and nearest airport. Hialeah Pets. Department 35. Hialeah, Florida.”

America’s favorite pet?

Really? In what America? And See MONKEYS, Page 12

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 11

HARVEY

Inside an anaphylactic nightmare Janice Harvey Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

I was speechless.

When I realized my airway was closing, there was no one in the house to tell. I’d just taken a big swig of water I’d doctored with a yummy fl avor enhancer when I felt my throat closing. I grabbed the phone and dialed 911, but I was barely able to squeak out the words “I can’t breathe.” It’s true — you can utter those words as your windpipe narrows, but not much else.

The dispatcher recognized this and told me not to attempt to speak. Instead she had me press keys for “YES” and “NO.” Help was on the way, but it occurred to me that the security in my building would hinder their arrival if I should pass out, unable to buzz them in. I went outside, fi guring that I’d at least be visible on the sidewalk if I should lose consciousness.

Within minutes I was strapped into a gurney in the back of an ambulance by Oxford EMTs. I learned that fi rst responders don’t mess around when it comes to people who can’t breathe — the lights and siren told me so. Oxygen, a nebulizer and a Benadryl IV were all administered as the ambulance raced over the potholed surface of I-290.

Administering an IV while riding in a speeding vehicle is an exercise in exactness. A friend who was an EMT and has performed this task likened it to “threading a needle in a washing machine.” Just before we arrived at St. Vincent Hospital’s ER, I received my virgin stab with an EpiPen. Every part of me shook uncontrollably and my teeth chattered so violently, one of them chipped.

I would remain in the ER for the next four hours while at-

As a kid, my mother banned “Charm” candies from the house after I developed hives from the cherry-flavored pops. That particular red dye was eventually banned, but variations of it still show up in everything from M&Ms to cough drops. Red dye #40 is actually prohibited in the EU, but here in the good ol’ USA, we still put it in all kinds of food — and much of it is consumed by kids. tending nurses frowned over my oxygen levels. “You’re not going home until these levels improve,” I was told. I wracked my frazzled brain for the culprit — what had I ingested? That’s when I remembered the yummy fl avor enhancer, peachy delicious and in my case, nearly deadly, all because of Red dye #40.

As a kid, my mother banned “Charm” candies from the house after I developed hives from the cherry-fl avored pops.

That particular red dye was eventually banned, but variations of it still show up in everything from M&Ms to cough drops. Red dye #40 is actually prohibited in the EU, but here in the good ol’ USA, we still put it in all kinds of food — and much of it is consumed by kids. In the days following my anaphylactic nightmare, I did a deep-dive into the additive. The EPA might consider Red dye #40 of “low concern,” but I beg to differ. Fun fact: the dye that cut off my wind is made from petroleum. Studies have linked the dye to behavior symptoms in children. It may cause chemical changes in the brain, including depletion of minerals, such as zinc. Restricting synthetic food dyes like red #40 can lead to signifi cant improvement in symptoms for children diagSee HARVEY, Page 12

nosed with Attention Defi cit Hyperactivity Disorder. Go fi gure.

I tracked backward and realized I had actually overdosed on the stuff . The weather was hot and I had walked three days

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Monkeys

Harvey

Continued from Page 10

Continued from Page 11

the idea that these are baby raccoons and not full grown ones. As if they will never grow up. They are Peter Pan raccoons. The lost boys of scavenger animals. And don’t you think your mother will be so excited for you to have a pet at last?

In my house growing up, we were not allowed pets. We could have hamsters and gerbils, but they hardly count as pets. They are more ornaments with wood chips.

The part about that ad and the company that provided it that gets me the most is that there are at least 34 other departments at this most reputable of mail order pet purveyors.

From another ad I saw online, there is a department 16 where the monkeys are purchased. I wonder what other impractical pets are behind the other numbers. What a joy. What a natural disaster.

I was able to fi nd an online a story by a guy who claims he saved his money and ordered a monkey from one of these ads.

He was able to get someone to pick it up at the airport. And when he got the monkey out of

in a row, each time ingesting bottles of water I had “enhanced.” The last bottle — the one I was gulping when my throat closed — was loaded with the stuff . Peach fl avor — the color was a pretty shade of orange. If I’d thought about it I would’ve remembered the color wheel I learned about in fi rst grade — red and yellow make orange, Dummy.

Thankfully, the only lingering eff ect of my ignorance was two arms so terribly bruised I tried to hide them under long sleeves after getting double takes at my grandkid’s baseball game.

“You look like Farrah Fawcett in ‘The Burning Bed,’” was one of the snarkier observations made by a friend, who remains a friend despite his utter lack of compassion.

I’m sure there are people who can gobble handfuls of red M&Ms and wash them down with Cherry Kool-Aid, but I’m steering clear of the color red for a while, or at least until I can be thoroughly tested to confi rm the obvious. I have to wait for the steroids I was given to leave my system, I was told by the allergist, otherwise everything would come back negative. Meanwhile, the only other possible cause would be ingesting shrimp, and if I’m told I can’t eat shellfi sh while visiting Maine this summer, well … it won’t be good for me or anyone who knows me.

Let this be a lesson to those of you who dive with abandon into red velvet cakes and chew copious amounts of Skittles: When the dispatcher asks if you are alone, press #1 for YES and #2 for NO. And one more thing: Many thanks to the Oxford EMTs and the ER staff at St. V’s.

They very likely saved my life.

Fundraiser Continued from Page 10

den to Boston children’s hospital, as she’s in need of a bone marrow transplant, which UMass doesn’t perform on children, but she can’t be moved until she’s fi nished with chemotherapy treatments to bring her platelet levels down.

That might happen at the end of June, after her second round of chemo, or July, after her third.

It’s a lot for any family to endure, and Jaden’s family and family friends have set up a

An original advertisement for Sea-Monkeys. PROMOTIONAL IMAGE

the cage, it immediately tore the kid’s face up. Can you blame it? The family kept the monkey, but it did not live long.

For me, I think these ads are important not for getting a wild animal through the mail, but

just to imagine what joy it would be to own a monkey or a baby raccoon. The price was high for a kid back then, so all we could do was dream. “All the kids will see me with my monkey on a leash and think I am so

cool.”

The quality of the daydream is up to how much you can believe. The ads in the old comics were fantasy. Things we can create in our heads. What a joy.

What a delightful disaster.

GoFundMe account – https:// www.gofundme.com/f/helpjadens-journey-to-fi ght-leukemia – to help cover the costs not covered by insurance, and help Jaden’s mother – who has been unable to work while caring for her daughter – cover bills.

Novia – who owns the Double Play Sports gym and baseball facility in Leicester with her husband, Michael – says that Jaden and her family have enjoyed an enormous amount support from the community, and from the hospital staff .

“UMass is amazing,” says Novia. “I can’t say enough about that whole fl oor. All of the on-

cologists and all of the nurses have been a godsend to us.”

She says they’ve also seen support from Trish Tarentino, widow of slain Auburn police offi cer Ronald Tarentino Jr., who has organized a charity parade, where CMass Volleyball players, police offi cers and Junior WooSox players will parade around the hospital in a show of support where Jaden can hopefully see. The parade is scheduled for 6 p.m. June 24 at UMass Medical Center.

“There are people just stepping up that I don’t even know,” says Novia. She admits that the ordeal has been overwhelming for everybody involved, and

that Jaden herself has had her good and bad days, but says that her spirit has proven remarkably resilient.

“She’s a smart little cookie,” says Novia. “She’s a 13-year-old with an old soul. She did say that this will be her story that she writes for college. She wants to go to Florida State, to play volleyball for the Gators.

She’s very intelligent. That’s why it kind of blows my mind.

