Smith College professor examines the impact of a ‘notorious word,’ her father’s legacy and her own life in new book
By Carolyn Brown For the Valley Advocate Writing a book about the deeply painful and complex history of the n-word is a significant undertaking, as is writing a memoir about a complicated relationship with one’s father. For Smith College professor Elizabeth Stordeur...
Mixtape: One-man band and a collection of punks: A couple local releases from two very different musical acts
By Jennifer Levesque For the Valley Advocate Peter Lo Iacono “Waiting for Tuesday” Peter Lo Iacono (pronounced Loy-uh-CO-no) has been a guitarist for more than 50 years. He originally started out playing in cover bands in the 1970s in his home state of...
Monte Belmonte Wines: Sipping through the semiquincentennial: Exploring the wine preferences of one of America’s founding fathers
By Monte Belmonte For the Valley Advocate When in the course of human events it becomes necessary to look back on the semiquincentennial anniversary of certain events — and perchance to celebrate said events in order to pursue happiness — mayhaps we will do...
Theater Matters with Jarice Hanson: The joy of live theater
By Jarice Hanson For the Valley Advocate The summer season abounds with opportunities to attend shows that may reconnect audiences with the joy of being alive. The three shows profiled in this edition of “Theater Matters” take us to a place where memory meets...
The V-Spot with Yana Tallon-Hicks: How can we schedule sex, naturally?
By Yana Tallon-Hicks For the Valley Advocate Hi Yana, I’ve heard the advice that sometimes couples should “schedule sex” when it’s fallen off the priorities list. I brought this up to my partner and he wants sex to feel more spontaneous and “natural.” He says that...
Amherst native Will Matthews celebrates release of new Netflix show ‘The Boroughs’
By Carolyn Brown For the Valley Advocate Decades ago, Will Matthews was a kid at Amherst Regional High School who listened to Frank Sinatra, played the trombone and loved making his classmates laugh. Now, he’s celebrating the release of his new Netflix show. Alongside...
An Amherst man’s quest to become the world’s biggest Ant-Man fan?
By Bob Flaherty For the Valley Advocate "Hi. My name is Aaron Damon-Rush and I’m attempting to set a Guinness World record.” Thus, a young Amherst man publicly states his case. Damon-Rush, 26, aims to set a record for the most memorabilia related to Ant-Man and the...
Northampton’s Paul Arslanian receives national honor for his contributions to the jazz scene
By Carolyn Brown For the Valley Advocate Alongtime member of and influential figure in the Valley’s jazz scene recently hit the national spotlight. Paul Arslanian, co-founder of the Northampton Jazz Workshop, has been named one of 33 “Jazz Heroes” by the Jazz...
Finding his own voice: Southampton musician Barry Searle steps into the spotlight with first original album, ‘The Awakening’
By Carolyn Brown For the Valley Advocate After years of covering other artists’ music, a local musician is getting the chance to play and share his own tunes. Guitarist and singer Barry Searle, an eighth-generation resident of Southampton, recently celebrated the...
Investing in cultural vitality: Northampton Arts Council grant supports local writer’s growth
By Carolyn Brown For the Valley Advocate The Valley offers many opportunities for artists — but as one local writer knows, stepping outside the area can help, too. Northampton writer, teaching artist and graduate instructor Richie Wills was recently selected as a...
Theater Matters: Curtains up: A guide to the Valley’s unmissable summer theater season
By Jarice Hansen For the Valley Advocate Have you ever attended a reading of a play or story that went on to live in your mind? Play readings are becoming more popular than ever, thanks in part to the types of radio programs and podcasts that stimulate your auditory...
Sessions
Check out our most recent performances in the playlist below, or click here to dig into interviews and related material!
Let smoke shops sell weed legally: An argument from your resident cannabis economist
By Robin Goldstein For the Valley Advocate When voters vote to legalize weed, their intent is to legalize weed. And yet, in states across America, devils lurk in the details of how weed is regulated. Some of these devils have turned out to be so monstrous that they...
Envisioning the city as a ‘magical place’: Singer-songwriter Jake Manzi releases hometown tribute single ‘It’s Northampton’
By Carolyn Brown For the Valley Advocate Singer-songwriter Jake Manzi isn’t the star of his new music video — the city of Northampton is. The track, “It’s Northampton,” marks the first single from his upcoming album “Getting Somewhere.” The hometown tribute set the...
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...
Live from Argentina: Acclaimed tango guitarists to play in Northampton for dancers and music lovers alike
By STEVE PFARRER Staff Writer If you go to a milonga, or social dance, to do tango dancing in Buenos Aires, you’ll likely be doing it to live music. In western Massachusetts? No so much. Now, though, Western Mass Tango, which has hosted tango lessons and dances in the...
The Beerhunter: Road Trip to Southern Worcester County
I thought I should make an effort to put my money where my mouth is, and stop for a while in Central Mass to do some more thorough exploring of my state.
Stagestruck: Backstage Stars
Nikki Beck and Ezekiel Baskin are about the busiest theater people around. You’ll never see them onstage or on the title page of the program, but you’ll very often find one, or both, of them backstage or elsewhere behind the scenes at any number of local theater events.
