Amanda Shires
The Drake, Amherst
Thursday, Oct. 16 at 8 p.m.
A truly singular creative force, Grammy Award-winning singer/songwriter/multi-instrumentalist Amanda Shires has made an extraordinary career out of pursuing her deepest instincts and passions. Since getting her start playing fiddle with the legendary Texas Playboys at the age of 15, the West Texas native has brought her nuanced songwriting to a series of critically acclaimed solo albums, collaborated with the likes of John Prine and Justin Townes Earle, and earned the 2017 Emerging Artist of the Year prize from the Americana Music Association (AMA).
Swamped
Wendell Meeting House
Thursdays through Sundays, Oct. 16 – 26
When a historic (1846) local meeting house is updated with a new lighting system, sound system and stage it’s cause for celebration. The first post-renovation theatrical production at the Wendell Meeting House is the world premiere of Swamped, written and directed by Court Dorsey (pictured above). The premise: Captain’s lost his wife. He’s marooned in assisted living with his red state values and his non-binary caretaker, Clove. The Captain’s almost-son Stephen loves Kat, a woman at a crossroads. Everyone is swamped. Knowing each other may be their only hope.
Pink Martini
The Academy of Music, Northampton
Friday, Oct. 17 at 8 p.m.
Thomas Lauderdale was working in politics, thinking he would run for mayor one day. He went to every political fundraiser under the sun but was dismayed to find the music at these events underwhelming. Drawing inspiration from music from all over the world, and hoping to appeal to conservatives and liberals alike, he founded the “little orchestra” Pink Martini in 1994. The band, whose multilingual repertoire includes songs in about 25 languages, is celebrated for its cosmopolitan and "rollicking around-the-world musical adventure.”
Jimena Sarno: Rhapsody
MASS MoCA, North Adams
Opens Saturday, Oct. 18
Conversation with Jimena Sarno at 4 p.m.
Jimena Sarno is an interdisciplinary artist and educator born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, and based in Los Angeles. For Rhapsody, Sarno collaborated with artists, teachers, and makers, most of whom are from the Global South. The central installation features a group of objects made using techniques — including weaving, felting, woodworking, and pottery — that rely on bodies of knowledge passed from maker to maker. Displayed on portable tables, these objects cast shadows across a 100-foot-long film projection that interlaces footage of Sarno learning to weave and the landscapes that were the backdrop to her process.
Working Weavers Studio Trail
Florence – Shelburne Falls
Saturday, Oct. 18 Sunday, Oct. 19 from 10 a.m. – 5 p.m.
The Working Weavers Studio Trail is a self-guided driving tour of five weaving studios along back roads from Florence to Shelburne Falls. Explore handmade textiles that tell the stories of the people who created them — a group of weavers dedicated to bringing handwoven textiles into the future. Plus, gorgeous leaf peeping along the way.
Northampton Record Fair
Three County Fairgrounds
Saturday, Oct. 18 from 9 a.m. – 5 p.m.
Here’s a really great event for anyone who owns a turntable (a steadily growing group). This year the fair is moving to Barn 1 at the Three County Fair Grounds which has room for 80 tables of vinyl and CDs from local and regional record dealers from around the North East. Early admission at $10 gets you in first until 11 a.m., when admission drops to $5. The best advantage to the new location: plenty of parking!
The Met Live in HD: Bellini’s La Sonnambula
The Mahaiwe in Great Barrington, Hampshire Mall in Hadley, The Clark in Williamstown, Memorial Hall Theater in Shelburne Falls, West Springfield 15
Saturday, Oct. 18 at 1 p.m.
It’s the first installment of the Metropolitan Opera’s Live in HD 2025–26 season. Soprano Nadine Sierra stars as Amina, who sleepwalks her way into audiences’ hearts in Bellini’s poignant tale of love lost and found. The new production retains the opera’s original setting in the Swiss Alps but uses its somnambulant plot to explore the emotional and psychological valleys of the mind. Tenor Xabier Anduaga co-stars as Amina’s fiancé, Elvino.
Made in the Valley: 19th Century Music for Viols and Voices from the Connecticut River Valley
Unitarian Society of Northampton
Saturday, Oct. 18 at 7 p.m.
