Start Playing Games
The Brass Cat, Easthampton
Every other Wednesday at 7 p.m.
Holyoke's Justin Dowd is the organizer behind Start Playing Games, a group that meets bi-weekly at The Brass Cat in Easthampton to play board games. Check out the recommendations that Justin gave to The Fabulous 413.
Cidermakers’ Dinner
Hancock Shaker Village, Pittsfield
Thursday, Aug. 31 from 6 – 8:30 p.m.
Start your evening with cocktails and snacks under the apple trees, and then enjoy a chef-prepared dinner under the Timberframe, with a view of the iconic round stone barn. You will hear from Berkshire Cider Project’s head cidermaker, as you enjoy hard cider pairings with your meal. This dinner will be a celebration of the tenacity of farmers in the face of adversity and an opportunity to support Massachusetts’ oldest working farm — Hancock
Shaker Village.
The 206th Three County Fair
3 County Fairgrounds, Northampton
Friday, Sept. 1 – Monday, 4
With agricultural exhibits, demos, rides and a big midway, there’s always tons to do and see at the Three County Fair. Music includes Florence’s Johnny Memphis Band at 5 p.m. on Friday, a Shania Twain tribute at 4 p.m. on Saturday, The Voice Season 22 contestant Cara Brindisi at 3 p.m. on Sunday, and much more.
Hamlet: A Staged Reading
Shakespeare & Company
Friday, Sept. 1 – Sunday, Sept. 3 at 2 p.m.
Murder both intentional and accidental as well as madness both piteous and pretended will haunt the Tina Packer Playhouse as Shakespeare & Company presents a three-performance reading of William Shakespeare’s most memorable tragedy: Hamlet. This limited run will be directed by Shakespeare & Company Founding Member Kevin G. Coleman, a two-time Tony Award nominee for Excellence in Education.
Taylor Rose Mickens
The Drake, Amherst
Friday, Sept. 1 at 8 p.m.
Taylor Rose Mickens is an indie jazz folk singer, composer, and actor. Taylor's background in many musical genres such as jazz, indie, musical theater, and folk come together to inform their unique sound in their original music and their approach to songwriting.
Cloudbelly and High Tea
Saturday, Sept. 2 at 7:30 p.m.
Hawks & Reed, Greenfield
Cloudbelly is a chamber pop indie-folk band from Turners Falls, fronted by singer-songwriter Corey Laitman, whose abstract yet confessional poeticisms are delivered in a singular voice that tips its cap to Maggie Rogers and Joni Mitchell. High Tea, (pictured above), is an indie folk-rock duo that combines sweepingly soulful harmonies and a refreshing blend of old blues and new rock.
Friends of Music at Guilford
158 Kopkind Rd Guilford, Vermont
Sunday, Sept. 3 at 3 p.m.
It’s the Friends of Music at Guilford’s 57th Labor Day Weekend Festival Orchestra Concert. Grounds will open at 2:00 pm for picnicking (bring your own food and drink).
Ashuelot Concerts
Piano Quartets by Suk, Martinů & Dvořák
Friday, September 1 at 7:30 p.m. in Keene
Sunday, Sept. 3 at 4 p.m. in Walpole
Head to New Hampshire for a gorgeous program of live chamber music featuring three piano quartets by Czech Composers, Suk, Martinů & Dvořák. The concert will showcase two historic and world-famous instruments in the hands of visiting artists Masumi Per Rostad and Guy Johnston: an Amati Viola from 1619 and a Stradivarius Cello from 1692.
Corner House plus Tobey Sol LaRoche
Gateway City Arts, Holyoke
Friday, Sept. 1 at 8 p.m.
Originally from Boston, Corner House takes their name from the place where the four young band members found musical family in one another — their shared home in Brighton, as students at Berklee College of Music. Spirited songwriting, a dynamic old-time groove, and award-winning fiddle and mandolin combine to create a raw new sound.
