Message in a bottle: The delicate alchemy of Black Birch Vineyard
By Monte Belmonte For the Valley Advocate Western Mass. is known for a lot of things. Colleges. Asparagus. Apples. Lesbians. Basketball. But wine? Not as of yet. Beer? For sure. With stalwarts like Berkshire Brewing Company, The Northampton Brewery and The...
Unmasking the monster: VFX Supervisor Dennis Berardi joins filmmaker Robert Krzykowski to reveal some of the magic of ‘Frankenstein’ at the Shea
By Melissa Karen Sances For the Valley Advocate If “Frankenstein” is ultimately about creation — and pulling back the curtain between marvel and manipulation — it’s only fitting that CinemaStorm’s upcoming screening of Guillermo del Toro’s movie will itself be an...
The Rockwell captures the riotous color, glamour and sophistication of the Jazz Age: More than 140 original works electrify the galleries
By DON STEWART For the Valley Advocate A century ago, when women could be arrested for smoking in public and the manufacturing and distribution of alcohol was illegal, there was an artistic and social revolution in this country. You can view a wealth of Jazz Age...
Grappling with how society responds to disability: Rock-and-roll musical comedy ‘Tallywacker’ filmed in Northampton, Easthampton and Greenfield
By Melissa Karen Sances For the Valley Advocate The black-and-white buddy comedy “Tallywacker” opens on Aleister, its star, a young man with brittle bone disease sitting in a wheelchair in downtown Northampton. Locals will recognize the actor as Jeremy Dubs, who is a...
The V-Spot with Yana Tallon-Hicks: My partners want to date each other
Hi Yana, I started dating my boyfriend Jules (they/them) in March of this year and we've been having a lovely time. They've been polyamorous for a while and we've agreed on a non-hierarchical relationship. It's been quite easy, and very dreamy to build a relationship...
Theater Matters with Jarice Hanson: What do kids learn when they study performing arts?
By Jarice Hanson For the Valley Advocate I recently noticed an article in a magazine for high school teachers titled: “The Last Real Thing: Why Theatre Might Be the Most Important Class of the 21st Century.” The author, Zach Dulli, claimed in his Nov. 22 article that...
Our pleasure-positive sex column, the ‘V-Spot,’ is back: Here’s a refresher on the author, Yana Tallon-Hicks
By Melissa Karen Sances For the Valley Advocate For Yana Tallon-Hicks, the “V-Spot” has been the epicenter of her career. The column she began for the Valley Advocate in 2010 has since spawned a sex therapy practice, her first book and a Tedx Talk in Vienna — not to...
From manager to owner: Turn It Up! music store founders sell business to longtime employee
By Erin-Leigh Hoffman For the Valley Advocate As Turn It Up! approaches its 30th anniversary, the music store is falling into the hands of a new, but not unfamiliar, owner. Founders Patrick Pezzati and Chandra Hancock are selling the business, which has locations in...
Mixtape: The darkness is coming: New releases from Burial Grid and Eyrie House Ruins
By Jennifer Levesque For the Valley Advocate Burial Grid “NORD Compendium” I’ve been following Adam Kozak’s musical career since we were both in high school. Dare I say, close to 25 years later, Kozak is still one of my favorite local musicians. His latest conquest,...
A toast to tranquility: Supporting farmers, winemakers from Ukraine with spirits from State Street
By Monte Belmonte For the Valley Advocate Perhaps Christmastime still has enough magic in it that small gestures toward peace can make us believe that peace is possible. And if that small gesture is drinking wine, count me in. Max Hastings in his book Catastrophe...
Rio Contrada’s debut film ‘Splinter’ screening in Northampton benefits local mental health services
By CAROLYN BROWN For the Valley Advocate Though filmmaker Rio Contrada no longer lives in Florence, he’s got plenty of love for his hometown — and he’ll be showing it off when he brings his debut feature-length film back to the Valley next week. Contrada will screen...
Sessions
Check out our most recent performances in the playlist below, or click here to dig into interviews and related material!
O Cannabis: Local cannabis start-up Treeworks aims to have something for everyone
“We want to be something for everyone and want to bring people who are not traditional consumers into the mix,” he said.
Finding a foothold: Folk singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist Diana Daniels to headline The Parlor Room
By CAROLYN BROWN For the Valley Advocate Last month, local folk singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Diana Daniels performed at the Parlor Room as part of First Night Northampton, an event in which she was one of more than 100 performers playing throughout...
The V-Spot: How Do I Successfully Quarantine with My S.O.?
Crisis or not, you are not a needs fulfillment center. Similarly, just because your crisis mode is packaged as “everyday functional,” doesn’t mean that you yourself are not struggling with all that’s happening.
The Alternative Pioneers: Founders spill the tea as the Valley Advocate turns 50
By BOB FLAHERTY For the Advocate If it was just that hippie rag, as detractors liked to rank it, well we hippie ragamuffins devoured it front to back. It spoke our language, the F-laden part included, and it was as underground as the music we toked to. But we soon...
The Beerhunter: Black Rabbit Farm Adds Wild Ales, Grows Ingredients On Site
As far as this Beerhunter can surmise, Black Rabbit is the only brewery on an active commercial farm in all of Western Mass.
Stagestruck: Love and War
“Jack Absolute Flies Again” is this year’s blockbuster comedy from the National Theatre. Set in the Battle of Britain, it’s coming to the Amherst Cinema via NT Live.
