Monte Belmonte Wines: Wine Snob Glossary, Part 1
By Monte Belmonte For the Valley Advocate While dining out with my lovely wife the other day, it occurred to me that I use a lot of extraordinarily snobby adjectives that are incomprehensible to the lay drinker. Then it occurred to me: maybe a wine glossary would be...
Social Equity Programs try to level playing field for cannabis
Ilya Tunitskiy arrived in the United States when he was 7 years old, his family, who are Jewish, having fled religious persecution in Tajikistan after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Tunitskiy said he grew up to be a normal teenager who, like so many others,...
Pride Proud: Celebrations emerge in some cities, replacing those that fizzled in others
When Taurean Bethea came out as a gay man at 33 years old, he never pictured himself waving a flag or marching in a parade about it. “It wasn’t something I felt was needed. Like, why do I need to announce my orientation? It just didn’t make sense to me,” he said. But...
Stagestruck: Two Schools, Worlds Apart
In the early 2000s, teachers and students at two U.S. schools – one student body predominantly Black and Latinx, the other white and Asian-American – were caught in wholesale cheating on mandated exams. May Treuhaft-Ali’s world-premiere play “ABCD,” at Barrington Stage Company, is molded by these incidents, but she’s motivated by the knowledge that they were not outlier instances.
Stagestruck: Once, Upon a Stage
“Once,” the 2011 musical based on the 2007 film, calls for 13 performers who can sing, act and play an instrument, all of them to a high standard, plus do a passable Irish or Czech accent. Berkshire Theatre Group’s production pretty much checks all those boxes, with delightful results.
Stagestruck: B.R.O.K.E.N code B.I.R.D switching
“I see someone who wants to be told who they are, so they don’t got to ask it of themselves,” the photographer/savior says. “You’re so darn scared of feeling pain, you just don’t feel nothing at all.”
Stagestruck: Bodies of Evidence
Social/political themes are abundantly present in “The Equality of Night and Day,” a world-premiere work at Jacob’s Pillow from the Ronald K. Brown/EVIDENCE dance company.
Stagestruck: Hot-Weather Hits
After shutting down two years ago, then edging back with skeleton seasons last year, theaters in the region are back at full capacity this summer. Here are some of the shows I’m looking forward to seeing up and down the Valley.
Stagestruck: Annotated Austen
“Pride@Prejudice” (that’s @, not &) is a cyber-take on Jane Austen’s novel, a condensed rendering of her classic dissection of manners and morals, now playing at Chester Theatre Company. But it’s also inlaid with questions and comments mined from Internet chat rooms as students assigned the book in English class reach out for help in navigating the shifting currents of plot and personnel.
Stagestruck: Out and Proud
It’s Pride Month, and two Valley theaters are celebrating with out-there musicals. “Blood & Water” is a world premiere, “Hedwig and the Angry Inch” a cult classic that’s as raunchy and outrageous as the night it first pranced onstage.
Stagestruck: The Artist and the Rebel
Andy Warhol visited Iran in 1976. What if, in the ferment that preceded the Islamic revolution in 1979, the presence of the world-famous artist had inspired an insurgent group to kidnap him in order to gain publicity for their cause – their own 15 minutes of fame?
Sessions
Check out our most recent performances in the playlist below, or click here to dig into interviews and related material!No Results Found
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Heather Maloney on the Valley Advocate Sessions Stage
Iconic indie rock and Americana with nuanced lyrics and expressive melodies
The V-Spot: Am I Gay/Queer Because of Sexual Trauma?
Editor’s Note: This column addresses rape, childhood sexual abuse, PTSD, and sexual orientation as a symptom of trauma. I’m in my late teens and have identified as gay/queer for the last few years. I have dated/hooked up with a few non-binary folks and trans guys, but...
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Stagestruck: Getting Sticky
In the final week of this year’s Ko Festival of Performance, Sabrina Hamilton is looking forward to this weekend’s performance by the Ugandan musician-humanitarian Samite (see below) while musing on the season-so-far. Attendance is high and season subscriptions are...
