RECENT ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS FROM NORTHERN CHINA in EXCLUSIVE EXHIBITION AT THE CLARK
Sitting Camel, Northern Qi dynasty (550–577 CE), tomb dated 570 CE
(WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass.) – Unearthed: Recent Archaeological Discoveries from Northern China, featuring rare Chinese burial objects in an exclusive exhibition that considers both the discovery and the impact of modern Chinese archaeology, opens Saturday, June 16, 2012, at The Clark and runs through October 21, 2012. The exhibition features objects recently excavated from sites in the Shanxi and Gansu provinces and never before seen outside of China, including a full-size stone sarcophagus discovered intact in 2004. Unearthed leads The Clark’s interrelated summer exhibition program of four exhibitions, including three presentations in Williamstown and one in New York.
On Friday, June 15, The Clark will host a Chinese-themed party beginning at 7 p.m. to celebrate the opening of two summer exhibitions, Unearthed: Recent Archaeological Discoveries from Northern China in The Clark’s main galleries and Through Shên-kan: Sterling Clark in China at Stone Hill Center. Then & Now, a presentation of photography by Li Ju, will also be on display at Stone Hill.
Guests are invited to enjoy music performed by the Ping Li Chinese Music Ensemble and drinks and delicacies with an Asian flair served in a lively street festival atmosphere. The menu will include grilled skewers, spring rolls, steamed dumplings, pot stickers, scallion pancakes, noodle bowls and sweet rice lotus leaf packets; complimentary beer and wine, as well as sweets, coffee and champagne, also will be served. Tickets are $125 ($100 members) and may be purchased online or by calling 413-458-0524.
LLOYD COLE BRINGING HIS LITERATE ENGLISH FOLK-POP to CLUB HELSINKI
Lloyd Cole (photo by Paul Shoul)
(HUDSON, N.Y.) – English rock singer-songwriter Lloyd Cole, known for his astutely literate and literary lyrics and post-New Wave compositions in his solo work, with his 1980s group The Commotions, and his early 2000s group, the Negatives, performs at Club Helsinki Hudson on Thursday, June 14, 2012, at 8 p.m.
Cole has been quietly releasing solo albums comprised of sophisticated lyrics and arrangements since the Commotions’ demise in 1987. Cole’s songwriting runs the gamut of pop tunes, folk-rock, Northern soul, and other sounds from the post-punk spectrum. His songs are as likely to reference Raymond Carver, Norman Mailer, Grace Kelly, Simone de Beauvoir as they are Scarlett Johansson.
‘THE TALE OF THE ALLERGIST’S WIFE’ OPENS at SHAKESPEARE & COMPANY
Annette Miller as Marjorie Taub in “The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife” (photo by Kevin Sprague)
(LENOX, Mass.) – The Tale of the Allergist’s Wife, a contemporary comedy about life on Manhattan’s Upper West Side written by Charles Busch, opens this week at Shakespeare & Company and runs through Saturday, September 1, 2012, in the Elayne P. Bernstein Theatre. The play stars Elliot Norton and IRNE Award-winner Annette Miller as Marjorie Taub, a failed novelist married to retired Upper West Side allergist Ira Taub, played by Malcolm Ingram.
Busch’s comedy, which premiered in New York in 2000, has been likened to works by Neil Simon and Wendy Wasserstein. When the play opens, Marjorie Taub is sulking on her couch, debating the “extravagant decadence” versus the “romantic opulence” of her newest lighting fixture. When her therapist passes away, she falls into a midlife crisis of epic proportions that not even her mother (played by Sonya Hamlin), who appears more interested in the schedule of her own bodily functions, can pull her out of. To distract herself, Marjorie delves into the world of art, culture, and literature. But despite her constant search for knowledge, she still feels painfully inadequate.
YEHUDA HANANI KICKS OFF ‘STRING THEORY’ SERIES at PS21
Cellist Yehuda Hanani
(CHATHAM, N.Y.) – String Theory, a series of three duo performances featuring three exceptionally accomplished string players from three diverse musical and cultural traditions, will take place in June at PS21, beginning on Saturday, June 16, 2012, with cellist Yehuda Hanani, continuing on Sunday, June 24, with Alicia Svigals, the greatest living exponent of klezmer fiddle, and concluding on Saturday, June 30, with oud player Simon Shaheen, one of the most important Arab musician/composers of his generation.
The seventh annual Paul Grunberg Memorial Bach Concert on Saturday, June 16, at 7:30 pm features world-renowned cellist Yehuda Hanani, whose charismatic playing and profound interpretations bring him acclaim and reengagements throughout Europe, North and South America, Asia and his native Israel. Hanani made the first recording ever of the monumental Alkan Cello Sonata, receiving a Grand Prix du Disque nomination, and his other discs have won wide recognition. Hanani and pianist Emma Tahmizian will perform an all-Bach program of viola da gamba sonatas, French Suite and unaccompanied cello suite. The traditional annual Bach concerts are held in memory of PS21 President Judy Grunberg’s husband, who loved Bach above all other composers and who died in 1997.
