BASIC Berkshires

Tinker Tots
2025-06-17 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-06-10 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-06-03 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-27 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-20 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-13 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-05-06 10:00 - 11:00, 2025-04-29 10:00 - 11:00 (America/New_York) and 1 more date | Berkshire Athenaeum, 1 Wendell Avenue, Pittsfield, MA, 012201
Come tinker and explore with the library and Pittsfield’s CFCE!
Each week children ages 0-2 (siblings welcome) and their caregivers engage in child-centered play, art, music, storytime, and sensory activities to encourage social, fine and gross motor, and pre-literacy skills.
¡Venga a jugar y explorar con la biblioteca y el CFCE de Pittsfield! Cada semana, los niños y sus cuidadores participan en juegos, arte, música, lectura de cuentos y actividades sensoriales centradas en los niños.
Children under the age of 10 must be accompanied by an adult 18+ at all times.
For more information call the Children’s Library: 413-499-9480, ext. 5.
Sponsored by the Friends of the Berkshire Athenaeum.
Attendance at library programs constitutes consent to be photographed; photos may be used in print or electronic publicity for the Berkshire Athenaeum.

Steve Earle: Solo & Acoustic
2025-06-14 20:00 - 22:30 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
Steve Earle is one of the most acclaimed singer-songwriters of his generation. A protege of legendary songwriters and a master storyteller in his own right. Earle’s 1988 hit Copperhead Road was made an official state song of Tennessee in 2023, and in 2024, he was invited to become the newest member of the Grand Ole Opry.

Juneteenth Black Music Appreciation Month Free Concert
2025-06-14 12:00 - 15:00
Tendai Muparutsa
Misty Blues
Sample the Cat
Diego Mongue Band/Chantell
Come and go as you please. All welcome at MCLA Church Street Center 265 Church St, North Adams

Norman Rockwell Museum: Summer Saturdays for Families
2025-06-14 11:00 - 15:00 | Norman Rockwell Museum, 9 Glendale Road Route 183, Stockbridge, MA, 01262, United States
June 14 @ 11:00 am EDT – 3:00 pm EDT
Join us for fun and interactive programming inspired by the art of Norman Rockwell and Walter Wick, creator of the I Spy books for children. Try your hand at making art inspired by these beloved illustrators. You’ll want to return again and again with a variety of fun and engaging experiences for the whole family; it’s the perfect way to spend some quality time together on your Saturdays this summer!
Free with Admission, Drop-in – no reservation required.
https://www.nrm.org/events/summer-saturdays-for-families/

Visit

🌿 BOTANICAL INK MAKING WORKSHOP 🌿
2025-06-14 10:00 - 16:00
🌿 BOTANICAL INK MAKING WORKSHOP 🌿
Spend the day on-farm: inspired, connected, and grounded
Join us at Farm & Field, a 200 acre working farm in the Hudson Valley for a special one-day workshop on Saturday, June 14th for Botanical Ink Making.
We’ll gather plants and flowers from the fields and garden, learn how to turn them into vibrant botanical inks, and enjoy a farm-to-table lunch together outdoors.
Whether you’re an artist, gardener, or just curious about working with natural color – come join us. No experience needed. Be ready to slow down, explore, and connect with the land.
📅 Saturday, June 14 | 10am – 4pm
Chatham, NY (2.5 hrs from BKN, 25 min from Hudson, NY & Great Barrington, MA)
Details + Registration:
👉 farmandfieldny.com/workshops/botanical-inks-06-14-2025
> Make and take home your own wild inks
> Harvest Walk – foraging in fields & gathering in dye garden
> Learn responsible foraging practices
> Seasonal outdoor farm lunch included

📸 Follow along on Instagram: @farmandfieldny
🖊️ Questions: email Jill at jill@farmandfieldny.com
Please share with anyone who might be interested!

London’s National Theatre in HD: “A Streetcar Named Desire”
2025-06-13 19:00 - 21:00 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
Gillian Anderson (“Sex Education”), Vanessa Kirby (“The Crown”), and Ben Foster (“Lone Survivor”) lead the cast in Tennessee Williams’ timeless masterpiece. As Blanche’s fragile world crumbles, she turns to her sister Stella for solace – but her downward spiral brings her face to face with the brutal, unforgiving Stanley Kowalski. From visionary director Benedict Andrews, this acclaimed production was filmed live during a sold-out run at the Young Vic Theatre in 2014.

Met Opera Live in HD: Rossini’s “Il Barbiere di Siviglia”
2025-06-07 13:00 - 15:30 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
Russian mezzo-soprano Aigul Akhmetshina headlines a winning ensemble as the feisty heroine, Rosina, alongside American tenor Jack Swanson, in his Met debut, as her secret beloved, CountAlmaviva. Moldovan baritone Andrey Zhilikhovsky stars as Figaro, the ingenious barber of Seville, with Hungarian bass-8 baritone Peter Kálmán as Dr. Bartolo and Russian bass Alexander Vinogradov as Don Basilio rounding out the principal cast. Giacomo Sagripanti conducts Bartlett Sher’s madcap production.

