Articles
by Gina Beavers | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter
You know spring is coming when Old Deerfield says it is, and Old Deerfield has spoken. The Old Deerfield Spring Sampler Craft Fair is at the Big E this weekend. The fair features 150 juried artisans in all crafts media, including goodies for garden and Easter-themed...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, Newsletter, Stage
American International College’s Theater Arts Program presents John Patrick Shanley’s Pulitzer Prize-winning play, Doubt: A Parable. Described as a “brilliant play” that asks many questions but challenges you to find your own answers. Doubt: A...
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, News
Angel Rivera, a table games instructor and supervisor for MGM Springfield, held a stack of 20 chips, or as what they’re referred to in the gaming industry as, “checks.” and told more than half a dozen students on Feb. 26, the first ever day of classes at the...
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, Music, News, Newsletter
Alternative rock band Deer Tick, known for its blend of influences from grungy alternative rock, to folk, punk, blues, and country, is heading to the Academy of Music Theatre this Friday, March 2, at 7 p.m. as part of Signature Sounds’ Back Porch Festival. Ahead of...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, Music, Newsletter, Valley Advocate Sessions
Wishbone Zoe performs bass-driven experimental indie pop with Advocate Sessions this week. Check out a teaser video of Wishbone Zoe’s full performance, which will be released this Friday.
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
More than two dozen workers and union rights activists rallied outside the campus entrance of Greenfield Community College (GCC) on Monday, Feb. 26, to stand in solidarity with thousands of workers from around the country during the Workers’ Day of Action. The rally,...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, Between the Lines, News, Newsletter
Fifty years ago, in 1968, student protests rocked the Vietnam War debate, and were eventually credited with turning public sentiment against the war. For young people, particularly young men, their very lives were at stake with the instituted military draft sending...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, Music, Newsletter
Indie rock and folk singer-songwriter Andrew Bird makes what he calls “three-dimensional music” – a mixture of violin, guitar, and virtuoso whistling, combined with intricate looping pedals. As a teen Bird became interested in a variety of styles including early jazz,...
by Chris Rohmann | Feb 27, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Columns, Newsletter, Stage, Stagestruck
A troupe of high-spirited performers bound onstage and solicit goofy suggestions for characters and situations from the audience. Then they improvise short, snappy scenes based on those prompts. The comedy flows from the incongruities and the improvisers’ quick wits....
by Advocate Staff | Feb 26, 2018 | Articles, Newsletter, Podcast, The V-Spot
Yana Tallon-Hicks has been writing the Advocate’s sex and relationship column, The V-Spot, for seven years. It’s something she enjoys greatly, but she says it isn’t exactly the Carrie Bradshaw lifestyle some people seem to think it is. She is also a...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 26, 2018 | Articles, Music, Newsletter, Stage
The big band sound never gets old, so if you’re free at 7:30 tonight, check out the stylings of the Jeff Holmes Big Band featuring composer/lyricist Dawning Holmes on vocals. They’re swinging at the 121 Club and it’s free. Holmes has performed with legendary stars...
by Rob Brezny | Feb 26, 2018 | Articles, Astrology, Newsletter
ARIES (March 21-April 19): On September 1, 1666, a London baker named Thomas Farriner didn’t take proper precautions to douse the fire in his oven before he went to sleep. Consequences were serious. The conflagration that ignited in his little shop burned down large...
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 23, 2018 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, The CDs You Gave Me
Welcome to the first of a new monthly column – The CDs You Gave Me – featuring reviews of new albums by Western Mass bands and solo artists. I’m a musician myself as a member of 10-piece theatrical and avant-garde pop ensemble, The Leafies You Gave Me (get it?), so I...