Why her? She’s an unbelievable kid.”

This article has been edited to refl ect that date for the parade has changed, and to correct what type of business Double Play Sports is.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 13

COVER STORY

WCLOC strives to refl ect world we live in with ‘Niceties’

Martha Hultgren, left, and Elizabeth A. Hylton star in “The Niceties,” which will be performed at the BrickBox Theatre. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

Richard Duckett Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

WCLOC Theater Company may be Worcester’s oldest active theater company, but “We’re always looking at themes relevant to society today,” said board member and actor and director Eric Butler. h “Making sure the plays we do and musicals refl ect the community we live in.” h WCLOC has also had “a lot of conversations about equity, inclusiveness and commitment to diversity,” he said. h Eleanor Burgess’ play “The Niceties,” which WCLOC will be staging for four in-person performances June 18-20 at the BrickBox Theater at the JMAC as well as online, begins with a pleasant enough conversation.

See NICETIES, Page 14

14 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Niceties Continued from Page 13

Set at an elite East Coast university during the 2016 presidential primary season, the play features Zoe Reed, an ambitious Black political science major, who meets with her esteemed white history professor, Janine Bosko, to review a draft of a paper about the American Revolution that Zoe has written.

Janine admires Zoe’s word choice but also points out a couple of grammatical issues including a missing comma and lack of parallelism. Zoe assures Janine that they will be corrected in the fi nal draft.

However, when it comes to the thesis of Zoe’s paper, that “A successful American Revolution was only possible because of the existence of slavery,” Janine calls for more than some proof reading, saying it is “fundamentally unsound” and asking for proof.

“They are two very smart, intelligent, liberal women,” Butler said. But the conversation is quickly going to turn into what the Boston Globe called “an explosive confrontation about broader cultural and historical concerns involving race in America, white privilege, and power imbalances on college campuses.”

A highly acclaimed play The Washington Post called the drama a “barnburner of a play.”

“The Niceties” premiered at The Huntington Theatre Company in Boston in 2018.

For its staging of the two-act play, WCLOC has brought other groups into the conversation.

“The Niceties” is being presented in partnership with the Worcester Black History Project and the Worcester Historical Museum.

The audience can also be expected to have some conversations of their own.

Butler, who is directing “The

Actresses Martha Hultgren, left, and Elizabeth A. Hylton rehearse a scene from the play “The Niceties” as Eric Butler, right, directs at the Worcester County Light Opera Company. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

Niceties,” has spoken with Burgess, who told him “ ‘The third act of the play happens in the bar afterward.’”

Some people may be sympathetic to Zoe, others to Janine.

Others may simply be shocked.

“It’s a great piece,” Butler said. Burgess is “getting you to ask questions and not providing specifi c answers. She presents both sides of an argument.”

If “The Niceties” is a debate play, “it’s long overdue for us to have that third act together,” Butler said of discussion.

“Although it’s what I’d refer to as a debate play,” Butler said, “it’s incredibly entertaining and engaging. It’s a play that has a lot of humor.”

An important conversation People attending the 8 p.m.

June 18 performance shouldn’t rush to the bar afterward, as there will be a special talkback with the cast and production team moderated by Worcester Black History Project Steering Committee member Xaulanda Thorpe.

The cast features Elizabeth A. Hylton as Zoe and Martha Hultgren as Janine.

“I really enjoyed this piece of art and I think it’s very relevant to the kinds of conversation we’re having right now,” said Hylton. “The conversation can be diffi cult.”

There can also be a diffi culty in comprehending people in a discussion as actual people.

“I like her. I relate a lot to Zoe,” Hylton said.

“Being a Black woman at this time, I can relate to how Zoe feels. She defi nitely is smart, defi nitely is well-intentioned. She carries the burden of being a Black woman in America. I can relate to how those burdens play into her thinking.”

Hylton grew up in Shrewsbury, a daughter of parents who were originally from Jamaica.

“The version of history I learned is not the truth. We’re all learning a white-washed version of history,” she said.

“We don’t hear the truth about ourselves, then you think about what eff ect that has on people who are non-Black.”

Butler said that the two

characters are engaging and complicated.

“My perspective as a white male directing the piece, I’m not there necessarily to tell the characters or the actresses what to feel and what to think, but allow clarity in the story telling, helping them develop the characters they want to in the rehearsal process,” he said.

Butler said that Hultgren and Hylton are “incredibly dedicated and committed actresses in both roles.”

He’s worked with both of them before, and Hultgren and Hylton each have extensive theater backgrounds. “They’re consummate professionals. I’m so lucky to be working with See NICETIES, Page 15

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 15

Niceties Continued from Page 14

them on this project,” he said.

“We found ways to make each of the characters deeper and easier to relate to. More complicated than they might have been in my initial reading of the play.”

Hylton said, “Rehearsals have been great. Eric (Butler) has been such a great director.

It’s defi nitely been an evolving process. You gain an appreciation for every single moment that happens.”

Hylton graduated from the College of the Holy Cross with a degree in theater, and also earned bachelor and master’s degrees in nursing from MGH Institute of Health in Boston.

She is a nursing practitioner, and has stayed busy with acting. She is looking to combine theater and nursing by pursuing certifi cation as a drama therapist.

As a Black actor there have been challenges. “Yes, absolutely. But I’ve been lucky lately in making connections with other artists,” she said.

She recently appeared in two one-act plays by Black playwrights presented by Seacoast Repertory Theatre in Portsmouth, New Hampshire.

Hylton said she enjoyed “just the telling of Black stories, just being able to tell the story from a Black perspective.”

“The Niceties” is Hylton’s third show with WCLOC, having previously been seen in “Between Riverside and Crazy” and “Clybourne Park.”

“They’re a great group of people to work with,” she said.

Regarding “The Niceties,” “I hope one thing that people will take away is how important it is to listen to each other,” Hylton said. “I’m hoping that it really does spark some dialogue.”

Butler, who grew up in Worcester, also graduated from Holy Cross where he majored in theater and psychology. He has an MBA from Boston College’s Carroll School of Management

Actresses Elizabeth A. Hylton, left, and Martha Hultgren rehearse a scene from the play “The Niceties” at the Worcester County Light Opera Company. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

and has been involved with development and educational giving and fundraising. He’s also been deeply involved with WCLOC and is a former board president.

Theatric tradition WCLOC Theater Company goes back to 1937, when it was founded as the Worcester County Light Opera Club and specialized early on in productions of Gilbert and Sullivan operettas.

The theater group gradually turned to also including more contemporary musicals, and then straight comedy and drama plays. Butler has said that a strong season seeks balance. In

2018-19, for example, the season included “Clybourne Park” which deals with race and gentrifi cation, the musical “Grey Gardens” and its depiction of an acutely dysfunctional mother/daughter relationship, the romantic comedy “Living on Love,” the musical “Chess,” and a brand new work, the absurdist drama “Liv & Di” by Worcester-born playwright John Dufresne.

WCLOC has long had its own home at 21 Grandview Ave., and a small but charming theater space there, the Grandview Ave. Playhouse.

Once upon a time it was known as the Clubhouse.

Butler said he doesn’t mind at all if people refer to WCLOC

as the Worcester County Light Opera Club or Worcester County Light Opera Company and have fond memories of the operettas, but WCLOC Theater Company is now the preferred brand.

These days, “The term light opera scares people away,” Butler said.

Last year, WCLOC’s pandemic activity was “pretty strategic and robust,” he said.

It included an online presentation in June of new one-act plays chosen from submissions by numerous playwrights. In October, WCLOC put on a musical revue outside in the parking lot at 21 Grandview Ave. There was also a children’s workshop and some educa-

tional programs, all online.

