The Onion
Holden Theater, Amherst College
Thursday, Sept. 11 – Saturday, Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m.
Do we own our memories? The Onion is a new opera in which family secrets collide with a memory-enhancing AI. Through contact with their younger selves, its characters bring to the surface the experiences that have shaped their lives: a sexist theft of scientific work, the vanishing of a parent, the erasure of a gender identity. Will the intervention of an AI hurt or heal? The Onion is the creation of composer/librettist Eric Sawyer and director/librettist Ron Bashford, both faculty of Amherst College. The performance features a cast of five prominent Boston vocalists, and the orchestra will be conducted by Ryan Turner, Music Director of Boston’s Emmanuel Music.
Second Annual Queercore Fest
CitySpace, Easthampton
Friday, Sept. 12th and Saturday, Sept. 13
With the community ethos of a DIY basement punk show, QueerCore Fest celebrates and affirms shared humanity with an incredible lineup of punk and hardcore bands centering BIPOC, queer, trans, gender-diverse, and femme artists. Plus, a market with fifteen makers and vendors, and numerous community resources. Check out last week’s Fabulous 413 interview with organizers Ben Delozier and Issley about this year’s lineup, last year’s lessons, and the importance of gathering queer community for a mutual aid cause.
Millennial Prom Night
Jupiter Club, Easthampton
Friday, Sept. 12 at 7 p.m.
Party like it’s 2005! Rival Galaxies, with their mix of new wave synthesizer dance grooves and punk rock guitar riffs, will be joined by local punk/post-punk band Teen Driver; The Vermen’s indie post-punk/glam/psych garage chamber music from southern Vermont; and the warbly keys and drum machines of Snowglobe Almanac. Get down and loud while overlooking views of Mount Tom in one of Easthampton’s historic mill buildings. Partygoers are encouraged to bust out their best vintage prom attire, but cummerbunds and ballgowns are not required.
American Revolution 250th Commemoration – Preparing the Noble Train
Springfield Armory National Historic Site
Saturday, Sept 13 from 10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
In late 1775, during the American Revolutionary War, Colonel Henry Knox prepared the "Noble Train of Artillery" to transport over 60 tons of captured cannons and other armaments from Fort Ticonderoga to Boston. This logistical feat, often called the Knox Expedition, was instrumental in ending the Siege of Boston. Enjoy a day of free hands-on activities and demonstrations, including woodworking, historic weapons demos, iron work, and building a replica sledge like those used by Henry Knox’s Regiment.
First Annual Williamsburg Porchfest
Williamsburg Town Center
Saturday, Sept. 13 from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
The Porchfest movement started in 2007 in Ithaca, New York. I went to the one in North Falmouth this summer. The concept: neighbors open their porches for free performances to celebrate local talent and togetherness. Held in conjunction with the annual Grange Fair, visitors will stroll along Williamsburg’s Main Street and enjoy free, live performances from Wild Thyme (pictured above), Louise Coombe, Michael Ewen Madden, Paired Down, Stephen Katz, Holly Muñoz, Sing along with Jennifer Black, Stellaluna, Don Chiulli, and Electric Castle. Stop in the Grange Hall at 10 Main Street for displays of locally grown produce and handicrafts.
New Salem Old Home Day
New Salem Town Common
Saturday, Sept. 13 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Pat ducks, bake a cake, play kickball, enter raffles, listen to music, be in the parade, learn about town trucks, ride a trike, try great food, watch historical movies, learn about electric cars, buy a homemade or home-grown product. New Salem Old Home Day promises this and more.
East Forest Park Renaissance Faire
The East Forest Park Branch Library, 136 Surrey Rd., Springfield
Saturday, Sept. from 11 a.m. – 2:30 p.m.
Slip back into the Middle Ages. The Barony of Bergental, our local chapter of the Society for Creative Anachronism, will be in medieval attire and offer demos in heraldry, illumination, calligraphy, embroidery, armor petting zoo, weaving, jewelry, and more. Check out the armor petting zoo. Enjoy live music, free cider donuts, and more.
Lenox Wine Festival
The Barn at Pizzeria Boema, Lenox
Saturday, Sept. 13 from 1 – 4 p.m.
I saw a sign for this while caught in excruciating traffic on the way to the Bonnie Raitt concert at Tanglewood. The Lenox Wine Festival, organized by Dare Bottleshop and Provisions, is an early fall celebration of wine, food, and community. Sip tastings of international and domestic wines, craft beers, and local ciders. Meet the makers, mingle with importers, and enjoy Neapolitan pizza from Pizzeria Boema with live music, and a festive atmosphere.
Hess Performance Stage Inauguration
Forbes Library, Northampton
Saturday, Sept. 13 from 3 – 5 p.m.