by Jack Brown | Feb 23, 2018 | Articles, Cinemadope, Columns, Film, Newsletter
It’s always been a point of pride at Amherst Cinema that they are no mere movie house. Plunked down right in the heart of the town’s downtown, flanked by coffee spots and park greens, the theater has always been something of a community hub. Perhaps it would have been...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Feb 23, 2018 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, The V-Spot
Hi there! I’m an early 30s, cis, brown, queer non-monogamous woman. My question is about a situation I find myself in with a lover and my best friend. This best friend is my Bestie, my chosen family. The lover is my first male lover in over a decade. (I was with...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 23, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Film, Newsletter
Hampshire College invites you to enjoy a few hours of action packed films from the Telluride Mountain Film Festival. Mountainfilm travels year round and worldwide with a selection of its best short films. This year, 13 films are screening at Franklin Patterson Hall...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 23, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter, Stage
As the mighty Shakespeare (or the Martian) might say, “here’s the rub”: Anthony and Rosemary are two clueless, lovelorn neighbors. Anthony’s father Tony and Rosemary’s mother Aoife are locked in a bitter land feud. Rosemary has been...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 23, 2018 | Articles, Music, Valley Advocate Sessions
Carolyn Walker is a singer-songwriter with a penchant for bittersweet folk melodies with a dash of alternative rock. Check out Carolyn Walker’s full Valley Advocate Sessions performance in the link below. Advocate Sessions, which features sets and interviews by...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 23, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Music
It’s Friday and who wouldn’t want to celebrate the legendary man in black: Johnny Cash. Flathead Rodeo plays an original blend of rockabilly and the music that influenced it. Flathead Radio is: Mistress Miriam on vocals, Theo Aronson on upright bass,...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 22, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter, Wellness
The Springfield Family Resource Center of Gandara is located in a modest building at 18 Gaucher Street in Springfield’s Pine Point neighborhood, and upon arrival it’s clear that this social service agency is a community lifeline. Inside, the narrow reception area...
by Sarah Heinonen | Feb 22, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
Dee Marshall, 73, of Ware, sits in the front seat of the Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) shuttle bus wrapped in her pink coat. She had a doctor’s appointment in Longmeadow today, as she does every Friday. She left her house early this morning to catch...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 22, 2018 | Articles, Arts, News, Newsletter
Social media expert, New York Times best-selling author, and pop-critic, Luvvie Ajayi takes the stage at Mount Holyoke College as it continues its celebration of Black History Month. If you’re in the mood for great intelligence, wit, and charm, this is the place to...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Feb 21, 2018 | Articles, Between the Lines, News, Newsletter
On Tuesday, Amherst state Representative Solomon Goldstein-Rose became the second independent in the Massachusetts Statehouse, changing his party affiliation from Democrat to unenrolled. Predictably, party elders and political pundits — the same ones that predicted a...
by Gina Beavers, Chris Goudreau, Dave Eisenstadter | Feb 21, 2018 | Articles, Bizarro Briefs, Newsletter
“I can’t wait until the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo-Bell ….” Viewers likely experienced an unexpected craving for Chinese food when a Chicago’s ABC affiliate mixed up Olympics host city PyeongChang with the popular restaurant P.F.Chang. The news station apologized...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 21, 2018 | Articles, Newsletter, Staff Picks
500 YEARS // WEDNESDAY, FEB. 28 500 Years exposes Guatemala’s official history of brutality, entrenched racism and genocide through the indigenous Mayan population’s uprising that threatens to topple a corrupt government. Director Pamela Yates will be...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 21, 2018 | Articles, Music, Newsletter, Valley Advocate Sessions
Carolyn Walker is a singer-songwriter with a penchant for bittersweet folk melodies with a dash of alternative rock. Her full performance will be available this Friday. Check out our Sessions teaser video in the link below.
by Gina Beavers | Feb 21, 2018 | Articles, Newsletter
The UMass Minutemen vs. VCU If you want to watch the Celtics play at the Garden, it’s going to cost you an average of $90 and that’s not including driving, eating and parking. But if you go cheer on your UMass Minutemen, it’ll cost you $16-$24. Grab...
by Meg Bantle | Feb 20, 2018 | Articles, Columns, News, Newsletter, O Cannabis!
Algebra and edibles do not usually mix, but for Mark Wikar one is absolutely essential for creating the other. Even though his background is as a pastry chef, Wikar now uses a lot of math to create perfectly dosed edibles at INSA, a medical cannabis dispensary that...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 20, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter, Stage
Comedian Kim “Boney” DeShields is funny, except when she’s talking about making people laugh. “It’s an art,” she says matter of factly. “You have to be smart to make people laugh. You have to be well read and knowledgeable about a lot of things. But most of all,...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 20, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter
March of the Penguins Just because it’s school vacation doesn’t mean you have to sit at home and play games on your phone all day. Go see the feel good movie March of the Penguins at KidsBestFest at the Academy of Music. It’s a free film festival for...
by Sarah Heinonen | Feb 19, 2018 | Articles, Arts, News, Newsletter
For those people who just can’t wait for Spring to come, there will be a sneak peek from March 3 to 18 at the Botanical Garden of Smith College, 16 College Lane, Northampton. Fields of Flowers: The Annual Spring Bulb Show will be open to all. Right now, the...
