One-Man Show Recounts Historic Battle of Egremont

Col. Ambrose Puffington is today remembered more for his crucial failure to pack a lunch for his men than for his elegant taste in waistcoats.

(GREAT BARRINGTON, Mass.) – Battle of Egremont: A tale of biscuits and betrayal, a one-man performance piece by Berkshire-based writer Jeremy D. Goodwin, will be staged at the Triplex Cinema on Thursday, July 26, 2012, at 8 p.m. as part of the Upstairs Live at the Triplex series.

Battle of Egremont follows the surprising breadcrumb trail leading from a family dispute in Colonial Egremont that sent its lemony ripples through the rest of American history, from President John Adams’ breakfast habits to the Great Crumpet Misunderstanding of 1812, even inspiring one of the most popular albums of the 1980s.

Written by Goodwin and framed as a lively show-and-tell with the help of the big screen at the Triplex, Battle of Egremont examines the alternative history of the conflict that split North and South Egremont, from the town’s days as a boom town — fueled by the popularity of the near-mythical Egremont Biscuit — to latter day humiliations that continue to haunt the community and keep the wounds fresh. A question-and-answer period follows the presentation.

Goodwin is an independent journalist who has contributed to publications including the Boston Globe, American Theatre, ARTnews, and Berkshire Living. He is the pop music critic for the Berkshire Eagle and a regular news contributor to New England Public Radio. His slideshow presentations on King Phillip’s War and the Battle of Egremont have been popular hits at Berkshire Creative’s BarCamp events, and he performed Battle of Egremont in workshop form for a capacity audience at the 2011 Word X Word festival, where it was a breakout hit.

“This is the story the powers that be in North and South Egremont don’t want you to hear,” says Goodwin. “If this comedy of bad manners were not still so raw, so awkward, so dangerous, I ask: why isn’t anyone else talking about it? This should be taught in every school, but instead it is swept under the carpet like so many stale biscuit crumbs.”

“If one thing comes out of this presentation,” Goodwin says, “I hope we can begin the healing. It’s time to start enjoying biscuits without the weight of history I know we all feel every time we bite into a cookie, crumpet or johnnycake.”

Tickets are $15 each and available at the Triplex Cinema box office or online at Triplex Cinema (click “Buy Tickets”). Remaining tickets will be sold at the door. Seating is limited. Triplex Cinema is at 70 Railroad Street in Great Barrington, Mass.

 

 

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