Music was everywhere in New England in the decades before and after the Revolution. By 1800, Northampton was a regional hub of music printing, and Connecticut Valley instrument makers worked to meet the new demand for musical instruments. Almost everyone learned to sing and many learned to play New England viols. This concert will include works by Sawney Freeman, a formerly enslaved composer from Connecticut, hymns, fiddle tunes, songs, and dance music, some of which haven’t been heard for more than two centuries.
Fall Picnic
Cricket Creek Farm, Williamstown
Sunday, Oct. 19 from 11 a.m., 1 p.m., and 3 p.m.
Cricket Creek Farm is a small, grass-based dairy that produces raw cow’s milk, grass-fed beef, rose veal, and pork, in addition to seven artisanal, award-winning farmstead cheeses. The picnic gives you the chance to enjoy delicious food and gorgeous views. Visit the animals and enjoy family-friendly activities on the lawn and inside their historic event barn.
Rebel With a Clause
Amherst Cinema
Sunday, Oct. 19 at 12:45 and 4 p.m.
If you are a fan of the Word Nerd on the Fabulous 413, you will love this indie film. One fall day, Ellen Jovin set up a folding table on a Manhattan sidewalk with a homemade sign that said “Grammar Table.” Right away, passersby began excitedly asking questions, telling stories, and filing complaints. What happened next is the stuff of grammar legend. Ellen and her filmmaker husband, Brandt Johnson, took the table on the road, visiting all 50 states. You can meet Ellen and Brandt at the pre-film grammar table pop-up, book signing, and post-screening Q&A.
Antenna Cloud Farm Presents: Coyote Makes a World
Shea Theater, Turners Falls
Sunday, Oct. 19 at 4 p.m.
The last show of Antenna Cloud Farm’s 2025 season promises to be an autumnal feast for the ears, eyes, and soul as performer, storyteller, and vocalist čnaq’ymi (lone eagle) brings his multimedia project to the Shea Theater in collaboration with The Forest (Gustavo Aguilar, Leah Bowden, Andrew Drury, Michael Wimberly), an extraordinarily versatile and virtuosic percussion ensemble.
Michel Kameni: Portraits of an Independent Africa
Smith College Museum of Art
Through Jan. 4, 2026
This exhibition features portraits by the Cameroonian studio photographer Michel Kameni made at Studio KM in Yaoundé. The 55 prints featured were made during the 1960s and 1970s in the years following Cameroon’s independence. From its founding in 1963, Studio KM attracted a cross-section of society. Kameni was particularly good at depicting the aspirations of the people who entered his studio. He collaborated with them to craft evocative nyanga (boasting, or bragging) photographs: images to send friends and loved ones or to document important relationships, events, or milestones.
COMING SOON
Back Porch Songwriter Night: The Songs of Tracy Chapman
Iron Horse, Northampton
Thursday, Oct. 23 at 7 p.m.
The Back Porch Songwriter Series started in 2017 as part of the Back Porch Festival in Northampton. The concept: local musicians pay tribute to songwriting legends. Kaliis Smith (co-host of The Fabulous 413), Kimaya Diggs, Kris Delmhorst, Pamela Means and Evelyn Harris will take the Iron Horse stage with Deep River Ramblers serving as house band.
Davóne Tines with Ruckus
The Clark, Williamstown
Friday, Oct. 24 at 7 p.m.
Renowned early music band, Ruckus, presents a program for 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence with acclaimed bass-baritone Davóne Tines. In a biting exploration of American revolutionary music, they time-travel through four centuries of reimagined songs, hymns, and ballads.
Berkshire Bach Harpsichord Festival: Peter Sykes
St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Stockbridge
Saturday, Oct. 25 at 3 p.m.
Peter Sykes is Principal Instructor of Harpsichord and a core faculty member of the Historical Performance Department Juilliard. He will play a recital of French Baroque masterpieces.
Smith College Department of Theatre: Eurydice
Hallie Flanagan Studio Theatre, Smith College
Wed. Oct. 29 – Saturday, Nov. 1
Playwright Sarah Ruhl reimagines the classic myth of Orpheus through the eyes of its heroine. With contemporary characters, unexpected plot twists, and breathtaking visual effects, the play is a fresh look at a timeless love story.
Judy Collins
HOPE Center for the Arts, Springfield
Saturday, Nov. 1 at 7 p.m.
For more than six decades, Judy Collins has captivated audiences with her crystalline soprano, poetic storytelling, and a repertoire that bridges folk, pop, and Broadway. The HOPE Center for the Arts offers you the chance to experience a living legend in a setting that highlights her warmth and artistry.