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Check out our what to do section for a complete list of Berkshire cultural attractions.
 
No Time to Rest
By Bess Hochstein
 
September 2008

This is supposed to be a quiet time in the Berkshires – between the end of summer and the beginning of foliage season. But things are far from quiet here, and the television show Good Morning America made sure of that by launching its “50 states in 50 days” whistle-stop tour of America in the Berkshires on September 15, beginning their tour in Lenox, at the Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum, and riding the rails through Lee, where the hosts stopped in at Joe’s Diner for a recreation of Norman Rockwell’s iconic Saturday Evening Post cover, “The Runaway.” Then it was on to the Stockbridge station, where hosts Diane Sawyer, Robin Roberts, and Chris Cuomo were greeted by media-happy crowds, including a local marching band. The show continued at the historic Red Lion Inn, with GMA broadcasting live from the famous, rocking-chair-bedecked porch. The morning included a stroll through the shops of Stockbridge, a yoga segment featuring Kripalu, and a discussion with the Inn’s chef Brian Alberg (recently profiled in the Dining column), who drove in on his Harley with a basket of muffins that Robin Roberts distributed to the audience. Alberg talked about his work with the Railroad Street Youth Project, introducing teens to the culinary profession. Local treasures James Taylor and Yo-Yo Ma performed a few songs together, and the crowd predictably went wild at the line in “Rockabye Sweet Baby James” about the snow-covered turnpike from Stockbridge to Boston. Chris Cuomo was carrying around a poster featuring BerkShares, our regional currency, which happens to be holding its 2nd Annual Bash on September 20 at the Searles Castle in Great Barrington, honoring Red Lion Inn’s sister establishment, Jacks Grill. The event features live music plus local crafts and food for purchase with BerkShares by participating businesses such as Route 7 Grill, Guido’s, and the Berkshire Co-op Market.

The crew shot a few extra songs for a weekend broadcast in October, including Taylor ripping out a lively number by the Dixie Chicks and an adaptation of George Harrison’s “Here Comes the Sun,” quite appropriate for the blue-sky day. But even without these star turns we are plenty busy here in the Berkshires. Our friends D & W visited last weekend; D works for a Manhattan architecture firm, and he was anxious to see Tadao Ando’s new Stone Hill Center at the Clark. Since D is always interested in art, they scoured Hoadley Gallery and Church Street Art. En route north, we stopped in for the grand opening festivities at the Open Market in Aspinwell, continuing on to the Ferrin Gallery in Pittsfield, where they were intrigued by Sergei Isuprov’s drawings and ceramic sculptures. Because D’s passion is modernist architecture, our last stop before the Clark was the Field Farm Guest House, where the innkeeper showed us around this 1948 Bauhaus-inspired home turned B&B. We were too late for a tour of the Ulrich Franzen-designed folly, so we got back on the road and finally arrived at the Clark, following the driveway to the new building. D probably took a few hundred photos of Stone Hill Center, marveling at its clean lines and how it beautifully frames the countryside. When I realized he had not yet seen the ’62 Center, we drove to the Williams campus and poked around the grand performing arts center. I took advantage of our visit to pick up a few tickets to the October 16 lecture by Princeton University bioethics professor and animal rights activist Peter Singer. We strolled through Spring Street, popping in at the Harrison Gallery, LiAsia, and Library Antiques before heading home, stopping at Guido’s on the way for dinner ingredients. The next morning we discussed our brunch options, considering the sumptuous Indian buffet at Bombay Bar & Grill before realizing that to take advantage of the few remaining warm days we could go to Xicohtencatl and sit on the porch, soaking up the sun. D & W both enjoyed their breakfast burritos before a brief gallery tour of Great Barrington – Sanford Smith Fine Art, Berkshire Art Gallery – then reluctantly headed home to New York City.
 
