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Stagestruck with Chris Rohmann: Curtain (or tent pole) Up! as summer theaters reopen
Sometimes in the course of the past year I despaired of ever again hearing that mantra of curtain speeches in the cyber-era: “Please silence your cellphones.” But in late June it happened, as three western Mass companies greeted live audiences with live performances,...
Righting past wrongs:
It’s a difficult conversation to bring up. It’s a public discourse that some have devoted a large portion of their lives trying to initiate in order to bring about societal change. It’s a conversation that is hundreds of years old. It’s about the 400-year history of...
The V-Spot with Yana Tallon-Hicks: Can I call myself bisexual?
Dear Yana, I happen to be a bisexual person who found out in high school, and yet I haven’t done anything with other men yet. Could I still call myself bisexual even though I haven’t had sex with men?Thanks, By Bi Guy Dear Bi Guy,As I understand it, sexuality can be...
Monte Bellmonte Wines: Ken Washburn, Wine Spectator: How a Level II Sommelier lost wine and found themself
Why does wine give some people headaches? A commonly sighted cause is a plant chemical found in grape skins called tannins. But tannins are also found in things like tea. Others site sulfites. Sulfur is a naturally occurring element, and while sulfur is sometimes...
Trailblazers: The first Black-owned marijuana cultivation center on the East Coast has set up shop in Cummington
The first Black-owned cannabis cultivation center on the East Coast is, remarkably, located in the tiny hilltown of Cummington — with a population of 875, mostly white, residents.That fact didn’t dissuade Reginald Stanfield from selecting the community in northwest...
Stagestruck: Earnest and Chester
Last week, Barrington Stage Company’s Julianne Boyd greeted the audience for her troupe’s opening production, staged in a socially distanced tent at the edge of Pittsfield, with these long-awaited words: “I want to welcome you to live theater.” This week, introducing...
Stagestruck: And We’re Back!
Sometimes in the course of the past year I despaired of ever again hearing that mantra of curtain speeches in the cyber-era: “Please silence your cell phones” – or of hearing the words spoken by Julianne Boyd on Barrington Stage Company’s opening night: “I want to...
Stagestruck: Through the Portal
Down a pebbled path flanked by tall grasses in an orchard hung with ripening fruit, we come to an archway fashioned of bent branches: The Portal. There, our Guides invite us to hang a slip of paper on which we’ve written something we wish to leave behind, after the...
Itching for some theater, music? Here’s some ideas
It’s been a long year, but how’s this for a bit of uplifting news – shows are coming back, albeit slowly at first. Here is a roundup of some of the in-person and virtual events starting in May. Music Sunday, May 2 Karrin Allyson, Marty Jaffe and Valley Jazz Voices, 4...
A weed newbie?: Recreational marijuana is here to stay, but where should you start? A playbook for beginners
OK, so you’re new to this marijuana thing. You’ve driven by one — or two or three — dispensaries that are popping up like Pez dispensers in communities up and down the Pioneer Valley. You’re curious. You’ve got some stimulus money. Odds are you’re on the “older” side,...The V-Spot with Yana Tallon-Hicks: How do I prepare for first-time sex?
By Yana Tallon-Hicks I recently began a new relationship and am something of a late bloomer (I’m in my mid-20s), so I have very little actual experience when it comes to physical intimacy with a partner. My boyfriend and I have discussed it a bit, and he’s very...
Monte Belmonte Wines: Let these dozen rosés meet your desires
Rosé is not a grape. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been at a party or restaurant and someone asks me, “Would you like a rosé?” That question is the functional equivalent of “would you like white wine?” The answer to both questions is “yes.” Follow up questions:...
Live at Last
Sheryl Stoodley is standing in the middle of the Workroom, the performance space in the Northampton Community Arts Trust building curated by A.P.E.@Hawley. In time, it will become a fully equipped studio theater, but for now it’s an enormous unfinished cube, more like...
Stagestruck: My Year of Zoom
The Year of Covid shut down live theater and just about every other in-person interaction, in the arts as elsewhere. In their place: the Year of Zoom. In the circumstances, Zoom was a blessing – a marvel of the age, allowing face-to-face contact and online...