100 Years of Movies: “The Philadelphia Story” (1940)
2025-06-06 19:00 - 21:30 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
George Cukor’s classic comedy “The Philadelphia Story” stars Cary Grant, Katharine Hepburn, and James Stewart in a romantic romp about marriage and high society. The film marked Katharine Hepburn’s box office breakthrough, and earned two Oscars – Best Actor (Stewart) and Best Adapted Screenplay. (Not rated, 1h 52min.)
Following last year’s success, the Mahaiwe will continue its “100 Years of Movies” series with film director and educator Deborah Reinisch. Reinisch will introduce each film with a brief lecture at the top of the screening.

Shakespeare & Company Free Community Day
2025-05-24 11:00 - 16:00 | Shakespeare & Company, 70 Kemble Street, Lenox, MA, 01240
Shakespeare & Company will hold its second-annual free Community Day on Saturday, May 24 from 11 am – 4 pm, Memorial Day Weekend! This event features live demonstrations and performances, scavenger hunts, film screenings, food trucks with lunches and snacks for purchase, and dozens of other local nonprofits sharing the many ways we all serve the Berkshires – and beyond. For more information, call the Box Office at 413.637.3353 or visit shakespeare.org.

“Sabrina” (1954)
2025-05-23 19:00 - 21:00 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
Audrey Hepburn plays the titular role in the romantic comedy-drama “Sabrina,” by celebrated director Billy Wilder. Returning from studying abroad, Sabrina catches the attention of her longtime crush David (William Holden). David’s brother Linus (Humphrey Bogart) worries the romance will interfere with a pre-planned family business-related union. (PG, 1h 53min.)

BASIC Community Engagement & Call to Action Event
2025-05-23 10:00 - 13:00 | Berkshire Innovation Center, 45 Woodlawn Avenue, Pittsfield, MA, 01201, United States
Link to register.
Link to event schedule.

This event’s purpose is to inform the public about what immigrants are currently experiencing under our current administration and to provide information on how the public can be proactive. The event will commence with a welcome address from Ilana Steinhauer (Executive Director, Volunteers in Medicine/BASIC Co-founder) and Melissa Canavan (Executive Director, Berkshire Immigrant Center) sharing the history of the founding of BASIC, its current activity, as well as updates on the state of the county.

Several BASIC affiliate organizations that have volunteer needs specifically in support of the immigrant community will be hosting tables at the event where the public can learn more and sign up. Tables with specific volunteer needs will be hosted by the Community Health Partners, Greylock Federal Credit Union, Literacy Network, Railroad Street Youth Project, and Volunteers in Medicine.

Attendees will be invited to attend action-oriented workshops on the following topics:

“Know Your Rights (for Spanish-speaking volunteers)” presented by the Berkshire Immigrant Center
“Becoming a Peer Coach: Supporting Local Businesses and Organizations with ICE Preparedness Plans,” presented by Ana Suffish of Berkshire Community College and Leigh Doherty of LitNet (co-chairs of BASIC’s Institutional Policy Committee)

“Bystanding Training,” presented by Becky Meier of Berkshire Community College and chair of BASIC’s Community Engagement Committee.

Know Your Rights & Best Practices for K-12 Educators
2025-05-20 16:30 - 18:00 | Zoom (We will send link when you register)
This training is intended for those working in Massachusetts K-12 schools, including teachers, counselors, administrators. It will cover basic Know Your Rights information, rights in interactions with immigration enforcement, family preparedness, and where to get legal help. We will review guidance to K-12 schools issued by the Massachusetts Attorney General’s Office and review best practices with regard to data sharing, responding to ICE presence or requests for information, and navigating conversations with immigrant students and their families. Finally, we will share information about eligibility for in-state tuition and state financial aid for immigrant students.

Madeleine Peyroux & Bettye LaVette
2025-05-16 20:00 - 22:00 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
Madeleine Peyroux is an American jazz singer and songwriter who began her career as a teenager on the streets of Paris. In every note, Peyroux digs deep, rendering this exquisite work with the disarming grace and gravitas of an artist in peak form.
Bettye LaVette was hailed by The New York Times as “one of the great soul interpreters of her generation.” She is a singer in the tradition of great vocalists who have come before her like Ray Charles, Frank Sinatra, and Dinah Washington, to name just a few.

