Historians and biographers do not agree that Lizzie, in fact, did commit the murders. They point to her uncle as having motive and opportunity, plus the fact that her father was not well-loved in the town.

Lisa Sanaya Dring’s "Sumo," playing at La Jolla Playhouse, tells the story of six sumo wrestlers living and training at an elite facility in Tokyo.

At 93 Eric 'Enrico' Lumet lived a long and remarkable life. Brilliant. witty and talented he would belt out arias. Born in Austria and interned in Mussolini's Italy he wrote two books about that childhood experience with his mother. Denied education by the Nazis he was home schooled and tutored. He spoke five languages which he used when he and his wife "Cookie" traveled extensively. He was a much admired member of the Berkshire International Club.

For many regions, 2023 was a difficult vintage, torn between heat waves often coupled with heavy rainfall, and drastic drought. In view of this record, Alsace is in a privileged position, and 2023, at a time when the wines are still fermenting (the harvest ended on Thursday, October 12), looks like a miraculous vintage.

On its third release, I Palchi 2021 follows the path of research created by the Inama family: constantly improving in order to pursue ever more ambitious goals, in search of the highest purity of fruit.

Within Wagner’s canon, "Lohengrin" represents the apotheosis of his Romantic period and the launch point for his magnum opus, the four-opera music drama, the Ring Cycle.  As with much of the composer’s output, “Lohengrin” draws from Norse-Germanic mythology with strong fairy tale elements and moral-religious overtones.  The libretto is considered by many to be to be his best plotted.  Its breadth is breathtaking with themes of love, fidelity, trust, belief, misogyny, sacrifice, betrayal, revenge, tribalism, militarism, and more.

E. Alexander Baker, Erika Berland and Wendell Beavers are all residents at the Eclipse Mill in North Adams, Massachusetts. The mill offers live and work spaces for creative people. Baker’s exhibition can be seen in the Eclipse Mill gallery until October 29 with hours from Thursday to Sunday, 11 am to 6pm.

ArtWeek Berkshires will occur at multiple venues from October 14 to 23. In North Adams the Eclipse Mill will again host open studios.

Many adjectives have been thrown at or glued to the conductor Rafael Payare, who came to Carnegie Hall with the San Diego Symphony he conducts.  We haven't heard him live. He has a life-and-death urgency to his music-making. Carlos Simon and Shostakovich seemed so present, so thrilling and so important.  

The Defiant Requiem Foundation, has a signature concert performance of the Verdi Requiem, as it was performed in the Terezin concentration camp over and over again. The original chorus changed constantly as members were transferred to Auschwitz.

Wim Wenders new film, "The Tokyo Toilet," had its New York premiere at the New York Film Festival in Lincoln Center in New York. A Tokyo toilet cleaner, Hirayama, is played brilliantly and subtly by Yakusho Koji. Hirayama steps out of his small Tokyo home and looks up at the sky.  Another perfect day begins. Now. Not Next. These phrases pepper the film often. 

The 12 looks at the immediate days following the crucifixion of Jesus through the eyes of his Apostles. Scared, uncertain, questioning. How do they stay safe? What should they do? What do they really believe?

In collaboration with curator/designer Martina Salisbury, The Friends of Beattie-Powers Place presents Moments in Time :: Pictures 1965-2023. The intimate salon installation offers a rare opportunity to view a selection of over 60 of Gerard Malanga’s photographs, including portraits of some of the most illustrious artists, musicians, literary figures, and cultural icons of the last six decades.  ?

In a new, non-equity national tour of Annie, the titular character shines bright. Cast is comprised of performers at the top of their game. The Ft. Lauderdale run continues through Oct. 22, before the show heads to Orlando.

This exhibition will be a celebration of Del Deo’s life and artistic career, featuring portraits, studio work, and the Italian landscapes celebrating his heritage, Provincetown landscapes, and reaffirm his status as a significant contributor to the legacy of the Provincetown Art Colony and to American art history.

"Sordid Lives," Del Shores' comedy drama from three decades ago, is running through Oct. 22 in Ft. Lauderdale's intimate Empire Stage. The piece is funny, timely, and entertaining. Cast members find the humanity beneath the characters' eccentricities.

"Eugene Onegin in his Own Words" was created by noted Russian director Dmitry Krymov and presented at LaMama in New York. Dmitry Anatolyevich Krymov (born 1954, Moscow, Russia) is a Russian artist, scenographer, teacher and theater director, five times Laureate of the Golden Mask award. He left Russia for USA the day after invasion into Ukraine started. Seven of his plays were quickly banned in his country. In 2022 he started Krymov Lab NYC, his new theatrical endeavor.

The Vermont Symphony Orchestra is returning to Bellows Falls on Sunday, November 5, with a special matinee at the Bellows Falls Opera House. The performance is part of the VSO’s 2023 “Made in Vermont Series;” shows highlighting guest artists from the Green Mountain State’s vibrant indie, folk, and rock scene. 

Composer/librettist Carlisle Floyd drew on Nobel Laureate John Steinbeck for one of his most successful operas, “Of Mice and Men.”  It hews closely to the simple plotline of the novella, which is one of America’s distinguished, if controversial literary works, locally banned on various grounds, including sex, violence, racism, and euthanasia.

Ivoryton Playhouse’s production of The Color Purple running through Sunday, Oct. 15, deserves big audiences. It is an ambitious show that is very well performed. Unfortunately, some may believe it is too dark.

Santa Fe based Exodus Ensemble has introduced theater that has become about as immersive as possible, short of the patrons spontaneously driving the narrative.  Performed by a troupe of talented and committed actors, this new form of entertainment already has a track record of delighting those who value youth, spontaneity, innovation, audience participation, and rule breaking.  Those preferring more established modes may be split on whether this kind of entertainment works for them.

Alvin Ouellet, an Adams-based artist, will present an Artist Talk on Sunday, October 15th from 4:45 pm to 5:15 pm at Images Cinema, 50 Spring Street, Williamstown, MA. His exhibition in the cinema lobby is on view through October 31.

Set in Lagos in the ‘90s, the story centers on a young woman who hopes to break into show business by responding to an open audition for the lead in a movie. Many universal issues arise, but with the addition of West African context and characters.

Riccardo Muti’s long and winding road in this country has led him from Philadelphia to Chicago.  He is always rooted in Carnegie Hall whose acoustics benefit the micro-miniaturizing attention to a music’s score. Even Philip Glass, whose repeated phrases sometimes merge one to the other, seemed as clear as the strings that dominate in Glass’s composition dedicated to the Maestro.

The play, English, by Iranian-American playwright Sanaz Toossi, was selected by freshman artistic director, Alan Paul, well before it won the Pulitzer Prize in May. Because of the original actress was unavailable she has stepped in to portray Elham. Thereby, the Barrington Stage production, directed by Knud Adams, is a double triumph. The play is complex, topical and timely while her acting proves to be utterly charming.