The new one-act plays presentation was a fi rst-time venture for WCLOC and drew about 500 people, an encouraging enough number for it to be likely repeated. “Next time, fi ngers crossed, in-person,” Butler said.

In collaborating with the Worcester Black History Project and Worcester Historical Museum for “The Niceties,” Butler said “I’m a fi rm believer in partnerships. I hope there will be further opportunities as we mount engaging and relevant productions.”

Besides the talkback session following the June 18 perforSee NICETIES, Page 17

16 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Black academics share their experiences in ‘Niceties’ discussion Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

“The Niceties” is more than a theater production — it is representative of authentic lived experiences. In the play, a Black student at a liberal arts college is called into her white professor’s offi ce to discuss her paper about slavery’s eff ect on the American Revolution. Rather than a disagreement in points of view, it becomes a vital discussion about race, history and power. For the Worcester County Light Opera production at the BrickBox Theater, additional programming was deemed appropriate in the form of a pre-play panel discussion and a post-play talk back with the actors. The audience would gain context and better understand the value of the lived experiences in the socio-cultural frame of reference.

“Worcester Black History Project was invited to be a collaborator and partner in this,” said Cecilia Hylton, a member of the WBHP who supports the play and relevant communications. “Not just the casting and outreach but also ways to expand the programming beyond just the play itself.”

At 7 p.m. June 17, the night before the play opens, WBHP will host “Black Faces in White Spaces,” a live panel discussion. The panelists will be two professors and two students, who will share the experiences of Black Americans in predominantly white institutions (PWIs), particularly higher education and academia. Dr. Nicole Overstreet (Clark University), Professor Maria O’Brien (Boston University School of Law), Shanez’e Johnson (Wellesley College) and Xaulanda Thorpe (Boston Univer-

sity) all studied and worked at well known schools that fi t the PWI defi nition. Kimberly Toney of WBHP will moderate and deliver the questions webinar style, for the approximately hourlong discussion.

“If folks say they’re making eff orts to support people in the Black community, then this is a great opportunity for schools to hear fi rsthand,” said Debbie Hall, founder of the Worcester Black History Project. She went on to say that if schools and other institutions truly want to promote diversity and inclusion, programs such as Black Faces in White Spaces will be valuable tools and help to better implement practices and policies to retain students of color. “If I were a primarily white institution, I’d want to know about this.”

There is no singular experience of Black people in white spaces, said Hylton, so the audience will hear very diff erent stories from each panelist.

They will discuss what led them to their university of choice to either teach or study and what they took away from their participation.

After curtains close on opening night, the show will be followed by a talk back session and a chance for cast members to interact with the audience, which will also be streamed for viewers. “The talk back is a way to help with what people will be feeling at the end [of the play] and generate a conversation around what they just saw and have experienced themselves,” said Hylton. Audience members will be given postcards to note down questions or observations during the performance that can be brought up at the talk back. The cast, along See DISCUSSION, Page 17

Bottom, from left: “Niceties” cast members Elizabeth Hylton and Martha Hultgren; second row, WBHP members Xaulanda Thorpe, Cecilia Hylton and David Connor; third row: WBHP member Debbie Hall and WCLOC director Eric Butler. DAVID CONNOR, WORCESTER HISTORICAL MUSEUM

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 17

Niceties

BrickBox groups.

Continued from Page 15

Inside the BrickBox

mance, the partnership also incudes “Discovering Black Roots in Worcester,” a free exhibition on view in the lobby of the BrickBox, before and after performances of “The Niceties.”

Also, from 7 to 8 p.m. June 17, there will be an online panel discussion “Black Faces in White Spaces: Relating Black Experiences at Predominately White Institutions.”

The BrickBox Theater, which would have had a banner opening last year were it not for the pandemic but has been getting more use recently, is a program of the Worcester Cultural Coalition and managed by The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts.

Butler is also a member of the board of the Worcester Cultural Coalition and so was aware of the availability of the

The BrickBox Theater is also bigger than the Grandview Ave. Playhouse allowing for more room for spreading out.

“I knew that for the fi rst theater show (since the pandemic) that we did it would be great to in a larger space where people could be socially distanced and people would feel comfortable,” Butler said.

The BrickBox can seat about 290 to 300 people, but for “The Niceties” there will be social distancing with a maximum around 60 to individuals per show, he said.

State regulations concerning performance venues in response to COVID have sometimes changed abruptly. “We had advertised socially distanced pods and we want to make sure we’re honoring that,” Butler said.

Discussion

been entrenched and involved in every part of the process,” said Hall. Representing WBHP, she has been involved in the production since the beginning, sitting in on auditions and rehearsals, being consulted as well as providing feedback when necessary.

Hylton attended a rehearsal as well and judged the collaboration a positive experience.

Butler’s leadership, she said, “is really driven from a desire to do something that would spark an interesting, catalytic conversation in Worcester.”

Registration for the panel discussion can be found at the WCLOC website and Hylton emphasizes the webinar is open to all. “We really invite those who are interested in listening to and learning from this discussion,” said Hylton.

“There is no targeted audience besides those who want to learn.”

Continued from Page 16

with WBHP member Sha-Asia Medina, and Eric Butler, director of the Worcester County Light Opera, will participate in the talk back. The talk back will be moderated by WBHP member Xaulanda Thorpe.

The seeds of the partnership between WCLOC and WBHP can be traced back to about a year ago when Hall met Butler at a BLM mural project downtown. The two discussed the role of the arts in issues such as raising awareness of systemic racism and implicit bias.

While WCLOC could certainly be considered a PWI, it also serves as a model for ways to reach out to brown and Black communities, said Hall. Sometimes such gestures by institutions can feel superfi cial but in the case of WCLOC, “we have

to

area

theater

Eric Butler directs a rehearsal of the play “The Niceties” at the Worcester County Light Opera Company. RICK CINCLAIR/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

The audience will be required to wear masks. “Just for the safety of everyone so everyone feels comfortable. Not the cast, but both of them have

been vaccinated. It’s defi nitely important to create an environment where you can build trust,” he said.

Meanwhile, “We’re excited

to have the opportunity to perform in this space,” Butler said.

“We’re using this a little bit as a pilot. We’re open to exploring venues, larger venues and larger casts. We’re thinking of what that can mean to the theater and will defi nitely be listening to our audience,” Butler said.

“I’m excited about that,” Hylton said of performing at the BrickBox. “I’m very excited that there’s a new space in Worcester. I’m very grateful for the opportunity to grace that stage as one of the new spaces in Worcester,” she said.

“The Niceties” will be performed at the BrickBox Theater at the JMAC, 20 Franklin St., Worcester, at 8 p.m. June 18, 2 and 8 p.m. June 19, and 2 p.m.

June 20. Tickets are $22. “The Niceties” will also be available pre-recorded/Video On Demand from noon June 18 through June 20. Tickets are $11.

For more information, visit www.wcloc.org.

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18 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

Botany as art – in close detail Sam Mescon

Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Whether on an apartment windowsill, between city sidewalk cracks, or on a dirt road in rural backcountry, plant life surrounds us. Yet how often do we stop to take a close look at its many mysteries? In William Scully’s recent photography series “Microbotanicals,” he gives us the opportunity to overcome the phenomenon he calls “plant blindness” and explore the microscopic beauties found in nature.

While Scully shoots entirely with a digital camera, he modifi es his camera to give his photos a distinctive sense of abstraction. In his early body of work, “The Unseen Light,” Scully used an infrared camera with long exposure techniques to render photographs of common marsh plants as a surrealist black and white abstraction. In “Microbotanicals,” Scully challenges our visual confi dence by presenting images of ordinary plants that appear hyper-realistic, but in reality are deceivingly abstract in form, function, and truth.