Know Your Rights Training
2025-05-15 12:00 - 13:00 | Zoom (We will send link when you register)
This training will cover basic Know Your Rights information, including rights in interactions with immigration enforcement, including when immigration comes to your home, stops you while driving or in public, the new registration rule, family preparedness, where to get legal help, and information on notario fraud and immigration scams.

Del McCoury Band
2025-05-10 20:00 - 22:00 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
Even among the pantheon of music’s finest artists, Del McCoury stands alone. From the nascent sound of bluegrass that charmed hardscrabble hillbilly honkytonks, rural schoolhouse stages, and the crowning glory of the Grand Ole Opry to the present-day culture-buzz of viral videos and digital streams, Del is the living link.Almost unimaginable, McCoury’s sixth decade in a half-century of bluegrass bliss brings new triumphs, new collaborations, and new music.

Cantilena Chamber Choir Sings Ellis Island Diaries
2025-05-04 15:00 - 17:00
The Cantilena Chamber Choir will present its season ending performance on Sunday, May 4th, 2025, at 3:00pm at Trinity Church, 88 Walker St. in Lenox. The special guest for the event is the award- winning youth choir The Spirituals of Boston Arts Academy just before their May 23rd Carnegie Hall debut. Cantilena will be performing Ron Perera’s Golden Door for chorus and orchestra using texts from original Ellis Island diaries, a special presentation in this time of concern for our immigrant friends and neighbors. The program will also include rousing spirituals and a joint performance with both choirs to close the program.

Met Opera Live in HD: Mozart’s “Le Nozze di Figaro”
2025-04-26 13:00 - 16:00 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
On April 26, Mozart’s timeless comedy returns to cinemas worldwide with a live transmission from the Metropolitan Opera. Conductor Joana Mallwitz, in her Met debut, takes the podium to conduct a stellar ensemble cast including American bass-baritone Michael Sumuel as the clever valet Figaro, Ukrainian soprano Olga Kulchynska as the wily maid Susanna, Canadian baritone Joshua Hopkins as the skirt-chasing Count, Italian soprano Federica Lombardi as his anguished wife, and French mezzo-soprano Sun-Ly Pierce as the adolescent page Cherubino.

ACLU Know Your Rights Training (with Spanish interpretation)
2025-04-24 20:00 - 21:30
Join one of the ACLU’s Know Your Rights Trainings to learn about your rights and understand how you can protect communities facing these escalating threats. We’ll be hosting two trainings every month; you can select the date and content that works best for you below.

Know Your Rights Training: Mass Deportation & More
2025-04-24 20:00 - 21:00 | Zoom
The ACLU is hosting an immigration Know Your Rights Training on April 24th, at 8 pm on Zoom. Join this training to learn about your rights and understand how you can protect communities facing these escalating threats.

Mahaiwe & NYTW Workshop’s Mind the Gap, Intergenerational Performance Program / Mind the Gap, programa de representación intergeneracional del New York Theatre Workshop
2025-04-23 10:00 - 2025-04-27 22:00 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
New York Theatre Workshop’s Mind the Gap, Intergenerational Performance Program/
Mind the Gap, programa de representación intergeneracional del New York Theatre Workshop

Monday, June 23 – Friday, June 27

Public performance on Friday, June 27 at 7pm

APPLY TO PROGRAM
RESERVE TICKETS

Mind the Gap is a free intergenerational theatre program in which youth [14-21] and elders [60+] interview each other and collectively create a performance piece inspired by each other’s life stories. Mind the Gap’s primary goal is to use theatre as a creative tool to increase empathy and communication between generations. The workshop will culminate with a public presentation in which the collaborative work is performed by the participants. No theatre experience is required to participate in the program.

Youth stipends are $250 per person.

Program Goals
Through the workshop participants are able to:

Investigate, listen and empathize with someone of another generation, while using playwriting as a tool to understand and represent their unique experience
Broaden their perspective, see the other generation in a new light, and take on the task of telling someone else’s story with respect and understanding
Share their stories and ultimately see them interpreted through another’s eyes making meaning out of their personal narratives and gaining insights into their own lives

Important Criteria

Desire to share, listen and create – sharing your stories with someone of another generation and giving them permission to use your stories as inspiration for a play.
Desire to bring your curiosity, stories, experiences, creativity, listening ears, and willingness to share at every session.
Desire to perform and act both individually as well as within an ensemble.
Desire to collaborate generously and with an open mind.
Desire and ability to attend every session. Since most of the work that we will do together will be in partner groups, potential participants with fewer conflicts will be prioritized over those with more conflicts.

