The Race Brook Lodge presents a forest concert by double bassist Garth Stevenson
Sheffield— On Saturday, March 9th from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m., the Race Brook Lodge presents a forest concert by Garth Stevenson, as part of their “An Almost Spring Weekender” event.
Double bassist and composer Garth Stevenson was raised in the mountains of Western Canada where nature became his primary inspiration and the common thread between his life and music. His three full-length solo albums, Alpine, Flying, and Voyage, are informed by his experiences carrying his 150-year-old double bass to the woods, beach, desert, and other remote locations including Antarctica and Tuva.
Over the past ten years, he has developed a unique style of forest concert. He leads a group out on a hike, finds a suitable place to play, and performs an improvised set inspired by the alchemy of set and setting.
The concert will be on Saturday, March 9th from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. at the Race Brook Lodge on South Undermountain Road in Sheffield. Tickets are $25. Tickets and more information can be found online. If weather does not permit an outdoor performance, it will take place in the cozy Barnspace.
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The Mahaiwe and The Clark present Met Opera Live in HD: Verdi’s ‘La Forza Del Destino’
Williamstown/Great Barrington— On Saturday, March 9th at noon, The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center and The Clark Art Institute present Verdi’s “La Forza Del Destino,” live in HD from The Met.
Conductor Yannick Nézet-Séguin leads Verdi’s grand tale of ill-fated love, deadly vendetta, and family strife. Stellar soprano Lise Davidsen makes her role debut as the noble Leonora, one of the repertory’s most tormented (and thrilling) heroines.
Director Mariusz Treliński delivers the company’s first new Forza in nearly 30 years, setting the scene in a contemporary world and making extensive use of the Met’s turntable to represent the unstoppable advance of destiny that drives the opera’s chain of calamitous events.
The simulcasts are on Saturday, March 9th at noon at The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center on Castle Street in Great Barrington and at The Clark Art Institute on South Street in Williamstown. Tickets for the Mahaiwe are $25 and $10 for ages 21 and under; Card to Culture accepted. Tickets for The Clark are $25, $22 for members, $18 for students, and $5 for youth ages 15 and under. Tickets and more information can be found online. (The Mahaiwe/The Clark.)
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Fantastick Patrick to perform one-man variety show at Berkshire Community College
Pittsfield— BCC Alum Patrick Connor, the face behind “Fantastick Patrick: The One-Man Variety Show,” will perform at Berkshire Community College (BCC)’s Robert Boland Theatre on Friday, March 8th at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. The performances are free and open to the public.
Fantastick Patrick is one of the most sought-after performers on the market. His unique blend of comedy, circus tricks, and live music creates an explosive experience for all. Expect Fantastick Patrick to wow the crowd with everything from juggling swords and riding a giant unicycle to yo-yo tricks, plate-spinning, and free-balancing massive objects on his face.
Connor is an experienced entertainer known for his hilarity and crowd interaction. He keeps the audience fully engaged throughout the entire show, enrapturing even the smallest of children while providing laughs for the adults, too.
He performs regularly for Carnival Cruises and also entertains at major corporate events, which he has done for companies and venues like Facebook, Old Navy, Walmart, Pasadena Rose Bowl, and Dodger Stadium. He has also worked in television and film, appearing in an episode of the Netflix series “100 Humans,” on the 2019 Emmy Awards for a spot introducing the variety category with actor Adam DeVine, and, currently, in a national Hilton commercial.
The performances are on Friday, March 8th at 2 p.m. and 5 p.m. at Berkshire Community College on West Street in Pittsfield.
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Hudson Hall presents ‘E(N)TERNAL LIGHF: THE ETERNAL ECOSYSTEM EXPOSED,’ curated by Ntangou Badila
Hudson, N.Y.— From March 9th through April 14th, Hudson Hall presents ‘E(N)TERNAL LIGHF: THE ETERNAL ECOSYSTEM EXPOSED,’ curated by Ntangou Badila and dedicated to Kimora Mitsuki.
Featuring works by Ntangou Badila, Reggie Madison, Tyrone Mitchell, Lala Montoya, and Tshidi Matale, this interdisciplinary exhibition explores the human ecosystem and the interconnectedness between nature, grief, healing, and wellness through visual art, movement, traditional healing practices, and musical performance.
