Artwork from the ashes: Heather Maloney’s new album, ‘Exploding Star,’ was almost too personal to share
By CAROLYN BROWN Staff Writer Heather Maloney almost didn’t release her upcoming album, “Exploding Star,” to the public. An album born of grief and loss was too raw, too personal, to go public, she felt, so she kept it for herself. But when her closest friends and...
Looking into the depth: Works by the late artist Daniel Feldman to be exhibited at Gallery A3 in Amherst
By CAROLYN BROWN Staff Writer The late artist Daniel Feldman died in November at the age of 67, a few months before an exhibition of 14 of his works at Gallery A3 in Amherst was slated to open. When that exhibition, “Depth Be Depth,” opens on Thursday, Feb. 6, it will...
Knowledge is power, period: Turners Falls menstrual cycle educator offers holistic approach to pelvic health
By ERIN-LEIGH HOFFMAN Staff Writer To Julia Demillones Moore, knowledge about periods is power. Moore, who goes by “Julia Moon Beam” online, is a menstrual cycle educator and a pelvic steam practitioner from Turners Falls. Through her two businesses, Wise Gal Period...
Can’t take that away from me: With Jan. 20 on the horizon, the Queer Joy Collaborative sings, dances and fights for its life
By MELISSA KAREN SANCES For the Valley Advocate Glitter. Sparkle. Bedazzle. Shine. When Mara Levi and Nova Wehman-Brown started dreaming of a Winter Ball, these four words came to mind. The executive director and the board president of the Queer Joy...
The future is bright … and weightless: An eye-opening exploration of everything and nothing at a spa in Easthampton
By Bob Flaherty For the Valley Advocate My journey. Where it begins and ends I have no idea. I do know that I could use some healing along the way, I’m just not sure what it is I have. Although, yes, I am acutely aware of my mousetrap nervous system and my constantly...
Monte Belmonte Wines: A toast to Champagne
By Monte Belmonte For the Valley Advocate Champagne, with its effervescent, aspirational qualities, levitating its drinkers towards the hope of wealth and good cheer, has become a staple when the clock strikes 12 on the last night of the year. The tiny bubbles of...
Mixtape: A collection of albums for the end of the year
By Jennifer Levesque For the Valley Advocate As the year comes to a close, I have to say, I’m still very grateful for the gift of music. So here’s an end-of-the-year mixtape befitting this time of year, a taste of what I’ve been listening to lately. Joshua David...
Theater Matters with Jarice Hanson: As the curtain falls on 2024: Remembering three great losses to the Valley theater family
By Jarice Hanson For the Valley Advocate If you ask any actor or person who works in the collaborative arts, they’ll tell you that one of the best parts about working in a creative field are the bonds that form with other actors, production personnel, and even theater...
Love is in the airwaves: Queer dating radio show creates connections and community
By CAROLYN BROWN Staff Writer Finding love is all about finding someone on your wavelength. A radio show at the University of Massachusetts Amherst wants to help the local queer community make romantic connections, one guest DJ at a time. On the show “Queer Yenta...
Get a whiff of this: ‘Flora & Fromage’ unites nature, art and food for an olfactory party in the Paper City
By CAROLYN BROWN Staff Writer When the weather outside is frightful, warming up indoors, surrounded by plants, food, art and live music, is so delightful. Such is the idea behind Flora & Fromage, an upcoming plant-themed art and food experience at Mill 1 in...
Eat to the beat: New event series in a new venue mixes music, meals, and job training
By CAROLYN BROWN Staff Writer At an upcoming new concert series at a recently opened venue in Holyoke, guests can listen to live music while they eat themed meals and help local students build career skills. The series, Feast & Harmony, will debut next week at De...
Sessions
Check out our most recent performances in the playlist below, or click here to dig into interviews and related material!
O Cannabis: Bedtime weed to treat insomnia and sleep apnea
Some say it works, and research is being done on connections between weed and sleep.
‘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...
The V-Spot with Yana Tallon-Hicks: What actually makes for good sex
After over a decade of doing this work, I firmly believe that everybody who is interested in having sex wants to be good at it. Or, at the very least, they want to have sex that is good rather than sex that is not. Meaning, we are motivated to experience good...
The Iron Horse rides again: The storied Northampton club will reopen at last, May 15
By STEVE PFARRER Staff Writer In late March, the fabled Iron Horse Music Hall, slated to reopen in mid May, was still a pretty raw construction site. Boards, pipes, boxes, and other materials were piled on the floors, along the walls, and on tables. Extension cords to...
Beerhunter: Vanished Valley opens new taproom and kitchen in Ludlow
A few days ago, I stopped in at Vanished Valley’s Center Street headquarters, where the brewery was throwing a special grand opening party.
Stagestruck: Christmas at the Darcys’
In this season of entertainments that cater to our appetite for cozy tradition, two shows this weekend – from Silverthorne Theater in the Valley and Shakespeare & Co. in the Berkshires – hit the nostalgia nerve from a different angle, adding a holiday-themed sequel to a classic love story.