As the viewer examines the works of art in “Microbotanicals,” they see a single, large, organic shape composed of what appears to be an infi nite number of small cells in various vibrant colors and shapes. In fact, what they’re seeing is a highly constructed, composite image.

Scully renders these images of plant specimens through an extremely laborious and technical process.

Using a microscope as a lens, the magnifi ed image shines directly onto his camera’s sensor. However, only a partial view of the plant specimen can be captured at one time; he creates a fi nal image that encompasses the entire slide by stitching together smaller sections using a software program. Moreover, because of the microscope’s extremely narrow focusing capability, Scully must capture multiple photographs of each section, incrementally changing the focus each time. Another piece of software then stitches together

the in-focus areas of these identically composed photographs, to create a fi nal, perfectly sharp, image for that section.

The resulting work, a composite from hundreds of photographs, displays an undeniably beautiful yet idealized version of these specimens, bringing into question how truthful these images really are. If everything Scully photographs is there, but not there at the same time, is what we are seeing an accurate representation of a biological specimen?

The inherent convergence of art and science throughout this work connects it to the history of botanical illustrations, such as the revolutionary lithographs of German scientist and artist Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919). His illustrations of natural design educated thousands on the biological construction of diff erent plants and animals.

While Scully does not intend for his work to be educational like Haeckel’s, for most of us, these images allow us to analyze these specimens from a new perspective, thus redefi ning our appreciation for botany in everyday life. Instead of being about education and accuracy, they are simply about fi nding beauty and letting go of needing to be truthful.

In “Microbotanicals,” Scully includes a number of images of the cross-sections of various edible plants such as apples, squash, and asparagus along with sections of common tree branches and grass. When slides of these specimens are manufactured for microscopic viewing, they are injected with colorful dyes that allow for a clear illustration of the diff erent cellular structures. The mesmerizing beauty of the naturally occurring geometric shapes and repeating patterns in these images largely dismisses any concern we have about them being scientifi cally accurate.

In “Syringa vulgaris,” a longitudinal section of a single lilac fl oret reveals the sensual anthropomorphic qualities that repeat in nature. The recognizable outlines of fl ower petals retain a light shade

‘Tilia americana,’ Pistil (cross section), common name: Basswood/Linden, magnifi cation: 64X, composite of 430 images, from the series “Microbotanicals.” WILLIAM SCULLY PHOTOS/ARTSWORCESTER

of turquoise that wonderfully complements the inner red ovaries of the plant.

Further, in “Trifolium pratense,” commonly called red clover, single-celled red fragments orbit the image. The juxtaposition of light green smaller cells in the center and dark green larger cells that bulge outward allows the viewer to feel the three-dimensional quality of these cross-sections that repeat throughout the series. Scully’s immaculately calibrated images encourage us to read dynamic relationships of form and composition, to fi nd intriguing cellular patterns and beauty far beyond the reach of the human eye.

Since Scully started photographing 13 years ago, he has methodically produced works of nature, each time sharing a unique interpretation of how natural beauty can be observed. “Microbotanicals” adds a level of philosophical complexity by asking us to question the relevance of truth and accuracy in his work. If Scully succeeds at presenting unseen beauty in nature, even through scientifi c means, does it really matter how he gets there?

‘Syringa vulgaris,’ Floret (longitudinal section), common name: Lilac, magnifi cation: 16X, composite of 406 images, from the series “Microbotanicals.”

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 19

CITY LIVING THE NEXT DRAFT

Craft beer jobs abound as area breweries rebound from pandemic Matthew Tota Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Timberyard Brewing Co. spent much of 2020 pivoting and belt-tightening.

The East Brookfi eld brewer furloughed all fi ve of its parttime servers last March, then tried for the better part of the spring and summer to fi nd the hours to piece its staff together again.

This year, though, Timberyard has already hired six new servers and a kitchen assistant.

Production has increased by 200%, as the brewery signed a new distribution deal and hired on its fi rst assistant brewer.

Area breweries were rebounding from the pandemic well before the state lifted all COVID-19 restrictions. Now most breweries are not only on sure enough footing to hire their employees back, but also need to add more staff to prepare for the large crowds expected this summer.

For those looking for work, it’s never been a better time to consider a job in craft beer.

I recently sent a seven-question survey to a handful of local breweries, asking about how their staff and hiring needs have changed over the last year: h Nearly all the breweries said they survived the pandemic with fewer employees, starting 2021 with plans to hire new staff . h Those that furloughed employees said they kept in touch

At Timberyard Brewing Co. in May 2020, tap room manager Kate Ohanesian helped fi ll food and beer orders. To cope with the pandemic, the brewery converted to a drive-thru operation and was able to offer workers some hours. ASHLEY GREEN/T&G

with them through regular emails: For instance, Timberyard asked team members to send pictures of their lives in quarantine and shared the updates on social media. h Every brewery said they added new services or shifted business models to keep jobs intact. h They also off ered insight on their hiring process, saying it’s not as simple as answering questions about your favorite breweries or beers.

As one way to hire staff back, Timberyard transformed its brewhouse into a drive-thru, harkening to its days as a lumberyard. “All of our team was off ered hours to help out,” said taproom manager Kate Ohanesian.

The brewery added takeout BBQ to its repertoire and, later, resumed table service, allowing it to bring back all but one employee, who opted not to return.

Timberyard began 2020

with a staff of nine, which fell to four early in the year. After this year’s hiring blitz, it has grown to 14 employees.

Critical to Timberyard’s hiring process is a working interview or a stage, Ohanesian said.

“The stage helps us see how they move in the space, how they interact with guests and our team and overall if it seems like a good fi t on both ends,” she said. “At the end of the stage, we off er them a meal and a beer

and talk about their experience. We developed this practice in the pandemic when we didn’t want to bring every single person in for an interview, yet didn’t want to just hire over zoom and we’ll never go back.”

At the start of last year, Jack’s Abby in Framingham had around 150 employees. But the pandemic forced the brewery to close its beer hall, where most of its staff worked, and drop to about 60 people.

To keep jobs, Jack’s Abby beefed up its takeout business, according to Lisa Morris, its director of human resources.

“Prior to the pandemic, we had a very limited takeout business. It was not a focus for us,” Morris said. “As soon as the pandemic forced us to close onsite dining, we quickly kicked off a more robust takeout operation with a curbside pickup option. This allowed us to keep a number of staff .”

During the summer, the brewery opened a beer garden, creating more positions for servers. But those jobs went away briefl y when the weather turned.

Finally, this May, Jack’s Abby welcomed back nearly all of its furloughed employees. The brewery then turned to bolstering its team, hiring around 40 people for the beer garden.

“We are actively hiring another 30 for both our front-ofhouse and back-of-house teams as we fi gure out a full reopening of the entire hospitalSee BREWERIES, Page 20

20 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CONNELL SANDERS

The king of The Castle is a Deadhead Sarah Connell Sanders Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Once upon a time, in the mid-’90s, I attended a school friend’s birthday dinner at The Castle Restaurant in Leicester. I could count on one hand the number of times I’d been to a real white table cloth establishment before that day. I remember stepping out of the limo her family had rented to see a bona fi de moat running around the perimeter of the building. At that moment, I was Maid Marian. I was Queen Guinevere. I was ready to order an opulent grilled cheese and a Shirley Temple off the kids menu.

Today, The Castle’s ambience feels more historical than luxurious, and I don’t mean the Medieval swords. The history is deep in the restaurant’s bones, which owner James Nicas is happy to show off after a bit of fi nagling. The Nicases opened the restaurant in 1949, and in 2020, they put it up for sale in hopes that a new family would carry on its legacy.