On Saturday, March 9th from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., there is an opening reception with musical performances and demonstrations by healers. Join Ntangou and her fellow artists for a mind, heart, and soul-opening reception featuring the consciousness-altering, immersive environments of light and sound by Daniel Friedman; sound bath performance by Nea, music by Young Paris, nervous system care by Char CA, massage by Sasha Grace Decker, acupuncture by Taganyahu Swaby of Yaad Wellness, and the sharing of herbs, tinctures, salves and nutritional information by Ngonda Badila of Obi Kanda Medicinals.
The exhibit runs March 9th through April 14th at Hudson Hall at the historic Hudson Opera House on Warren Street in Hudson. More information can be found online.
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The Daniel Arts Center at Bard College at Simon’s Rock presents ‘Material Record’ by Jamie Goldenberg
Great Barrington— “Material Record,” Jamie Goldenberg’s exhibition at the Daniel Arts Center at Bard College at Simon’s Rock, opens on March 8th at 5:00 p.m. with a collaborative weaving project and opening reception. The artist will briefly teach the principles of weaving and ask visitors to weave on her loom using yarns from her studio that she dyed over the past eight years.
The interactive weaving will be available for the duration of the show, and the final community-woven piece will be displayed at the closing event, which will take place on April 17th at 6 p.m. in the Black Box Theater at the Daniel Arts Center.
The exhibition is a collection of woven, stitched, and dyed works created between 2016 and 2024. Each piece tells the story of the specific moment and place where it was created. The collection explores themes of awe, uncertainty, grief, and reverence for the natural world. Each piece is an experiment in which the artist holds equal regard for her given circumstance and the impulse to act upon it.
Goldenberg describes the process of creating her piece “Marigold Curtain,” “Every week, for several months, I harvested marigolds from my garden, dyed wool, and then wove it on my loom. Throughout this time the parcel of land and materials remained consistent while the seasons and my own personal circumstances (sun, frost, grief, parenting, distraction) shifted. These fluctuations imprinted on the texture and color of the fibers. When I took the weaving off of my loom and stitched the piece together I found myself looking at proof of my survival.”
The exhibit is on view from March 8th through April 17th at the Daniel Arts Center at Bard College at Simon’s Rock on Alford Road in Great Barrington. More information can be found online.
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Berkshire Botanical Garden presents ‘Cannabis as Medicine’
Stockbridge— On Saturday, March 9th from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m., Berkshire Botanical Garden presents ‘Cannabis as Medicine.’
Join Kimberly Geiser as she gives an overview of the endocannabinoid system and how cannabis can be useful as medicine. She will explore what a “master plant” is, how to connect with a plant’s “spirit,” and what place that relationship has in our healing journey. You will learn to prepare infused oils, alcohol extracts, and cannabis as food medicine. At the event, you will sip tea, prepare a cannabis extract, and learn to turn that extract into a variety of different preparations. Participants will take home recipes, a prepared extract, and the confidence to do it at home.
Kimberly Geisler, is a clinical and folk herbalist, medicine maker and educator at Transcending Roots Apothecary. Kimberly opened an apothecary and community space centered around herbal education in Philadelphia in October of 2019, which has since transitioned into a cooperatively owned healing center, The Sacred Path. Kimberly has now settled in the forests of the Berkshires, building a botanical sanctuary and homestead, and further cultivating our relationship with the land and our communities.
The workshop is on Saturday, March 9th from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at Berkshire Botanical Garden on West Stockbridge Road in Stockbridge. The cost is $110 and $90 for members. Registration and more information can be found online.
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Ward’s Nursery and Garden Center’s free classes start on March 9th
Great Barrington— Ward’s Nursery and Garden Center presents free classes led by environmental and horticultural professionals beginning on Saturday March 9th.
The classes include “Compost Happens” on March 9th, “Principles of Pruning” on March 16th, “Apple Tree Pruning Demonstration” on March 23rd, “Baker’s Dozen of Herbs” on March 24th, and “Tour and Troubleshoot Spring Plants” on April 21st.
Classes are held in the store greenhouses among featured products like new gardening gear, flowering bulbs, cold-hardy annuals and herbs for early spring, all available for purchase.
The free classes start on Saturday, March 9th at Ward’s Nursery and Garden Center on Main Street in Great Barrington. Seating is limited and pre-registration is expected. Registration and more information can be found online or by calling 413-528-0166, ext. 23.