Horses, Horses, Horses: The Art of Ruth Sanderson
Binding a Valley: Pioneer Valley Book Makers in the ‘90s, a documentary portrait series by Photographer Judy B. Messer
Hosmer Gallery, Forbes Library, Northampton
Saturday, Sept. 2 – Friday, Sept. 29
Artists Reception: Tuesday Sept, 12 from 5 – 7:30 p.m.
Ruth Sanderson’s career as a professional illustrator spans over 45 years and 90-plus books for children. Horses, Horses, Horses features illustrations from her picture book “A Storm of Horses,” covers from the Random House Horse Diaries series and the Black Stallion series, and more. Judy B. Messer kicks off her 40-year anniversary as an artist with Binding a Valley, a portrait series of local bookmakers.
Berkshire Woodworkers Guild Fine Woodwork Show
Berkshire Botanical Garden, Stockbridge
Saturday, Sept. 2 and Sunday, Sept. 3 from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Berkshire Woodworkers Guild members include furniture makers, cabinetmakers, boat builders, sculptors, house builders, wood turners, luthiers, and suppliers of wood products. Throughout the weekend, Guild members will demonstrate various woodworking techniques including woodturning, longbow construction, marquetry, joinery, and hand-cut dovetails.
Speeder Day
Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum
Saturday, Sept. 2 from 11 a.m. – 5 p.m.
The Shelburne Falls Trolley Museum is dedicated to preserving and operating Shelburne Falls & Colrain Street Railway trolley car No. 10, built by Wason Manufacturing Co. in Springfield in 1896. For twenty years it crossed the Deerfield River on what is now the famous Bridge of Flowers. Saved by a local farmer, it spent sixty-five years as a chicken coop, tool shed and playhouse. On Speeder Day, you can hop a ride on an antique rail-inspection car, also known as a speeder.
Strings @ the Strong: The Cushman Quartet
Simeon Strong House, Amherst
Saturday, Sept. 2 at 2 p.m.
Presented by the Amherst Historical Society, Strings @ the Strong is a relatively new outdoor chamber music series. This week, the Cushman Quartet — Laura Arpiainen, violin Amanda Stenroos, violin Laura Sacks, viola Karl Knapp, cello — will feature works by Shostakovich and Ethyl Smyth. The Sept. 9 concert will feature the Amethyst String Quartet. The series wraps up on Sept. 23 with a performance by Puffer’s Quartet.
The Knights Orchestra
The Clark, Williamstown
Outdoor Concert Saturday, Sept. 2 at 4 p.m.
Indoor Family Concert Sunday, Sept. 3 at 12 p.m.
Based in New York City, The Knights are a collective of musicians dedicated to transforming the orchestral experience and eliminating barriers between audience and music. They return to the Clark to celebrate The Clark’s “Edvard Munch: Trembling Earth” exhibit with a selection of music from fellow Norwegian Edvard Grieg, Antonín Dvořák, Frederick Delius, and more. On Sunday, they present a family-friendly version of the Saturday show, designed to provide a fun and engaging introduction to classical music.
Nelson Stevens: Color Rapping
Springfield Museums
Closes Sunday, Sept. 3
Last chance to see an excellent exhibit honoring the work of an important local artist. Nelson Stevens is an American artist and educator renowned for creating powerful, rhythmic compositions that celebrate Black life. From 1972 through 2003, while teaching at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, Stevens lived in Springfield. In the early 1970s, he initiated a groundbreaking public art project that resulted in the creation of over 30 murals throughout the city.
Wisty Wednesday
Wistariahurst Museum, Holyoke
Wednesday, Sept. 6 at 5:30 p.m.
Wisty Wednesdays are family friendly events at the Wistariahurst Museum. For this Wisty Wednesday, folks from the Children’s Museum at Holyoke will lead paper crafting activity. Families can revel in outdoor lawn games for all ages, relish mouthwatering treats from Frituras Latina, capture delightful moments with a fun photo booth activity, and bask in the tranquil beauty of the Wisteriahurst gardens during a heartwarming picnic. Admission is free!