Breweries Continued from Page 19

ity operation — both indoors and outdoors,” Morris said.

“We also have some openings in our production and sales organization.”

Last March, Medusa Brewing Co. had to furlough 14 people, leaving the Hudson brewery with just four employees.

Their plan to rehire the rest of the team relied on producing more packaged beer for to-go sales and doubling down on Medusa’s wholesale operation, hiring a director of sales and expanding distribution to

The iconic Castle restaurant is up for sale. Raid the wine cellar while you still have a chance; I did.

From left, Amanda Setaro, Sarah Connell Sanders, Joy Flanagan, and Molly O’Connor toast to The Castle. PHOTOS COURTESY OF SARAH

Nicas has been addicted to The Castle’s atmosphere for as long as he can remember. After graduating from Holy Cross, his father, the World War II Navy gunner Stanley Nicas, encouraged him to take a gap year and visit Europe. Young Nicas missed the energy of his family’s restaurant so much that he returned home after only a week.

The City of Worcester underwent a huge transformation in the ‘60s. “If it wasn’t brass or glass, they were tearing it down,” Nicas remembers. “We bought the rubble of the YMCA and the Worcester Public Library.”

He ushered our party over to some masonry, hidden beneath a row of cocktail tables where the ancient stonework was em-

blazoned with plaques honoring “Shakespeare” and “Cicero.”

After the addition of “The Camelot Room,” The Castle began welcoming celebrity guests such as Steven Tyler and Julia Child. In 1980, Stanley was named “Chef of the Year” by the Culinary Institute of America.

I’ll be honest, the motivation behind our most recent visit was on account of Nicas’ wine cellar. With the restaurant up for sale, my friends and I knew we would only have so many

Maine, New Jersey and New York.

Meanwhile, Medusa held weekly Zoom meetings for its entire staff , even those furloughed.

“Our entire company met weekly on Zoom calls in order to keep everyone updated on company and pandemic matters, as well as to discuss our approach to navigating the business through COVID,” said co-founder Keith Sullivan. “It also off ered a space for us to continue to socialize with our colleagues and feel somewhat normal. We became a closer team because of this, and have continued this weekly meetup since then.”

By last June, when breweries were allowed to open for table service, Medusa had brought everyone back. Medusa has hired eight employees since then and intends to create another 10 positions later this summer.

Of the fi ve breweries that responded to my questionnaire, only Redemption Rock Brewing Co. on Shrewsbury Street said it did not furlough anyone last year. The brewery, which has seven employees, got help from a Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loan, along with an outpouring of support from customers and others in the community.

“We’re proud and grateful to

say that our employees didn’t miss a single paycheck during the pandemic,” said co-founder and CEO Dani Babineau. “We actually promoted one of our original taproom team members to a sales management position, and she’s now running sales and deliveries across Central and Western Massachusetts for us.”

Redemption Rock had to put off plans to hire a few more taproom employees and an assistant brewer because of the pandemic. But with the state open again, the brewery has started its search anew.

“We’re aiming to expand our distribution more and we’re planning to expand our tap-

CONNELL SANDERS

chances to explore the splendors for ourselves. With a little more arm twisting by my most persuasive pal, Nicas agreed to let us take a peek downstairs.

Despite the 40-year-old methuselah of Silver Oak priced at $3,800, the cellar lacks pretension. A Grateful Dead sticker is plastered on the door; Nicas told us he has attended hundreds of their shows and once fed the band at the old Worcester Centrum.

For a long time, only Nicas could decipher the cellar’s contents, but after a bout with his health, he decided it was time to add some signage and teach his staff the system for locating, say, the bottle of 1986 Etude Cabernet my friends and I shared over antelope steaks and tenderloins.

The Castle isn’t going anywhere, but there’s no telling how long it will remain Nicas’ castle. Time is of the essence, dear reader. In the words of Cicero, “Any man can make mistakes, but only an idiot persists in his error.” The Castle’s wine cellar awaits.

room hours and off erings, and these positions will allow us to do that,” Babineau said.

Redemption Rock is perhaps the only brewery in the state that uses blind hiring to promote diversity and limit unconscious biases. To apply, applicants don’t need a cover letter or résumé; they don’t even give their name, gender or race, instead answering eight questions covering everything from their interest in craft beer to what they’ll bring to Redemption Rock.

In just two weeks, Redemption Rock has received 19 responses to its questionnaire from people interested in joining the brewery, Babineau said.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 21

LISTEN UP

Bees Deluxe’s most recent album is “Speechless.”

PROMOTIONAL IMAGE

Bees Deluxe leave listeners ‘Speechless’ Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

There has never been any denying Bees Deluxe’s talent.

One need only relisten to the band’s 2019 album, “Mouthful of Bees,” to see you were dealing with fi rst-rate blues musicianship. Still, the band’s new album, “Speechless,” leaves no room for doubt whatsover. Eschewing vocals and lyrics altogether, the album is a showcase of entirely original instrumental music which pushes at the boundaries between blues and jazz, creating a sort of musical conversation about 20thcentury American music which is both emotive and thought-provoking.

The band — which comprises Conrad Warre on guitar, Carol Band on keyboards, Al-

lyn Dorr on bass and Paul Giovine on drums — will be performing at 8 p.m. June 13 at City Winery Boston.

The album starts with the slow-paced, almost tentative “Industrial (Espionage),” where guitar fl ows gently like a brook over rocks, while piano and percussion keep to a halting beat which creates a sense of restraint. It’s strangely emotional, as is the full-blush of blues percussion and guitar that seeps forward in the subsequent song, “All Miles,” a tribute to jazz great Miles Davis. It’s an interesting song, as it more suggests Davis’ melodies than evokes them, and it does so in what seems to be an entirely blues diction. Still, there’s a sense of freedom as the piano cuts across the tune See SPEECHLESS, Page 24

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22 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

NEW ON DVD

Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani star in "Lovebirds." PARAMOUNT PICTURES

Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani are ‘Lovebirds’ on the run A movie about a normal couple that fi nd themselves at the center of a murder mystery tops the DVD releases for the week of June 8.

“The Lovebirds”: Issa Rae and Kumail Nanjiani star as Leilani and Jibran, a couple on the rocks after years of dating who have their lives upended while driving one day. Their car is commandeered and used to commit a vehicular homicide, setting them on a dangerous journey to clear their names of the murder.

The fi lm reunites Nanjiani with director Michael Showalter, who also helmed the actor’s breakout hit, “The Big Sick.” As with that previous outing, “Showalter is unfl ashy, effi cient and willing to let the performers fully take the spotlight,” says Los Angeles Times critic Mark Olsen in his “Lovebirds” review.

“Rae and Nanjiani have a quicksilver chemistry, fl ashing from playful banter to genuine, hurtful arguing in an instant,” Olsen writes of the fi lm’s leads.

“It’s often up in the air whether to root for this couple to even stay together — someone holding them at gunpoint says, ‘You seem like a nice though somewhat annoying couple’ — which gives the movie an extra charge.”

Ultimately, Olsen fi nds “Lovebirds” to be a worthy addition to the budding romcom/thriller subgenre. “On a scale of other recent fi lms that mixed the long-term rom-com with the action thriller, ‘The Lovebirds’ lands somewhere between ‘Game Night,’ starring Jason Bateman and Rachel McAdams, and ‘Date Night,’ starring Tina Fey and Steve Carell.”

Also new on DVD as of June 8 “City of Lies”: Johnny Depp and Forest Whitaker play detectives investigating the 1997 murders of hip-hop stars Notorious B.I.G. and Tupac Shakur.

“Assault on VA-33”: Its up to one decorated veteran visit-

ing a VA hospital to save the day when a group of heavily armed terrorists take the staff and patients hostage.