Cover story: Live at Last – Area theaters step back onstage
Sheryl Stoodley is standing in the middle of the Workroom, the performance space in the Northampton Community Arts Trust building curated by A.P.E.@Hawley. In time, it will become a fully equipped studio theater, but for now it’s an enormous unfinished cube, more like...
Stagestruck: Sojourners in the Bardo
Imagine, if you will, that you suddenly find yourself in a weird netherworld, suspended between the life you knew and an uncertain future. You’re stuck in a confined space that is both familiar and strange; you’re communicating with others via a small glass window,...
Stagestruck: Letters to Kamala
The election of Kamala Harris as the first woman Vice President of the United States, not to mention the first African American and the first of South Asian descent, is certainly cause for celebration – as well as thoughts of “It’s about time.” But those “firsts”...
Stagestruck: A ‘Caesar’ for Our Time
The publicity teaser asks, “Why Julius Caesar now?” And why, for that matter, put an all-female cast into Shakespeare’s most male-centered tragedy? The short answer to the second question is that the show comes from Smith College, and the longer one embraces the first...
A Great Ride: Narkewicz, Morse reflect on a decade in office
Alex Morse has a new pup — a goldendoodle that answers to Oliver. Can you say inseparable? The Holyoke mayor brought him home from Pennsylvania and claims that the quarantine has afforded him a bit more time to train the pooch. “It adds a bit of perspective,” says...
Advocate Events – 2/25/21
Smith College Museum of Art will host a series of programs this spring. Among them are:Black Futures, March 1, 7-8:30 p.m., online. Join Kimberly Drew ’12, Thelma Golden ’87, Jenna Wortham and Amanda Williams for a conversation about Drew and Wortham’s recently...Pot at your doorstep
Freshly restocked with three new members, the Cannabis Control Commission is gearing up for a year that will include the implementation of recently-approved regulations that allow for home delivery of non-medical marijuana, continuing to press for legislation that...
Stagestruck with Chris Rohmann: Treading water: Theaters strive to stay afloat, as two go under
A year ago this week, I filed my review of a new play, “The Pitch,” which had just opened at the Majestic Theater in West Springfield. Two weeks later, COVID-19 closed the production (the run will resume once the theater is able to reopen). The following week, my...Currently Open Local Dispensaries 2/25/21
Amherst1 Rise Holdings Inc. 169 Meadow St.Hours: Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.Phone: 413-825-9770Website: risecannabis.com/Products: Offers medical and recreational marijuana. Massachusetts is one of eight states...
What about us?
During the past several years, it is no secret that as a nation, we have become more aware and enlightened to the plights of various minority groups who have been fighting for acceptance within society — and all the intangible glory to which it represents. However,...
Monte Belmonte Wines: The Bruce Lee of the bottle: How South Deerfield’s Brahm Callahan became an elite Master Sommelier
I’ve been obsessively watching kung fu movies. I’m not sure why. Perhaps the reason is related to the pandemic. It could be a midlife crisis, or it could be the aftereffects of binge-watching “Cobra Kai.” Regardless, it’s made me think a lot about the mastery of an...The V-Spot with Yana Tallon-Hicks: How do I tell my girlfriend that I’m bisexual?
Hello Yana! I’m curious about my sexuality. I have, for the majority of my life, thought I was a heterosexual male. But at times I have thought maybe I am bisexual. I’m aware that sexuality is a spectrum. I just don’t know where I land on that spectrum. I have a...
In training
Armed with an aptly-named recipe book, “Pot Culture,” Chrissy Rivera, one of thousands of budding experts in the fast-growing marijuana industry, can often be found in her kitchen experimenting with different dishes. One afternoon last month, for example, the...
Stagestruck: Treading Water – Theaters strive to stay afloat, as two go under
A year ago this week, I filed my review of a new play, The Pitch, which had just opened at the Majestic Theater in West Springfield. Two weeks later, Covid-19 closed the production (the run will resume once the theater is able to reopen its doors). The following week,...
Stagestruck: “Stagehand” Redux
One of the most adventurous endeavors in the past Year of Zoom has been Stagehand, a live immersive piece from Eggtooth Productions first seen last fall. Another iteration launches this weekend and next, with a new framing concept and novel ticketing options. As...