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 19, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
Unionized workers in the Pioneer Valley are rallying together to support workers rights on Monday, Feb. 26, at Greenfield Community College at 3:30 p.m. as part of a national Workers’ Day of Action in which thousands of workers across the country are expected to speak...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 19, 2018 | Articles, Newsletter, Podcast
Lainey Wood and Michelle Pontbriant have a mission — they want to visit, photograph, and fully experience all 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts. Since 2014, they have embarked on Lainey and Michelle’s Photo Safari, and have about 120 under their belt, mostly...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Feb 19, 2018 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, The V-Spot
Hi Yana, I have a conundrum! I recently started going on dates with a friend of a friend, and it wasn’t until our third date last week that I realized that, as much as I like them, I don’t think I’m sexually attracted to them. We’ve known each other for about a year...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 19, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Film, Newsletter
Hidden Figures As Elon Musk’s Space X program soars, NASA’s illustrious history seems a little dull. One way to put back the shine is to see Hidden Figures, the three time Oscar nominated film starring Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monae....
by Rob Brezsny | Feb 19, 2018 | Articles, Astrology, Newsletter, Wellness
ARIES (March 21-April 19): When you’re playing poker, a wild card refers to a card that can be used as any card the cardholder wants it to be. If the two of hearts is deemed wild before the game begins, it can be used as an ace of diamonds, jack of clubs, queen...
by Jack Brown | Feb 19, 2018 | Articles, Cinemadope, Columns, Newsletter
The dust may finally be settling on the latest Super Bowl — at least outside of Philly — but for film fans, it’s the coming weeks that are the lead-up to the biggest contest of all: the Oscars. The 90th Academy Awards ceremony is set to go off on the first Sunday of...
by Sarah Heinonen | Feb 16, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
A simple traffic violation has added fuel to an ongoing conflict over the role that police in Springfield should play in immigration enforcement. A group of activists and a city councilor believe that Springfield police violated a City Council resolution forbidding...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 16, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Music, Newsletter
Liz Longley A subtle Sunday is in order. Go check out Berklee College of Music graduate and award-winning songwriter, Liz Longley. Longley performs at the Iron Horse Music Hall. Some think of Shawn Colvin or Paula Cole when they think of Langley, but recognize she...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Feb 16, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
The day after Donald Trump’s election in 2016, corporate communications trainer Cathy McNally vowed to join activist communities to oppose the conservative forces that got him elected. Founder and CEO of the Women Speak Up organization, she realized that it was...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 16, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter, Stage
Nicholas Ryder Quintet at the Bing Arts Center It’s a good night to check in at the Bing Arts Center and warm up with some cool jazz. Nicholas Ryder Quintet will dig into some songbook standards and tunes by the legendary likes of “Long Tall Dexter”...
by Sarah Heinonen | Feb 16, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
Shelley Svoboda, 64, lives in the big old house in Amherst in which she grew up. “It’s cold and drafty. The insulation hasn’t been up upgraded since the 1970s,” she said. She heats with oil, and even though she keeps her thermostat set firmly...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 16, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Stage
Robin Hood Sherwood Forest never gets old. Since the 15 century, Robin Hood (dressed in Lincoln green) and his lovable merry band have been roving the forest robbing the rich and giving to the poor in swashbuckling heroic style. Throughout film and theater, this...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 16, 2018 | Articles, Music, Valley Advocate Sessions
Bunnies will take you on a psychedelic voyage of experimental rock with their recent performance on Valley Advocate Sessions. (Click on the video below) BONUS: Interview with Bunnies
by Dave Eisenstadter | Feb 14, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
Representing the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants in the United States, 11 undocumented individuals will walk from New York City to Washington, D.C., starting Thursday, Feb. 15. Among them will be Eduardo Samaniego, 25, of Amherst. Samaniego is in his...
by Yana Tallon-Hicks | Feb 15, 2018 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, Valley Show Girl
Hi Yana, I recently found out after my 21-year pap smear that I carry HPV (human papillomavirus). It’s incredibly annoying that even though I’ve been tested all my life, a very common STI can still be transferred to me. It was also troubling that after...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 15, 2018 | Articles, Music, News, Newsletter
Foghorn String Band at the Parlor Room Listening to the Foghorn String Band is like pulling out your great grandma’s handmade heirloom quilt. It’s American roots music drawn from bluegrass, classic country, and Cajun musical traditions. The band has...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 15, 2018 | Articles, Music, Newsletter, Valley Advocate Sessions
Bunnies is a band that’ll take you on a psychedelic voyage of experimental rock. Check out a teaser for the band’s full Valley Advocate Sessions performance, which will be released this Friday.