“Flashback”: A young man fi nds his past, present and future blending together as he struggles to remember strange occurrences from his high school days in this thriller.

“Fuller House”: The Fifth and Final Season” and “Fuller House: The Complete Series”: The fi nal season of the “Full House” spinoff is available for those mostly up to speed on the lives of the adult Tanner children, or get the entire “Fuller” series in one fell swoop.

“MacGyver: Season 4”: See the continuing adventures of the young Angus “Mac” MacGyver as he uses his ingenuity to get out of many dangerous situations in this reboot of the ‘80s favorite.

“The Unhealer”: A faith healing attempt backfi res, giving a teenage boy special powers he puts to use exacting revenge from the bullies who torment him.

“Zeroville”: James Franco directs and stars as an ex-communicated seminarian who arrives in Los Angeles in the summer of 1969, at the same time the Manson Family was terrorizing the city. Also stars Seth Rogan and Megan Fox. “Indiana Jones 4-Movie Collection”: This new set presents the classic “Indiana Jones” trilogy as well as 2008’s “Kingdom of the Crystal Skull” on 4K Ultra HD for the fi rst time.

“Ferris Bueller’s Day Off ”: This limited edition Blu-ray release celebrate’s the 35th anniversary of the day-off classic written and directed by John Hughes and starring Matthew Broderick.

“Pretty In Pink”: Another Hughes-penned favorite from 1986 gets a reissue for its 35th anniversary. Stars Molly Ringwald, Jon Cryer and Harry Dean Stanton.

“Some Kind of Wonderful”: Hughes and director Howard Deutch reteamed a year after “Pretty in Pink” on this high

school drama starring Eric Stoltz, Mary Stuart Masterson and Lea Thompson.

Out on digital HD as of June 8 “Good Funk”: Examines the lives of immigrants in a Brooklyn neighborhood that is beginning to gentrify.

“On the Trail of Bigfoot: The Journey”: In this followup to “On the Trail of Bigfoot,” a documentary team travels deep into the Adirondacks in search of the storied creature.

“Postal”: A hopeless romantic wages war against the shipping company that fails to deliver his engagement ring.

“Terror Eyes”: Three friends are terrorized on a road trip to Joshua Tree for a music festival.

“Voyagers”: A multi-generational spaceship carrying the future of humanity descends into chaos and madness. Stars Colin Farrell, Tye Sheridan and Lily-Rose Depp.

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Speechless Continued from Page 21

like a trumpet while the band builds to jazz-infused hooks that bristle with cool.

The vibe mellows a bit with “3454 Miles,” with its gentle drum brushes and piano almost imperceptibly evoking the sound of church organs.

It’s a sort of musical liminal space, an in-between moment before the bass and drum driven slow-burn blues number, “Song No. 9.” Like almost everything on this album, this one fi nds its power in restraint and inference. If a few notes of the bridge seem to harken to Procol Harum before pivoting into an ending that ripples out slowly, then who’s to say whether that’s intentional? It might just be the listener’s imagination, but everything about this album feels like it’s built on associations and references, all while simultaneously feeling fresh and vibrant.

Certainly, the subsequent songs “Beer” and “Fake Instrumental” dig deep into their honky-tonk roots, highlighted on the latter track by bristling harmonica from Richard “Rosy” Rosenblatt.

“Flat Earth Conspiracy” is, unsurprisingly, a more linear sort of composition, starting with a sort of ethereal preface and then riding a smooth guitar line through to the end.

There’s a blues-jam feel to the end, but it keeps its arrangement tight and its focus even tighter. On the other hand, “Blues for Cameroon” brings some more delicate arrangements into the mix, creating a sound that’s lush and richly textured, its icicle-brittle guitar notes dissolving entirely into the blues-burner, “Crank Part 2.”

Contrasts are a big part of what makes this album work: “Crank Part 2” digs into a fairly straightforward blues groove that’s distinct from what comes before, and the subsequent “Strange Matter” takes a

It’s strangely emotional, as is the full-blush of blues percussion and guitar that seeps forward in the subsequent song, “All Miles,” a tribute to jazz great Miles Davis ... Still, there’s a sense of freedom as the piano cuts across the tune like a trumpet while the band builds to jazz-infused hooks that bristle with cool. more freeform and experimental approach. It’s a soulful song, one with a strange, ephemeral feel, and the hard blues that precedes it only puts its airiness into stark relief.

Groove gives way to beauty, and then, with “Blue and Yellow,” we’re back at honkytonk. The listener is constantly kept guessing as to what’s going to happen next. When what happens next is the aptly named “Spaghetti Western,” again featuring Rosenblatt’s harmonica, there is no real preparation. We’re in a musical jam in an old-time saloon, and the tone is hot and desert dusty in all the right ways.

The album comes to a conclusion with “An Imaginary Conversation Between Björk and Buddy Guy,” in which the band sort of tips its hand as to what it’s been up to through this whole thing. There are aspects to this song that are ethereally beautiful, patient piano work letting each note rise like steam. There’s also a side which is a deeply soulful guitar line, spinning out into the horizon. It’s a long, languid song which, in the end, the album leaves the listener joyously weary, near-overwhelmed by an abundance of beauty.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 25

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26 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

5 THINGS TO DO

Shot of Poison JOE NETT

SHOT OF POISON, JIM COLLITON, JAMES KEYES AND MORE ...

Veer Mudambi, Richard Duckett and Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

Pick your Poison They know their Poison. Shot of Poison, that is, a tribute to the 35th anniversary of Poison, the Los Angeles-based glam rockers who have sold over 50 million records worldwide. Shot of Poison’s members say they “aim to bring a full-on party every time, with the fun atmosphere of Poison’s rowdy arena-rock events, the music done right, and the imagery that so many have grown up with and loved from the late 1980s.” (RD) Continued on next page

What: Shot of Poison When: 1 p.m. (doors 11:30 a.m.) June 12 Where: Indian Ranch, 200 Gore Road, Webster How much: $20. www.indianranch.com

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 27

A musical force The reopening of restaurants and bars has been good news for the area’s singer-songwriters, the ones who are capable of playing long solo sets of both covers and original songs.

James Keyes is definitely in that category, with a deep songbook and a thunderous and deep voice that commands attention. Sure, he can probably play your favorite tune by whomever, but it’s original songs such as “Wicked Night,” “Roll With the Punches” and “Hardliner” that make him such a compelling force in local music. (VDI) What: Musician James Keyes When: 6-9 p.m. June 12 Where: Oakholm Brewing Company, 80 Lake Road, Brookfield How much: Free When: 5-8 p.m. June 15 Where: Reunion Tap & Table, 198 Worcester St., North Grafton How much: Free

More than just ‘dad jokes’

James Keyes FILE PHOTO

What: Holdin’ Back When: 6 to 8 p.m. June 12 Where: Nornay Park, South Barre How much: Free

Summer Concert Series in Douglas The 2021 Summer Concert Series at Douglas Orchard and Farm continues tomorrow with the cleverly named Petty Larceny Band. This Tom Petty tribute group, in their own words, carries on Petty’s music for a new generation, working to stay as close to the source material as possible. If you’re a fan of Tom Petty, or even just classic rock, head over to Petty Larceny PROMOTIONAL IMAGE Douglas Orchard. As usual, BBQ will be courtesy of EB Flats and the even is BYOC (bring your own chair.) (VM) What: Live Music at the Pavilion: The Petty Larceny Band When: 6 to 8 p.m. June 12 Where: Douglas Orchard and Farm, 36 Locust St., Douglas How much: $10 per person 16 and older, kids are free, pay at the door

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What: Comedian Jim Colliton When: 7:30 p.m. June 11 and 12 Where: The Worcester Beer Garden Pavilion, 65 Franklin St., Worcester How much: $25

Holdin’ Back set to let loose Here comes summer and there won’t be much holding back of Holdin’ Back, created specifically by some seasoned local musicians to be a summer bandstand band. Even last year, Holdin’ Back was out and about, and you’ll be able to get to see more of the band this year starting at 6 p.m. June 12 in South Barre. With its “feel-good” repertoire of oldies, classics, patriotic tunes and singalongs, Holdin’ Back is Craig Smith (bass and rhythm guitars/keyboards), Paul “Blakey” Blaquiere (lead and rhythm guitars/ukulele/vocals), and Emma Riffelmacher (vocals/rhythm guitar), all of Holden, and Joe Ostrenga (drums/percussion) of Sturbridge. For more information, visit www.holdinbackband.com.

