‘The road to hell starts with good intentions’: New opera tells the story of Northampton’s notorious revivalist preacher, Jonathan Edwards
By CAROLYN BROWN Staff Writer Jonathan Edwards, one of Northampton’s most famous residents, was a revolutionary preacher whose legacy has endured through centuries. He was the first minister in Northampton to baptize African Americans, yet he did not free those he...
In the dead of winter, Easthampton’s nightlife sizzles
It’s the coldest night of the season, so cold that the wind stings, so cold that our photographer’s lenses need time to thaw, so cold that from the bar of the Marigold, you can’t see the street because the doors are coated in ice. But inside. Inside is a window into...
Growing Pains: ‘Home growers’ have always been here, but thanks to some expert advice their numbers are growing like, ahem, weeds
As we settle into this brave new world that has us purchasing pot as naturally as picking up doughnuts Sunday morning, there are a lot of people, then and now, who never cared much for the “purchasing” part. Whether it be at that nice clean dispensary down the street...
Monte Belmonte Wines: Shelf Talkers
Don’t believe everything you read. As a matter of fact, stop reading this right now or you could be subject to the persuasion of the published word. However, if you find comfort or guidance from others’ opinions, especially when it comes to wine, read on. When you...
Fight the power: Northampton writer’s novel profiles a Black academic’s frightening battle with a white supremacist
When Barack Obama was elected president in Nov. 2008, Ousmane Power-Greene recalls having a terrible thought: that a racist might try to assassinate America’s first Black president, or maybe his whole family. Perhaps that was an overly morbid vision, Power-Greene...
The romance of the rails: 22,000 flock to the annual Railroad Hobby Show in West Springfield
It’s no secret that the U.S. railroad system, which a century ago had the largest passenger service in the world, looks very different today. Though the nation’s freight system is still significant, passenger service has long since been eclipsed by automobile and...
Calming the Nerves: Is post-COVID anxiety a thing?
It’s been just about three years since COVID made its appearance, and life as we all knew it changed its course. You still see people wearing masks outside their houses and there are more people who don’t leave the house much at all these days. For instance, I have...
Art to reflect the community: Forbes Library uses anonymous donation to purchase a range of BIPOC art
By STEVE PFARRER Staff Writer A couple years ago, Forbes Library received a $10,000 donation from a donor who wanted to remain anonymous but also wanted the money used for a very specific purpose: to broaden the Northampton library’s permanent art collection. More...
A doctor who still makes house calls: Tracy Kidder’s new book profiles Dr. Jim O’Connell, who tends to Boston’s homeless community
By STEVE PFARRER Staff Writer In a long career that’s seen him win a Pulitzer Prize, a National Book Award, and a boatload of praise, Williamsburg writer Tracy Kidder has tackled a number of different subjects: the computer revolution, elementary schools, civil war...
Of regicides and kings: A bestselling British novelist examines a chapter of Valley history
By STEVE PFARRER Staff Writer Robert Harris is the author of a slew of bestselling thrillers and historical novels, covering ancient Rome, World War II, contemporary politics and more. According to one count, he’s sold over 10 million copies of his books, a number of...
The power of women’s hair: Photographer uses 19th-century technique to re-imagine female portraits
By STEVE PFARRER Staff Writer Time was when Rachel Portesi did much of her photography using Polaroid film. She loved the immediacy of the image, the way each photo was different and often didn’t quite match what her eye had seen, and what she calls “the feeling of...
Sessions
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Valley Show Girl: Don’t Forget to Water Your Leafies
According to their Bandcamp bio, their live shows have been referred to as “Broadway on acid.” I don’t disagree.
V-Spot: My Boyfriend Just Won’t
Am I ever going to be sexually satisfied?
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Stagestruck: Eye of the Storm
Nilaja Sun is, quite simply, the most exciting solo performer I’ve ever seen. She’s a small, wiry woman whose expansive presence fills a stage. Drawing on an astonishing talent for physical and vocal mimicry, her pieces are fully formed plays that bring to life a multitude of vibrant, funny, flawed human beings. She’s bringing her latest, Pike St., to the Academy of Music.