Stagestruck: Unseen, but Audible
There’s an old story from the early days of television, when the flickering screen was competing for audiences with radio drama. A young boy, asked which he preferred, radio or TV, answered without hesitation, “Radio. Because the pictures are better.” I was reminded...
Moving forward: How to leave the Trump-era behind and forge a new future
For a time, it really looked like the large-scale repudiation of President Donald Trump so many of us had hoped for would come to pass — the polls seemed to predict it and Democrats were racking up mail-in and early vote advantages across the board. But instead the...
A crisis hits the home: What’s being done to help those facing eviction in a pandemic
All they want is a clean slate. After nine-plus months of dealing with the tumultuous life upheaval caused by the pandemic – on-again, off-again jobs, opening and closing of public schools and the overall anxiety posed by COVID-19 – Paige Spaulding and her husband,...
Home grown: Individuals getting into the marijuana-growing game, but stigma remains
If things smell a bit skunky in the neighborhood, don’t automatically point the figure at those nocturnal creatures. That odor may be emanating from cannabis plants that have cropped up, so to speak, at homes throughout the Pioneer Valley. It’s been four years since...
Monte Belmonte Wines: The wines that have gotten us this far
Almost from day one of the pandemic lockdown, Sharon Swihart has been living with the irony — and a little bit of guilt — that, as a wine manager, she is an “essential worker.” “My life has not changed at all in the pandemic’s wake,” says Swihart, the wine buyer at...
The V-Spot: What do I do with this dick pic?
Dear Yana, I’ve been texting with this guy during quarantine and it’s been very fun and hot. I boss him around and give him writing assignments in exchange for photos of myself which he is suitably grateful for. However, recently he sent me an unsolicited dick pic....
Letter from Our Publisher: We’re coming back bi monthly in 2021
Dear Readers, The Valley Advocate has always been, and will continue to be, a voice for our community. We are committed to make a conscious effort to spotlight voices that are marginalized and provide a platform to say what needs to be said. I believe we understand...
Stagestruck: But Is It Theater? – The Year in Zoom
Does theater, by definition, require an audience’s physical presence in a shared space with live actors? Is viewing the video record of a live performance different in a fundamental way from being there? What are we to make of the new online performances in this time...
Stagestruck: A Woke Thanksgiving
“Thanksgiving is such a lovely holiday. Do we have to talk about genocide during this beautiful American holiday?” That’s the kind of pushback often directed at reassessments that put “the first Thanksgiving” in its true historical context, says Talya Kingston. She’s...
Stagestruck: Halloween & Other Horror Shows
It’s the time of year for werewolves and witches, costumes and candy – and, in this especially bloodcurdling season, tricks and Trump – so this weekend, area theaters are offering an autumn harvest of howls and horror. Here’s a rundown (alliteration-free). From UMass...
Stagestruck: Immersion By Proxy
As you approach the theater, you find a note pinned to the stage door. It’s from the director, who says he’s been delayed and you’re to check in with the cast and make sure everything is ready for rehearsal. Then you open the door, and step back in time. You’re in...
Stagestruck: Roe in the Balance
It wasn’t planned this way, but the timing couldn’t be more apt. Just as the U.S. Senate is poised to confirm a “pro-life” justice to the Supreme Court, where abortion rights hang in the balance, WAM Theatre is poised to launch a play about Roe v. Wade. Lisa Loomer’s...
A Movement’s Moment: How Springfield is responding to a scathing DOJ report
Across Court Square in the city of Springfield the words, “BLACK LIVES MATTER,” are painted on Court Street in 20-foot-tall, bright yellow letters — a powerful symbol of a movement that has taken on a new urgency nationally and in our own backyard in this chaotic year...
Changes in policing under way in other communities
While Springfield grapples with the fallout of a highly critical U.S. Department of Justice report, other police departments throughout the Valley are implementing changes in the wake of a national wave of protests following the death of George Floyd. In Northampton,...
Despite setbacks due to pandemic, future bright for budding cannabis industry
Nearly two years after the first recreational marijuana sales began in Massachusetts, it’s safe to say the budding industry is contributing mightily to the state and regional economy, despite a significant hit to sales earlier this spring when the coronavirus pandemic...
