In matters poetic Stephen Rifkin is my mentor/ tormentor. In "Penelope" about the faithful wife of Odysseus I compared her to that slut Helen of Troy. He posted a similarity to his "Helen on the Beach" which I promptly read but failed to see the connection. I raised this issue during our weekly Monday night Chinese. He sent this further commentary which I suggested we post. Now you dear reader can be a part of the dialogue.

Highlights of Jacob's Pillow Festival 2016 include a world premiere engagement created by tap dance powerhouses Dormeshia Sumbry-Edwards, Derick K. Grant, and Jason Samuels Smith; former New York City Ballet principal dancer Wendy Whelan and choreographer Brian Brooks in an evening of new duets and solos, accompanied by eminent string quartet Brooklyn Rider; rare U.S. appearances by France-based Compagnie Hervé KOUBI and Korea-based contemporary ensemble Bereishit Dance Company; the explosive Che Malambo of Argentina; and the return of the beloved Seattle-based company Pacific Northwest Ballet.

Saint Blasien is a lovely 750-year-old town deep in the valley of the Alb River. Unlike the large cities in Germany; Munich, Berlin, Frankfurt and Stuttgart the Weilnachtsmarkt (Christmas Market) in Saint Blasien is small with only local artisans displaying their works.

MASS MoCA has many highlights in its schedule for exhibitions and performances. Start to mark our calendars particularly for the June 11 exclusive performance of The National which is sure to sell out in a flash.

The National will be in North Adams on Saturday, June 11, at 8pm, in its only Northeast headline show in all of 2016. The concert benefits MASS MoCA and Hawthorne Valley Association, in Ghent, New York. The Ohio-raised, Brooklyn-based band, which consists of vocalist Matt Berninger, plus two pairs of brothers: Aaron Dessner (guitar, bass, piano) and Bryce Dessner (guitar), and Scott Devendorf (bass, guitar) and Bryan Devendorf (drums), have landed on every “best of” list in print.

The boys always gather at Christmas time to be with their widowed father where all get to ham it up, tease one another and play the games of their youth as a way of diverting the boredom of the three day holiday. California's Kirk Douglas Theatre premieres a play by the New Yorker Young Jean Lee.

From April 30 to June 12, 2016 at Theatre for a New Audience Arin Arbus will direct John Douglas Thompson in Henrik Ibsen’s “A Doll’s House” and August Strindberg’s “The Father.” They will be presented in repertory. Previously he performed as Judge Brack in Ibsen’s Hedda Gabler at the New York Theatre Workshop directed by Ivo von Hove but this will be his first role in a Strindberg play.

You would never know that symphony orchestras had problems reaching a younger audience. Geffen Hall in New York was packed with young people eager to listen and offer their opinions on characters, stories and their expression in music. Theodore Wiprud, the NY Phil's Vice President for Education, was master of ceremonies. Peter, the Wolf, Babar and Celeste and the impish Till Eulenspiegel were a delight.

The critical essay "Gonzo Shine" was written by Robert Henriquez on the occasion of the publication of Total Gonzo Poems by Charles Giuliano. He was also essayist for the first book Shards of a Life. Here Henriquez further explores the development and sources for gonzo poetry. These ideas germinated through an ongoing dialogue as the work developed and morphed into a signature style.

A bustling metropolis within easy reach of the Atlantic rain forest, Curitiba is an urban planner's dream with wide avenues, ample green space, and unique modern architecture. The cobblestoned historic center, along with the typical ethnic neighborhoods enhance the city's charm.

Kyoto is one of the most beautiful cities in Japan and center for the appreciation of its ancient Samurai culture.

Why has Dangerous Liaisons been translated onto the stage and into three movies, including films by Milos Forman and Roger Vadim? Because it's the stuff of which great art can be made. Playing the game of life (and money) is something Wall Street understands well. We can benefit from watching it spin out. But there are no metaphors in the luurious period costumes. The opera by Conrad Susa with text by Philip Littell is an enticing guide.

The Barbara Lee Collection of Art by Women, established at the ICA in 2014, represents three decades of collecting by Lee and brings together painting, sculpture, photography, and videography by iconic modern and contemporary women artists.

Handel lovers were in heaven this Thanksgiving. Local reigning early music superstar, soprano Amanda Forsythe set the First Church in Cambridge on fire with her vocal pyrotechnics, while across the river, the BEMF assembled a number of her colleagues to repeat its delightul "Acis and Galatea." What more could you want?

Tom Krens joined the Guggenheim Foundation in 1988 when museums were attempting to transform to business models. Now, for North Adams he is developing Global Contemporary Art Museum. In a new paradigm it is being privately funded as a for profit institution. With reverse momentum he is establishing a business on the model of a fine arts museum.

For seven years former Guggenheim Foundation director, Tom Krens, made grueling monthly trips to China. He declines to discuss how he was "beaten down" in negotiations with the Chinese. He has opted to develop two museum level projects closer to home. Krens, a Williams alumnus and former director of its museum, initiated what is now Mass MoCA. He left decades ago but has maintained a residence in Williamstown.

Noel Coward is known as the playwright of brittle, witty Roaring Twenties drawing room comedies such as Blithe Spirit, Design for Living, Private Lives and Hay Fever, which are part of the regular repertoire for theaters all over the world. Fallen Angels, a 1923 play, is not as well known and reviewers considered it vulgar and risqué when first produced in 1925 in London and in 1927 in New York.

Diana Damrau attends every detail of her performance. A gifted programmer, she started small and moving, with a Schubert song and ended vamping Dvorak.

Hamilton the hottest ticket in New York City, boasting $ 27 million advance ticket sales in just the first few weeks since opening. Rumors have it that orchestra tickets are selling on the street in excess of $1300 each for a weekend performance.

Using a satellite image Tom Krens commented on a six mile line connecting North Adams and Williamstown. It was a part of an engaging power point presentation to develop a cultural corridor connecting world class resources including a new for profit museum and one in North Adams featuring model railroads and maquettes by renowned architects. Former governors Dukakis and Weld attended the presentation.

The investigative stories depicted in "Spotlight" and "Truth" although based on events that occurred not that long ago represent that last gasp of the tradition of great American journalism. Beyond entertainment these films raise issues about the ever diminished means by which we get the news.

Noted as a golf-lovers paradise with opportunities to play on many different courses Hilton Head Island features spectacular natural scenery. There are fabulous restaurants, gracious homes surrounded by live oaks and Spanish moss, dozens of shopping venues from upscale to outlets. And fantastic resorts!

Host for the 2016 Olympics and Paralympic Games, Rio has spectacular natural landmarks, gorgeous sparkling beaches, notable museums and an appealing laid-back joyous lifestyle evident all hours of the day and night.

For the past several decades, photography has been a creative media for urban designer/artist Mark Favermann. However, he came to it rather late only starting to take pictures when he was 33. His current exhibit at Newbury College in Brookline, MA displays his critical and appreciative eye for architecture, environment and culturally relevant structures and details.

Bellini died young, but like Mozart and Schubert, will never be forgotten. Norma is the all-time great Bellini opera. In the age of Lena Dunham, it comes as a shock that women in antiquity could choose friendship over boyfriends. Even the Roman consul is shocked when one of his lovers upends him. For great singing, rush to the LA Opera's Norma.