Hibernation’s Not Happening

By Bess Hochstein 

Yesterday K filled the birdfeeder and hung it outside, where happy little birdies immediately gathered. He was prompted to set up the feeder by the cold weather that has finally arrived. This morning he found it on the ground, with all the seed gone, indicating that the bears have not yet gone into hibernation.

Despite the cold, there’s no way we’ll go into hibernation – there’s too much going on to hunker down inside. For example, “Fully Committed,” the one-man comedy based on a day in the life of an out-of-work actor manning the phones at a red-hot Manhattan restaurant, is back at Barrington Stage Company through November 18. This play ran to full houses last February, and it’s likely to sell out again. The company is also reprising another sure-fire sell-out, “Lady Day at Emerson’s Bar & Grill,” for one week only, December 5-9. If you’re fully committed to attending these shows, you’d best buy your tickets soon, as the audience for year-long theater in the Berkshires is strong and growing.

There’s also live theater in a venue usually reserved for film. Last night K and I went to a family-friendly production of “Feathertop,” based on Nathaniel Hawthorne’s short story about a witch and a ghost who bring a scarecrow to life. It’s running live at The Triplex cinema on weekends through November 18, and on that morning Berkshire Living presents its latest public “The Rest of the Story” forum. This month’s topic will be “Livin’ La Vida Latina,” an exploration of the local Latino community. All these Triplex events give us more opportunities to peruse Great Barrington’s restaurant row after the show. After “Feathertop” we landed at Bizen, though Pearl’s or Allium were solid contenders, as was Castle Street Café around the corner, and Xicohtencatl a bit north on Route 7.

Pittsfield, too, has its own restaurant row, so before or after seeing a play based in a hot restaurant you can go to one, choosing from an international array: Brix Wine Bar for French; Trattoria Rustica for Italian; Hot Harry’s for Mexican; Pittsfield Brew Works for house-made suds and pub fare; and the House of India and Brazilian Restaurant & Pub serving their namesake cuisines. And now there are two new kids on the block: Bobby Hudpuckers Grill & Pub has recently relocated to bigger digs on North Street, and upscale Spice has spun-off a simpler sibling, Burger. Last week we went to Burger’s pre-opening party. Sounds bleak for a vegetarian, but in addition to the namesake sandwich on a bun, there’s also a falafel burger on the menu, plus an array of fries – French, Cajun, sweet potato, and eggplant – on which I gorged myself. The party was packed; K & I chatted with Hope, who runs IS183 Art School of the Berkshires; Kelley, who founded the Berkshire International Film Festival; Gregory, a photographer for Berkshire Living magazine; Lesley, managing editor of the magazine’s latest offshoot, Berkshire Business Quarterly, and the youngest member of the Berkshire legislative contingency, State Senator Benjamin Downing. And that’s only on North Street and its immediate vicinity. This plethora of dining spots, combined with the flourishing cultural scene, is part of the reason the current issue of Yankee Magazine named Pittsfield “The Most Surprising City in New England.”

It shouldn’t be surprising, given all that’s going on there. Last weekend, “In the Realm of Rumi” opened at the Lichtenstein Center for the Arts, part of the international celebration of thirteenth-century Sufi mystic and poet Jelaluddin Rumi’s 800th birthday. This exhibition features printmaking, paintings, calligraphy, hand printed silk scarves, monoprints, and sacred beadwork, and will include future concerts, workshops and a traditional turning ritual and poetry reading. On Tuesday, 11/13, Wheatleigh chef Tim Brown is holding a free cooking demonstration and tasting at the Berkshire Athenaeum. The next evening, 11/14, the Storefront Artists Project is holding its first-ever Salon, a gathering of artists and art-interested individuals to help shape the future of the Project and participate in its evolution. Project Director Peter Dudek will present the roster of upcoming Storefront exhibitions, programs, and artists’ opportunities.  And even though Cultural Pittsfield’s wildly popular “Third Thursdays” downtown after-hours events are over for the year, a group of merchants are carrying on, staying open late on 11/15 and other Thursday evenings for holiday shopping. The Colonial presents local legend Arlo Guthrie in his “Solo Reunion Tour” on 11/16; and “Laughing Liberally,” an array of stand-up comics using material straight out of the latest headlines, on 11/17.  Before going to see Arlo, head next door to the Gala Preview Party for the Berkshire Museum’s Festival of Trees. This year’s theme is “On the Move;” over 200 trees will be decorated with in a transportation theme.

About Bess Hochstein

Buzz chronicler Bess J.M. Hochstein came to the Berkshires as a second-homeowner before deciding to move here full time. Previously a communications executive, she's now a freelance writer living in Tyringham with her corgis Duffy and Hobbs and K. She writes for several publications, including Berkshire Living, the Boston Globe, New England Wine Gazette, and Healing Lifestyles & Spas magazine.