Vision 2020: Not what we had in mind
I remember when I first got into journalism covering community planning meetings with quaint names like “Vision 2020,” about what this year would be like. Now here we are, and I can honestly say I don’t think any amount of planning would have prepared us for the...
A Guide to Local Cannabis Dispensaries
Amherst 1 Rise Holdings Inc. 169 Meadow St. Hours: Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. and Sunday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Phone: 413-825-9770 Website: risecannabis.com/ Products: Offers medical and recreational marijuana. Massachusetts is one of eight states...
How Northampton helped the women’s suffrage movement cross the finish line
On the evening of Oct. 29, 1915, a group of 500 women of the Equal Suffrage League, dressed in white, and wearing, across their chests, gold sashes emblazoned with VOTES FOR WOMEN, gathered in the alleys around their headquarters on Center Street in Northampton. At...
Stagestruck: We’re All Improvisers Now
Last March, when the theaters shut down and the proverbial ghost lights went on, we thought we might be back onstage by now. I, for one, thought the play I was scheduled to direct would be opening this weekend. But as the spring scramble of online make-do’s turned...
Welcome back to The Valley Advocate
A heartfelt welcome back, dear reader. It’s been awhile since The Valley Advocate’s last edition on April 30. The cover for that edition was titled, “We are still here,” highlighting a feature story about how the Cancer Connection was still offering phone and online...
Key voting dates ahead of the 2020 Presidential Election
With the Nov. 3 General Election less and a month away, here are some key voting dates compiled by the League of Women Voters of Northampton: Voting timeline Sept. 14: Vote by mail applications are mailed to all voters for the election. Oct. 17-30: Early in-person...
Marty Nathan: ‘Clean energy doesn’t come out of smokestack’
“I can hear my brother crying I can’t breathe, Now I’m in a struggle singing I can’t leave … ” — “I Can’t Breathe,” The Peace Poets For many years I was a doctor in Springfield. I treated hundreds of patients, young and old, for asthma. It was painful to...
Happenings in the Valley
The COVID-19 crisis and need to avoid crowds have canceled many planned events in the area, but alternatives are being arranged for online viewing, and in some cases, participation. Our online calendar has listings from organizations across the country hosting virtual...
Stagestruck: What I Did on My Summer Staycation
In the usual summer theater season, I’ll see dozens of plays and put hundreds of miles on the odometer. But in this most unusual summer, the car stayed mostly in the driveway and I stayed mostly in the house. I did get to over two dozen shows – or rather, they were...
Stagestruck: The Hills Are Live – UPDATE
August 13 update: Just as this piece was about to be filed last week, Barrington Stage Company and Berkshire Theatre Group, the first-in-the-country theaters to reopen with live performances, received another blow to their well-laid plans. Following on from the...
Stagestruck: Live Theater Returns, Drive-In Style
In a former life I was a musician – a singer-songwriter in the ’70s mold. One of my most memorable gigs was a drive-in concert, opening for James Taylor’s sister Kate and her band. It took place/was held in a large field in suburban New Jersey, where a raised stage...
Stagestruck: Curtain Up on Stage 3
While most theaters in our area remain closed, some for the rest of the year – and some at risk of closing for good – others are looking past Zoom and toward Stage 3 of Massachusetts’ phased reopening, beginning next week, for ways to offer in-person performances. As...
Stagestruck: In the Zoom Room, Part 2
“A nasty side effect of the pandemic is that performing artists, like so many others, are suddenly in the position of rethinking our careers,” Kyle Boatwright told me the other day. “We still don’t know when we’ll see a stage again, and we’ve been cornered into making...
Stagestruck: In the Zoom Room, part 1
Phase Two of Massachusetts’ staged reopening started this week, lifting some restrictions on public activities such as dining, swimming and hairdressing (really??) but not on live performance. That no-no doesn’t lift till Phase Four, which won’t come along till late...
Monte Belmonte Wines: Uncorked on Netflix
“You like hip-hop? First you got Chardonnay…it’s like the granddaddy of wine. It’s versatile, smooth…it’s like the Jay-Z of wine. This is how Elijah, played by Mamudou Athie, describes wine in the new Netflix movie Uncorked. It follows Elijah on his...E-Edition
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