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 14, 2018 | Articles, Music, News, Newsletter
Indie rock and folk singer-songwriter Andrew Bird makes what he calls “three-dimensional music” – a mixture of violin, guitar, and virtuoso whistling, combined with intricate looping pedals. Bird has released more than a dozen albums since starting his solo...
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 14, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
This summer or early fall, MGM’s $950 million resort-style casino is set to open in the heart of downtown Springfield, but before that happens the casino needs to hire 450 table game dealers, which is where the Massachusetts Casino Career Training Institute comes into...
by Jennifer Levesque | Feb 14, 2018 | Articles, Columns, Newsletter, Valley Show Girl
With that typical New England ice storm still fresh in the air, I had Vanilla Ice’s Ice Ice Baby in my head all day. Walking into 7B’s Bar and Grill in Westfield to hear the classic Johnny Cash tune The Ballad of Jesse James was all it took … poof! be gone Ice...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 14, 2018 | Articles, Newsletter, Staff Picks
Musical Thrones: A Parody of Ice and Fire // THURSDAY AND FRIDAY, FEB. 15, 16 Really, the name says it all. A musical comedy send up of Emmy award winning Game of Thrones. There will be dragons, comedy, dragons, music, and, yes…dragons. 7:30 p.m. City Stage,...
by Gina Beavers | Feb 14, 2018 | Articles, Newsletter
Talk about Speed Dating! Take your Valentine to Autobahn Indoor Speedway! Ditch the chocolate and flowers, or at least spice it up! Take your sweetheart to the Autobahn Indoor Speedway in the Hampshire Mall. Buy 2 races and get 2 free! 367 Russell Street #H06,...
by Advocate Staff | Feb 13, 2018 | Articles, News
Spring will soon make her way into the Valley bringing longer days, birdsong, and bulbs. In the meantime, however, we’ve still got to forge through the remainder of winter, and although T.S. Eliot lamented, “April is the cruelest month,” those of us standing on this...
by Dave Eisenstadter | Feb 13, 2018 | Articles, Between the Lines, News
T.X. Watson, a transgender student at Hampshire College, is planning to sell their soul as part of their senior graduation project in art. The reason: Watson will have about $45,000 in debt upon graduation, and parting with their soul seems to be the best way of...
by From Our Readers | Feb 13, 2018 | Articles, Letters from our Readers, News
Editor’s Note: Welcome to our letters to the editor page. Here you’ll find reader comments on Advocate articles and other news. We collect readers’ opinions from emails, letters, Facebook comments, and comments to valleyadvocate.com. Want to get in on this? Email...
by Chris Rohmann | Feb 13, 2018 | Articles, Arts, Newsletter, Stage, Stagestruck
If, like me, you thought the National Theatre’s production of One Man, Two Guv’nors, either on NT Live or Broadway, was the funniest, wittiest farce you’ve ever seen (with Noises Off a close second), chances are you’ll enjoy Young Marx. It’s on this weekend at Amherst...
by Chris Goudreau | Feb 12, 2018 | Articles, News, Newsletter
If you’ re a poet, author of fiction, or creative nonfiction writer living in the Pioneer Valley, you may have the opportunity to win a full scholarship to the Juniper Summer Writing Institute in Amherst, June 17 to 24th. The scholarship is made possible by...
by Naila Moreira | Feb 12, 2018 | Articles, Columns, Down to Earth, Newsletter
The other day, wandering the back alleys of social media, I discovered a Facebook group to fall instantly in love with: “Slime Mold Identification & Appreciation.” Joining the group, I was amazed to discover that it boasted 5,422 members (today, it’s cracked...
by Will Meyer | Feb 12, 2018 | Articles, Basemental, Columns, Newsletter
On January 20th, 2017, I attended (and also played) an anti-inauguration “bash” at the Flywheel in Eastampton. Everyone was reeling and processing — the whole day was harrowing and bleak. That night, for the first time, I heard Diana Davies (who goes by Moggie to...