Things to Remember

It is important to note that Mind the Gap is not an acting class; performance is merely the tool through which we mind the gap between generations.
Mind the Gap is not focused exclusively on the past. During the program participants explore the past, present and the future. However, Mind the Gap is not a documentary or verbatim theatre program. Intergenerational interviews are used as inspiration, not as the sole material from which artistic content is created. Participants are treated as artists.
Mind the Gap is not a mentoring program. All participants are seen as equal in the process. We value everyone’s stories, input and life experiences. At New York Theatre Workshop we believe that we always have something to learn from each other, regardless of age.
Although we encourage everyone to push past their comfort zones, we do not demand that anyone share anything that they feel is too personal or too private. On that note, if participants share something with their partner that they wish not to have shared or written about, participants always have the right to ask their partner(s) to exclude any information from the artistic piece(s).

Lunes 23 de junio – Viernes 27 de junio

Función pública el viernes 27 de junio a las 19h.

APLICAR AL PROGRAMA
RESERVA DE ENTRADAS

Mind the Gap es un programa gratuito de teatro intergeneracional en el que jóvenes [14-21] y mayores [60+] se entrevistan y crean colectivamente una pieza teatral inspirada en sus respectivas historias de vida. El objetivo principal de Mind the Gap es utilizar el teatro como herramienta creativa para fomentar la empatía y la comunicación intergeneracional. El taller culminará con una presentación pública donde los participantes interpretarán el trabajo colaborativo. No se requiere experiencia teatral para participar en el programa.

Los estipendios para jóvenes son $ 250 por persona.

Objetivos del programa
A través del taller los participantes podrán:

Investigar, escuchar y empatizar con alguien de otra generación, mientras se utiliza la dramaturgia como herramienta para comprender y representar su experiencia única.
Ampliar su perspectiva , ver a la otra generación bajo una nueva luz y asumir la tarea de contar la historia de otra persona con respeto y comprensión.
Compartir sus historias y, en última instancia, verlas interpretadas a través de los ojos de otros, dando sentido a sus narrativas personales y adquiriendo conocimientos sobre sus propias vidas.

Criterios importantes

Deseo de compartir, escuchar y crear: compartir tus historias con alguien de otra generación y darle permiso para usar tus historias como inspiración para una obra.
Deseo aportar mi curiosidad, historias, experiencias, creatividad, oídos atentos y voluntad de compartir en cada sesión.
Deseo de actuar y actuar tanto individualmente como en conjunto.
Deseo de colaborar generosamente y con la mente abierta.
Deseo y capacidad de asistir a todas las sesiones. Dado que la mayor parte del trabajo conjunto se realizará en grupos de compañeros, se priorizará a los participantes con menos conflictos sobre aquellos con más.

Cosas para recordar

Es importante destacar que Mind the Gap no es una clase de actuación; la actuación es simplemente la herramienta a través de la cual nos ocupamos de la brecha entre generaciones.
Mind the Gap no se centra exclusivamente en el pasado. Durante el programa, los participantes exploran el pasado, el presente y el futuro. Sin embargo, Mind the Gap no es un programa documental ni de teatro literal. Las entrevistas intergeneracionales se utilizan como inspiración, no como el único material para la creación de contenido artístico. Los participantes son tratados como artistas.
Mind the Gap no es un programa de mentoría. Todos los participantes son considerados iguales en el proceso. Valoramos las historias, las aportaciones y las experiencias de vida de cada uno. En New York Theatre Workshop creemos que siempre tenemos algo que aprender unos de otros, sin importar la edad.
Aunque animamos a todos a superar sus límites, no exigimos que compartan nada que consideren demasiado personal o privado. En ese sentido, si los participantes comparten algo con su pareja que no desean que se comparta o escriba, siempre tienen derecho a pedirle a su(s) pareja(s) que excluya(n) cualquier información de la(s) obra(s) artística(s).

“Diner” (1982)
2025-04-19 19:00 - 21:00 | Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center, 14 Castle Street, Great Barrington, MA, 01230
A group of college-age friends toe the line between adolescence and adulthood in 1950s Baltimore in Diner. Starring Steve Guttenberg, Daniel Stern, Mickey Rourke, Kevin Bacon, Timothy Daly, and Ellen Barkin, the film is celebrated for its performances and understated direction by Barry Levinson. (R, 1h 50min.)

Bilingual Storytime
2025-04-16 18:00 - 19:00 | Berkshire Athenaeum, 1 Wendell Avenue, Pittsfield, MA, 012201
Join library staff and Pittsfield CFCE for a program of songs, rhymes, crafts, and read-aloud books. Take home a free book for each child to build your at-home library. Ideal for families with children of a variety of ages. This program is presented in English and Spanish.
Children under the age of 10 must be accompanied by an adult 18+ at all times.
For more information call the Children’s Library: 413-499-9480, ext. 203
Sponsored by the Friends of the Berkshire Athenaeum.
Attendance at library programs constitutes consent to be photographed; photos may be used in print or electronic publicity for the Berkshire Athenaeum.