(RD)

Comedian Jim Colliton

Jim Colliton can find the hilarious in the everyday: the unflinching honesty of 2-year-olds, the math from school you’ll likely never need to know again, admitting that he has no idea what his kids’ teachers’ names are. “I was kind of hoping someone here would have that information for me,” he says to a school receptionist when he shows up to deliver a forgotten brown-bag lunch. “Between me and you, I’m not even sure I’m at the right school right now.” Colliton’s conversational delivery style makes each joke feel personal, and it’s all just laugh-out-loud funny. (VDI)

Holdin’ Back PROMOTIONAL IMAGE

28 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

ADOPTION OPTION

Cinco de Mayo rats available to adopt at Worcester Animal Rescue League Welcome to Adoption Option, a partnership with the Worcester Animal Rescue League highlighting their adoptable pets. Check this space often to meet all of the great pets at WARL in need of homes. WARL is open seven days a week, noon-4 p.m., 139 Holden St. Check them out online at Worcesterarl.org, or call at (508) 853-0030.

So some folks think that Spuds McKenzie was the original party animal. Oh what they don't know. Meet the Cinco de Mayo Rats! These little rats were found at WARL in a box — 26 little friends to be exact, and little did they know what a great turn their little lives took at that very moment. These little creatures were probably rescued by someone who thought they were going to have a bleak future, and so brought them to us, albeit anonymously. But now the party is on. It was a great Cinco de Mayo rescue day for all of these little sweeties, and so they all have fun Cinco de Mayo (sort of ) names. Thirteen of the little boys are ready to go in pairs or groups of three or four. The fourth group here is Sombrero, Avocado, Tortilla and Chile. They are gentle and shy, but easy to handle and once they fi nd their forever person, they will quickly bond and make great little lovable pets.

You must be 21 years or older to adopt, and have proof of either home ownership or lease/rental agreement allowing small pets. To make an appointment to meet any of the rattie boys, please call (508) 853-0030.

WARL COVID-19 Procedures As of Nov. 9, 2020 As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to evolve, we want to

One of the rats available for adoption at WARL. PHOTOS BY SARA MCCLURE & KATHY JAMIESON

share with you some changes we have implemented so that we can continue to serve the pets and people of our community while keeping our team protected. h ADOPTIONS: At this time, adoptions are being held

BY APPOINTMENT ONLY. If you are interested in adoption, please visit our website worcesterarl.org/ adopt/ to learn more about our available animals then call us at (508) 853-0030 ext.0 or email us at info@worcesterarl. org to schedule an appointment. h CASUAL VISITS TO THE SHELTER are prohibited. We

will strictly enforce this in order to keep our animal care team protected while still maintaining the most essential function of our operation ... fi nding homes for animals in need. h ANIMAL SURRENDERS: Our business practice for surrendering a pet remains the same. All pet owners must contact WARL in advance of surrendering a pet. Please call (508) 853-0030. h SPAY/NEUTER CLINICS: All scheduled appointments will be honored. If you have a scheduled appointment, we will be contacting you to dis-

Another of the rats available.

cuss changes to our drop off / pick up procedures. h DONATIONS ACCEPTED except for open bags of food. h Pet food, cat litter, and other shelter supplies will be essential in continuing to provide for our animals and to assist community members in need. To avoid unnecessary travel and exposure, items can be purchased online from our Amazon Wishlist — https:// www.amazon.com/gp/registry/wishlist/3AX342JIL73M0 h Weekly training classes are going on for adopters. h The WARL Volunteer Program is temporarily sus-

pended. All regular volunteer shifts are on hold. We look forward to welcoming you back as soon as we can. We have many animals in our care who depend on us to stay healthy and well. The above measures help to protect our staff and community from the spread of COVID - 19 by minimizing face-toface interactions while continuing to operate only core essential services. Please continue to follow our Facebook page for additional updates.

Should you have any questions or concerns, please contact the shelter at (508) 853-0030 or info@ worcesterarl.org.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 29

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The Worcester Housing Authority invites sealed bids for Curtis PlayThe Worcester Housing Authority inviteswith sealed for Curtis Play- by ground Resurfacing in accordance the bids documents prepared ground Resurfacing in accordance with the documents prepared by WHA. WHA. Project consists of but is not limited to: removal and installation of new Project consists of butrubber is notsurface limited as to: described removal and installation of newand recreational poured in the specifications recreational drawings. poured rubber surface as described in the specifications and drawings.

The work is estimated to cost $70,000.

The work Bids is estimated to cost $70,000.

General will be received until 2:00 p.m. on Thursday June 24, 2021 General Bids will beHousing receivedAuthority, until 2:00 Department p.m. on Thursday June 24, 2021 at the Worcester of Modernization, 81 Taatcoma the Worcester Housing Authority, of and Modernization, 81will Ta- be Street, Worcester, MA 01605 Department at which time place all bids coma Street, Worcester, MAaloud.

01605 at which time and place all bids will be publicly opened and read publicly opened and read aloud.

A pre-bid conference will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, June 10, 10:00 a.m.

Thursday, Junewill 10, be A2021 pre-bid will be Valley held at Avenue, at conference 51 Great Brook at on which time bidders 2021 at to 51 visit Great which timeHousing bidders Authority will be invited theBrook projectValley site(s) Avenue, with the at a Worcester invited to visit the project the the a Worcester representative.

Failure to site(s) attendwith or visit premises Housing shall be Authority no defense representative.

Failurecontract to attend or visit the premises shall be no defense in failure to perform terms. inBids failure perform terms. areto subject to contract M.G.L. c.30 §39M & to minimum wage rates as required Bids are subject M.G.L. c.30inclusive. §39M & to minimum wage rates as required

by M.G.L. c.149to §§26 to 27H by M.G.L. to 27H inclusive.

Each bidc.149 shall §§26 be accompanied by a bid deposit in the amount of 5% of the Each bid shall be form accompanied a bid deposit the amount of 5% ofcompathe bid price in the of a Bid by Bond, issued by in a responsible surety bid in the of a Bid Bond, responsible surety ny price licensed toform do business in theissued state by of aMassachusetts, or acompacertified ny licensed do business in the state of issued Massachusetts, or a certified check, or ato treasurer’s or cashier’s check by a responsible bank or check, or a treasurer’s cashier’s check issued byHousing a responsible bank trust company, made or payable to the Worcester Authority byor bidtrust made payable Worcester Housing Authority by bidderscompany, for the greatest possibleto bidthe amount. ders the and greatest possible bid amount.