2012 JACOB’S PILLOW DANCE AWARD WILL GO to KYLE ABRAHAM at SEASON-OPENING GALA
Kyle Abraham and Abraham.in.Motion (photo Steven Schreiber)
(BECKET, Mass.) – Jacob’s Pillow executive and artistic director Ella Baff will present the sixth annual Jacob’s Pillow Dance Award to Kyle Abraham, an acclaimed contemporary dancer, choreographer, and artistic director of Abraham.In.Motion. The Jacob’s Pillow Dance Award honors outstanding, visionary dance artists and carries a prize of $25,000, one of the largest cash awards in the dance industry, to be used by the choreographer to enhance his artistry in any way he chooses. The award will be presented in person and celebrated at the Jacob’s Pillow Season Opening Gala on Saturday, June 16, 2012.
The Gala performance in the historic Ted Shawn Theatre will feature a variety of extraordinary artists and choreographers, and includes a world premiere by acclaimed British choreographer and former Director of the English National Ballet School Michael Corder, performed by dancers of The School at Jacob’s Pillow Ballet Program. David Hallberg will perform Nacho Duato’s Kaburias, a hypnotic solo to music by Afro-Cuban composer Leo Brouwer. An excerpt of CIRCA, a thrilling circus-arts work by Australian ensemble Circa, and a duet from beloved Brazilan contemporary company Mimulus will round out this exclusive program.
ENGLISH-JEWISH AUTHOR REWRITES WHARTON’S AGE OF INNOCENCE; TO READ at THE MOUNT
Francesca Segal
(LENOX, Mass.) – Tonight (Wednesday, June 13, 2012), The Mount will host debut novelist Francesca Segal for a reading and discussion of her debut novel, The Innocents, a modern-day recasting of Edith Wharton’s 1921 Pulitzer Prize winning novel, The Age of Innocence. The reading, discussion and book-signing will take place at 5pm. The event is free, but reservations are requested; please call 413.551.5100.
Set in the modern-day upper-crust Jewish community of North West London, a community still under the shadow of the Holocaust and where the bonds of family and tradition run deep, The Innocents is slyly humorous and deeply satisfying. It illuminates the conflict between responsibility and passion, security and exhilaration, tradition and independence.
DENNIS KRAUSNICK to PLAY ‘LEAR’ at SHAKESPEARE & COMPANY
Jonathan Epstein and Dennis Krausnick in ‘King Lear’ (photo Kevin Sprague)
(LENOX, Mass.) – Shakespeare & Company founding member and director of training Dennis Krausnick takes on the demanding role of the aging monarch, King Lear, in the play of that title, being given an experimental treatment set in 1906 Russia in Shakespeare & Company’s Founders’ Theatre from Saturday, June 16, through September 1, 2012.
Set against the backdrop of a fractured country, King Lear pulls audiences through the political and emotional turmoil of a kingdom destroyed. This profound and devastatingly beautiful tale of regret is directed by Rebecca Holderness, who sets the stage in 1906 Russia as the monarchy is crumbling and Lear’s world descends into madness. Despite having been written 400 years ago, King Lear continues to be a relevant meditation on the indelible connection of family and the power of redemption.
Director of education Kevin G. Coleman reprises his role as The Fool, which he last performed at Shakespeare & Company in 2003. Also supporting Krausnick are an all-star cast of company actors, including Timothy Douglas (Oswald), Jonathan Croy (Gloucester), Jonathan Epstein (Earl of Kent), Kelly Galvin (Cordelia), Corinna May (Goneril), Enrico Spada (King of France), Ryan Winkles (Edgar), and Kristin Wold (Regan).
PHOTOGRAPHY EXHIBITION SHOWCASES BOTANICALS
Photography by Cassandra Sohn
(STOCKBRIDGE, Mass.) – There will be a special art crawl and reception for the fully unveiled, three-part exhibition BOTANOPHILIA, a group show curated by Cassandra Sohn, featuring contemporary photography by Bruce Checefsky, Amiel Gervers, Yvette Lucas, Mona Mark, Cassandra Sohn, and sculptures by Peter Neff, at all locations on Saturday, June 9, 2 – 7pm. (Berkshire Botanical Garden: 2 – 4pm; Naumkeag: 3 – 5pm; Reception at Sohn Fine Art Gallery: 4 – 7pm). The exhibition features artists who use unique and unconventional techniques to create images of botanicals.