You may have been watching its construction on the Forbes Library’s west lawn — a beautiful new outdoor performance space! The stage is open-air with a covered roof and ramped handicap access. This project is many years in the making and will provide a wonderful space for events and community gatherings. The library has a long tradition of outdoor programming with the first photographed event held in 1918 when an overflow crowd got together on the library grounds to sing patriotic songs in celebration of the end of World War 1. Saturday’s grand opening will feature the O-Tones full band playing Swing, Blues, Soul, Motown, Latin, and R&B.
New Songs for an Old Poet: The Parting Summer
Bombyx, Florence
Saturday, Sept 13 at 3 p.m.
Here’s a new installment in “New Songs for an Old Poet,” the brainchild of Valley vocalist Peter W. Shea, who is also the principal performer. The series presents an enormous variety musical settings of the great nineteenth-century German-Jewish poet Heinrich Heine. All are works that Peter has in some way helped to bring into the world. This concert showcases the music of composer and pianist Kaeza Fearn, including her song cycle “Der scheidende Sommer” (The Parting Summer) for voice and piano, based on a group of sixteen poems about a love affair with a woman named Kitty.
Organ Concert and Baked Ham Dinner
First Church of Monson
Saturday, Sept. 13 at 5 p.m.
This event celebrates the completion of a huge and complicated restoration of First Church Monson’s historic 1892 Johnson Organ. Robert Greene, nationally known organist and composer, has chosen repertoire that will beautifully show off the capabilities of the organ. The concert will be preceded by a baked ham dinner at 5 p.m. in the church’s fellowship hall followed by the recital at 7 p.m. in the sanctuary. If you want to go to the dinner and the concert for $20 per person, call ahead. Concert-only tickets will be available at the door at a cost of $5.
Pioneer Valley Jazz Shares Season Opener: Darius Jones Trio
Shea Theater, Turners Falls
Saturday, Sept. 13 at 7:30 p.m.
Based on the CSA farm share model, this program gives you the chance to invest in jazz. A full share at $125 gets you 10 admissions, which you can use at any concert however you please. Tickets are also sold individually for $20. Performances are held in a wide variety of venues including the Parlor Room, Holyoke Media, the Institute for Musical Arts in Goshen, the Iron Horse and many others. The 24-concert season kicks off with the Darius Jones Trio.
Afro-Boricua: Springfield Puerto Rican Parade 2025
Downtown Springfield
Sunday, Sept. 14
The Springfield Puerto Rican Parade’s 2025 theme, Afro-Boricua, honors the deep African influences that shape Puerto Rican identity in music, dance, art, language, spirituality, and traditions. The day begins with the first-ever Pa’lante (Onward) 5K at 8 a.m., starting at Kenefick Park. The parade with over 4,000 marchers will step off at 11 a.m. from Main Street and Wason Avenue. Thousands of spectators will gather along its downtown route. After the parade, a family-friendly event will take place at Tower Square Park until 5 p.m. with free art and cultural workshops, face painting, live performances, food trucks and local vendors. A block party will also take place from 2 – 6 p.m. at the Springfield MGM Plaza with high-energy performances by Sal Pa Fuera and singer Osvaldo Román.
'The Library of Unruly Treasures' Book Launch with Jeanne Birdsall
Bombyx, Florence
Sunday, Sept. 14 at 1 p.m.
Come celebrate the hotly anticipated release of “The Library of Unruly Treasures” from the National Book Award-winning author of the Penderwicks series, Jeanne Birdsall. Join High Five Books, Jeanne herself, and Fabulous 413 co-host Monte Belmonte for a super fun launch event. Crafting begins at 1 p.m., followed by a talk between Jeanne and Monte, a Q&A, and then a book signing. Bring your beloved Birdsall books for signing, and High Five Books will have copies of The Library of Unruly Treasures for sale. Plus! Jeanne will be talking about this event on tomorrow’s (Thursday’s) Fabulous 413.
Music @ Amherst Series Premiere: Michelle Cann
Buckley Recital Hall, Amherst College
Friday, Sept. 19 at 7:30 p.m.
This is a lovely series that is worthy of your attention. The season's six-concert subscription has been on sale for a while. But here’s something important to know: single tickets go on sale exactly 14 days before each concert, and they tend to sell out fast. For the opener, Michelle Cann will present “Women of Chicago’s Black Renaissance” with music by Florence Price, Margaret Bonds and others. Cann’s honors include the Sphinx Medal of Excellence and the Andrew Wolf Chamber Music Award. In 2024, she was named the inaugural Christel DeHaan Artistic Partner of the American Piano Awards.
Leo Kottke
Iron Horse, Northampton
Sunday, Oct. 12 at 7 p.m.
Guitarist Leo Kottke is known for a fingerpicking style that draws on blues, jazz, and folk music, and for amazingly inventive syncopated, polyphonic melodies. He sings in an unconventional, instantly recognizable and expressive baritone. In concert, Kottke intersperses humorous and often bizarre monologues with vocal and instrumental selections from throughout his career, played solo on his big-toned 6-string and 12-string guitars. A legend.