Bid for forms Contract Documents will be made available on the WorcesBid Documents will be made available on the Worcesterforms and Contract Housing Authority website ter Housing Authority at no cost. Hard website copies (http://www.worcesterha.org/currentbids.html) at no cost.Housing Hard copies (http://www.worcesterha.org/currentbids.html) will be made available on June 03, 2021 at the Worcester Authorwill made available on June 03, 2021 at the Worcester Housing MA Authority,be Department of Modernization, 81 Tacoma Street, Worcester, 01605 ity, Department Modernization, 81 Tacoma Street, Worcester, MACopies 01605 of and thereafter,ofMonday thru Friday 8:00 A.M. through 4:30 P. M. and Monday thru Friday 8:00 A.M. 4:30$50.00 P. M. Copies of thethereafter, contract documents may be obtained bythrough depositing in the form the documents may be obtained $50.00 in the form of contract a company check, made payable to by thedepositing Worcester Housing Authority, offor a each company made so payable to theThe Worcester Housing Authority, set ofcheck, documents obtained. amount of the deposit will be for each settoofeach documents obtained. of the depositand will other be refunded person so who returns The the amount plans, specifications refunded to each person who returns specifications and other documents in good condition within the ten plans, (10) days after bid opening.

Biddocuments in good condition within ten (10)mailed days after bid should opening.

Bid- a ders requesting contract documents to be to them include ders requesting documents to be mailed to them should include a separate checkcontract in the amount of $40.00 for each set payable to the Worforand each set payable separate check inAuthority the amount of $40.00 cester Housing to cover mailing handling costs.to the Worcester Housing Authority to cover mailing and handling costs.

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J O N E S I N’

Enjoy Fun By The Numbers puzzles? Then you’ll love sudoku. This mind-bending puzzle will have you hooked from the moment you square off, so sharpen your pencil and put your sudoku savvy to the test! Here’s How It Works: Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!

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6 Chipotle option, for short 10 Gifford’s TV successor 14 Neckwear for Fred in “Scooby-Doo” 15 “Take ___” (1985 hit) 16 “___ Ruins Everything” 17 Nicknames of two legendary bebop musicians (and the title of their 1952 album) 19 “Swan Lake” movement 20 Oscar-winning role for Forest 21 ___ Maria (coffee liqueur) 22 They’re risky 24 Obligation 26 Way to look inward?

28 “The Matrix” role for Keanu 29 Country duo behind “Ain’t Nothing ‘bout You” and “Boot Scootin’ Boogie” 35 Ant habitat 37 Twisted tale 38 Item on a ring 39 Get together 40 Out-and-out battle 41 Syndicate bosses 43 U.S. hwy.

44 Soldier or solder material 45 “Everybody Loves Raymond” surname 46 Caillou’s Daddy and Mommy, according to the official website (sorry, parents, I feel your pain) 50 Open ___ night 51 Spotted 52 State, to Sarkozy 55 Red, white, and blue frozen treat 59 “It’s whatever” 61 MV divided by V 62 “What You’re Made Of, We’re Made For” insurance co.

63 The McKenzie brothers of SCTV’s “Great White North” sketches 66 “Le Freak” disco group 67 Character before Borat 68 Sierra ___ (California range) 69 Hit the bottom 70 Supreme Court garb 71 “People tell me ...”

Down 1 Beyond zealous 2 Line that breaks the fourth wall

“BAD Company”--it works, initially.

by Matt Jones

3 More illegible, like some signatures 4 “___ Save America” (show cohosted by Jon Favreau) (no, the other Jon Favreau) 5 Sports factoid that I’ll never understand 6 Lose luminosity 7 Sturm ___ Drang (German artistic movement) 8 In the center of 9 “The Card Players” painter Paul 10 2013 Eminem song that has a Guinness World Record 11 Without much movement 12 Twosome 13 Iowa State University location 18 “Three Men and a Baby” director Leonard 23 Homer Simpson’s neighbor 25 It’s slower than a gallop 27 Archipelago components 30 It depicts “the unit of counting or measurement,” per Wikipedia 31 Inflatable couch filler 32 SW1P, for Westminster Abbey, e.g.

33 Inert lamp gas 34 Wall St. fixture 35 “___ Your Enthusiasm” (Larry David show) 36 Unfooled by

40 41 42 44 45 47 48 49 53 54 55 56 57 58 60 64 65

Prevail Station wagon, e.g.

Indy 500 winner Luyendyk Buffet that might have several salsas Current “SNL” cast member Yang Return remark Wee drink Adjuster’s assessment Upscale Honda “Life of Pi” feline Super Bowl XXXVII champs Accident prevention org.

Principal Ralph Lauren brand Cable that connects to a TV Lobster shack wear “Well, la-di-freakin’-___!”

Last week's solution

©2021 Matt Jones (jonesincrosswords@gmail.com) Reference puzzle #1044

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | 31

LAST CALL

Eve Rifkah, poet, discusses her newest book Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Eve Rifkah, poet and recipient of the 2021 Kunitz award from the Worcester County Poetry Association, is a longtime Worcester resident.

She worked with the Telegram & Gazette for 17 years and has taught writing and English composition college courses at Fitchburg State University, Worcester State University, WPI and Clark University.

Rifkah was co-founder of the nonprofi t organization Poetry Oasis (1998-2012), which focused on education and promoting local poets, and was founder-editor of the literary journal Diner, which ran for seven years. She is the author of "Dear Suzanne" (2010) and "Outcasts: The Penikese Leper Hospital 1905-1921" (2010).

Her newest book, "Lost in Sight," will be available in stores this month.

Tell me a little about this new book and what went into it?

My previous books are historical poetry — one about a leper colony, the art of Suzanne Valadon and another about the life of an aunt of mine. So all of the poems in those books were written specifi cally for those books, but I write other poems.

Last year, back in January of 2020, I had put together a manuscript I’m still hoping to get published — a memoir of my childhood — so I got that together and began sending it out and was like "what do I work on now?" because I hadn’t been writing very much at all.

Well, I have all of these hundreds of hundreds of poems, many of them have been published in journals but not in a book. I certainly had time on my hands so I put them together and sent them out at the end of February, early March. I

Poet Eve Rifkah EVE RIFKAH

heard back a few days later that it was accepted. It’s the fastest acceptance I ever had.

Been working with Silver Bow back and forth and now I’m just waiting for the books to arrive at my door. They’re poems that have been written

over the last 20-25 years.

When is the publishing date?

The printer sent them out on May 27 so now I’m just waiting for them to arrive. They’ll be available through me and local bookstores in another week or

two.

Would you be able to mention a poem that you’re particularly excited about bringing to the public’s attention?

That you’re most excited to share?

The book is in four sections,

and the fi rst is from when I was in the Azores, so that whole section comes out of my experiences there, although the fi rst poem is actually a fantasy and that’s called "Song of Blue."

I really like anthropology and diff erent customs and myths, how people live and the stories they make. So this poem is a story that comes out of a diff erent culture than the one we know, that I created, to give these people a story. I like ritual, though I’m not a person who believes in anything in particular, I’m not religious at all, I’m an atheist but I like the concept of ritual because I think it ties people together in the community. This particular poem deals with a ritual that is important to the people in the town, where it’s very special to be able to go up to a blue heron and touch it, and that touch is special. Then everyone else in the group touches the person who touched the bird.

When and where was "Song of Blue" initially published?

It was published in the Blue River Review in fall 2020 but it was written about 10 years ago.

I’ve always been fascinated by poetry and the ability to make music with only words on paper.

Ray Bradbury said that all good writing is poetry, and that’s a man who did not write poetry and he was always one of my favorite writers. Writing was music and it had the sound of poetry, very lyrical, very beautiful. Whether you’re a fi ction writer or a journalist, if you write well, it’s poetry.

What would you hope that readers take away from this newest book?

I hope readers are amused by some of them and some, I hope they are moved by and that they can see some of the beauty that I experienced.

32 | JUNE 11 - 17, 2021 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

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