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Here is the lineup for the nineteenth Pittsfield CityJazz Festival, which runs from April 24 through May 4 in downtown Pittsfield, Massachusetts, the cultural capital of the Berkshires.

Sculpting the human body may not seem like dramatic grist, but this two-hander transcends its topic matter by incorporating universal themes. Nolan and Clark were friends from the sixth grade but went separate ways after school. Nolan seeks a professional certificate in body building. Meanwhile, Clark wants his weightlifting mentorship, believing that muscles will make him more masculine.

In essence, yielding with strength is a practice of cultivating inner resilience. It is about developing the ability to adapt to change, to flow with the currents of life, and to find strength in suppleness. It is about recognizing that true power lies not in rigid control, but in the ability to yield, to adapt, and to flow.  

William Holst was in Provincetown during the summer of the seminal Forum '49. He returned to study for several more seasons absorbing Hofmann's methods which he refined and taught. He developed what some refer to as Holstian Theories which included an expansive exploration of Hofmann’s ideas, but largely carried out in black and white. While an important artist of his generation Holst is not well known today. His influence on other artists, however, is palpable.

You'd never know that Leonard Bernstein and Herbert von Karajan skied together. Their meeting at the Sacher Hotel in Vienna did take place and is compellingly dramatized in a new play, Last Call.

Victoria Bond, composer and conductor, presents what she calls cutting edge music. Cutting edge it is. Yet,  what Bond is able to do for this famously inaccessible music, is to bring it to the ear and give pleasure. At the Leonard Nimoy Thalia Theater in Symphony Space in New York, the Jack Quartet performed.

The exhibition by Berkshire based artist Allan Seppa will feature photography of Southwest America, specifically of Arizona, Utah, and Colorado. At Framework by Downtown Pittsfield, Inc. (437 North Street).

Jeff is a PhD candidate in philosophy who ridicules reality shows. But chasing after his ex-girlfriend, he finds himself in the studio of such a show. Although he's candid about hating everything about them, the show runner anticipates good audience response if Jeff becomes a contestant. Like oil and water, they don't mix. But comedy ensues.

Daphne leaves South Dakota for New York City along with sister Miriam. Set over a year leading up to the Northeast Blackout of 1965, one sister seeks stardom on Broadway and the other is happy as a diner waitress. Their aspirations, relationships, and random events are the basis for a thoughtful pop musical.

Steve Locke is having a show now installed at MassMoCA (opened last August – goes to until Nov 8). Three years ago I wrote a poem to Steve, whom I know, after seeing his exhibition of “Cruising” at the Alexander Grey Gallery

Korean-American June lives in an assisted living facility. She swears up a storm; has major sex urges; and unfortunately, two men have died in her bed. Granddaughter Jade is an influencer and vloger who insinuates herself into June's life for her own selfish purposes, but when June is accused of murder, they will work toward common purpose in this comedy musical.

During a time of drought and poor fish catch, a fisherman and his daughter save a young boy from the sea, but he is from a different land and does not speak their language. Clashes ensue over how to deal with this involuntary interloper. The touching and well-produced opera benefits from its relevance to our current times and from the large role played by the San Francisco Girls Chorus.

Through June 1, the exhibition, Better on Paper, spotlights and celebrates some of the thousands of newly acquired and previously unseen works of art on paper, including prints, drawings, photographs, books, and other objects, acquired by the Davis Museum and the Wellesley College Library Special Collections over the last decade.

"The book has a long history and tradition, but since the beginning of the 20th century it has started to disappear physically and become virtual." Dorothea Fleiss has initiated and curated a number of book art exhibitions. The 2025 Biennale is dedicated to students and young artists.

The theater’s 40th anniversary season opens with ENGLISH by Sanaz Toossi, the winner of the 2023 Pulitzer Prize. “English Only” is the mantra that rules one classroom in Iran, where four adults are preparing for the TOEFL - the Test of English as a Foreign Language. Together, with their teacher, they leapfrog through a linguistic playground that is a funny, stunning triumph about the universal foibles of language and miscommunication, hoping that one day English will make them whole. TheaterWorks Hartford’s production of English will run October - November of 2025 (exact dates to be announced).  

Our North Adams neighbors Roger and Ellen Questel send news from Florida. They are sharing an exhibition Time and Transformation at Jane's Art Center in New Smyrna Beach. We are pleased to share their information and images.

Patricia Hills is a leftist/ feminist scholar, professor and curator. Since retirement from teaching art history at Boston University she has continued with research and writing. This essay is a chapter from her soon to be published memoir Feisty Feminist Challenges the Art World. Here she vividly relates the Boston Massacre when MFA director Malcolm Rogers fired renowned curators pursuant to his vision of One Museum. In a corporate, manner unique to the well mannered art world, they were escorted from the museum. Hills organized protest against this initiative. She endured a counterattack from the museum but was supported by Boston University.

Dahlia Stasevska, known for her commanding presence and elegant, balletic gestures, recently debuted with the Berlin Philharmonic. The response was enthusiastic. Her tenure as Principal Guest Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, extended through 2027, reflects her growing prominence in the classical world.

In this great serio-comic fantasy, the famed lothario Don Giovanni "courts" three ladies in short order. He also slays the father of one, setting off a man hunt and revenge by the spirit of the deceased.

Leir Stage performances will be held Wednesdays through Saturdays for all nine weeks of Festival 2025, offering one-night and two-night engagements by companies dancing Afro-Caribbean, contemporary, swing, tap, ballet, jazz, Indigenous, modern, West African, and more. Performances by artists of the Berkshires on Community Day, and by the Contemporary Ballet, Contemporary, and Tap Dance ensembles of The School at Jacob's Pillow, round out the schedule.

Night Side Songs is a communal music-theater experience performed for—and with—an intimate audience that celebrates the resilience of the human spirit. Inspired by American writer, philosopher, and cultural critic Susan Sontag’s observation that “illness is the night side of life.”

New City Players in South Florida triumphs with its first production of an Arthur Miller Play "All My Sons" runs through March 9 in Island City Stage's intimate black box space in Wilton Manors, near Ft. Lauderdale. Acting does not get much better than this.

The Pulitzer Prize-winning play English by Sanaz Toossi raises fascinating questions about the interconnections of language, culture, and identity. Does learning a new language result in the loss of our sense of self? Does adapting to a new culture mean you are rejecting your heritage?

. The season features expanded offerings in the spring, summer, and fall. With two mainstage productions, three Fresh Takes play readings, and a dynamic community program—including documentary films, thought-provoking panels, and creative exchanges with women-led theatre companies.

Jesus Christ's betrayal and crucifixion as rendered by Andrew Lloyd Weber and Tim Rice's stands as one of the long running musicals in history. To many theatergoers, it is simply a beautifully crafted work with fine music and intense drama. Yet to some, it teems with controversy as the character representations don't fit in traditionalists' boxes.