I was back at Williams College a few days later for a press conference and lecture by author and political commentator Arianna Huffington, who runs the popular Huffington Post internet site and has a new book out called “Right is Wrong.” (Between the conference and lecture, my friend G and I had a great dinner at Sushi Thai Garden.) Huffington’s biggest laugh line of the lecture was calling V.P. candidate Sarah Palin a “Trojan Moose,” noting that due to her own Greek heritage she knows a lot about Trojan horses. While she was a truly impressive speaker, I was also impressed with the caliber of questions from the students, who were given a generous 90 minutes to interact with Huffington.
 
Looks like we’ll be spending a lot of time in Williamstown and North Adams this season; Williams has a great roster at the ’62 Center, including two one-woman, multi-character shows. The first, on September 20 & 21, is Dai, by Iris Bahr, set in a Tel Aviv café moments before a suicide bomber enters. Next, on September 23, is performance artist Claudia Stevens’ free, one-woman show, Blue Lias, about 19th century fossil collector Mary Anning. MASS MoCA will draw crowds for its Member Appreciation Day on September 27. Members can bring a friend for free and take in a discussion with artist Alexis Rockman, whose monumental depiction of Antarctica is a focal point of the Badlands exhibition. We’ll stay for the 8 pm work-in-progress showing of Time and Motion Study by artist-in-residence Nick Brooke.
 
Pittsfield is also hopping, especially for this week’s 3rd Thursday after-hours celebration on September 18, aptly themed “Dancing in the Streets,” which features Samba, square dancing, clogging, tap dancing, ballroom, step dancing, and ballet. The Main Stage will be stationed in front of the Crowne Plaza Hotel, with Albany’s Audiostars, a kinetic 4-piece band that delivers classic songs with energy and passion, from 6 – 9 pm; the hotel will offer food and drinks for sale outdoors. More musicians will be playing all along North Street, and at the Intermodal Center, the downtown home of Berkshire Community College and MCLA, where you can also sample food from the BCC’s Culinary Arts Students and enjoy student artwork. Ferrin Gallery is previewing the latest show of its “Firing Partners” series, and Berkshire Museum will be open free until 8 pm. And, in a preview of the spectacular fall foliage, Worthington Balloons will be offering tethered balloon rides from 5:30 - 7:30 pm.
 
The “Firing Partners” show of ceramics at Ferrin Gallery officially opens with a reception on Saturday, September 20, as does a new show at Storefront Artist Project, “Hand Drawn.” It’s going to be an artful weekend, as Lenox is throwing its “Autumn Art Festival September 19-21. In addition, Norman Rockwell Museum has extended its popular outdoor exhibition, “In Full Bloom: Artists Design Garden Gates,” through October 19; Chesterwood’s outdoor Contemporary Sculpture show runs through October 19, and the Frelinghuysen Morris House & Studio has also extended its season, remaining open Thursdays-Saturdays, and on Sunday during Columbus Day Weekend.

But the harvest season is also in focus; Berkshire Grown just threw its annual “Beautiful Bountiful Berkshires” harvest celebration at Eastover’s barn, featuring food and drinks from the farm-to-table organizations members, including Barrington Brewery, Canyon Ranch, Chez Nous, Jae’s Spice, Martin’s, and Wheatleigh. Other participants are taking it even further with their own local foods events. Allium’s Slow Food dinner on September 25 and the Red Lion Inn’s special Harvest Dinners on Sept 19 and October 3 spotlight produce, meat, cheese, and other products from specific local farms and food producers. On September 27, Pittsfield Brew Works is holding its first “BerkToberfest,” a sort of early Oktoberfest, with food and beer from local restaurants and artisanal brewers plus an Oompah Band. Additional sensational harvest events are scheduled over that same weekend: the 29th Annual Apple Squeeze and Folk Art Festival in Lenox, September 26-28, with food, music, crafts, rides, and more; as well as the 11th Annual Country Fair at Hancock Shaker Village September 26-28, with a pie contest, tastings of heirloom vegetables, vendors of old-time farm-related crafts and trades, local purveyors of the region’s best food, plus wagon ride, games, and more fun for the whole family. Founder’s Weekend in Lee takes place over same dates, featuring a Taste of Lee, a hometown parade, the Italian Fest, and the Festival Latino. It’s as busy as peak time in summer, which is why there’s no time to rest.

About Bess Hochstein

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.


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