NEPM’s Smart and Funny People
Ira Glass: Stories for a Saturday Night
Academy of Music, Northampton
Saturday, Oct. 3 at 8 p.m.
This American Life host Ira Glass brings a night of storytelling in the style he pioneered on his hit radio show: funny stories with feelings. Heard each week by over three million listeners, This American Life has shaped the way millions of us experience stories since 1995. His work has earned nine Peabody Awards, the first-ever Pulitzer Prize for audio journalism, and a spot in the Library of Congress’s National Recording Registry. Get tickets to a preshow meet and greet reception here.
The Incredible Naumkeag Pumpkin Show
Naumkeag, Stockbridge
Thursday, Oct. 1 – Saturday, Oct. 31
Cauldrons, cobwebs, fairy houses, volcanoes, thousands of hand-carved jack-o'-lanterns, mums, pumpkins, and gourds transform Naumkeag into an autumnal haven. Every year there are new and expanded displays embracing October's mysterious magic for visitors of all ages to discover. Happening Wednesdays through Sundays. Advance ticket sales only. No tickets are sold on site.
The Carle After Dark
Color Quest 1: The Power of Color
Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book Art
Thursday, Oct. 1 from 4 – 7 p.m.
On the first Thursday of every month from October through June, this series for all ages transforms the Eric Carle Museum into a playground of wonder, celebrating storytelling, color, and art. This month explores the power of color through playful activities, collaborative art-making, and creative inspiration from artists who influenced Eric Carle. Families will mix, layer, and combine colors while discovering how simple choices can transform an artwork — and the stories it tells. Admission is “pay-as-you-wish.”
At the Wedding
Amherst Woman’s Club, Amherst
Thursday, Oct. 1 – Sunday, Oct. 4; rain dates Oct. 8–11
Friday, Oct. 2 is sold out
Bryna Turner’s, At the Wedding follows Carlo as she arrives, unexpectedly, at her ex-girlfriend’s wedding, carrying heartbreak, bitterness, and an undeniable longing. It’s set just outside the reception itself where Carlo and the other guests orbit the celebration and each other. This Valley Players show will be presented outdoors on the grounds of the Amherst Woman’s Club. Bring a chair or blanket. Tickets are pay-what-you-can, and half of the production’s net ticket revenue will benefit Out Now, which supports LGBTQ+ youth in the Valley.
Insun Park & Generals
The Drake, Amherst
Thursday, Oct. 1 at 8 p.m.
Insun Park & Generals blends Korean traditional music with a mix of contemporary pop forms — notably rock, funk, and hip-hop — to create a unique sound that is expansive and inescapably danceable. Bandleader Park infuses movement and storytelling into the live experience through her mastery of Gangnyeong Talchum, a centuries old mask dance designated as part of Korea’s national intangible heritage. This show is presented at the Drake by the UMass Fine Arts Center.
Mike’s Maze Beer Mazes 2026
Warner Farm, 23 S. Main Street, Sunderland
Fridays, Oct. 2 – Oct. 30 from 6 – 9 p.m.
Head to Sunderland for an evening of maze-crawling and beer tasting at Mike’s Maze at Warner Farm. As dusk falls, grab a flashlight and venture into the maze to play games, and track down local brews at tasting stations hidden inside the maze. The folks at Mike’s Maze are pumped to be back with a whole new maze field and special-themed trivia just for those 21 and older!
Homelands PowWow: Tending the Fire
Shakespeare & Company, Lenox
Saturday, Oct. 3 and Sunday, Oct. 4, grounds open at 10 a.m.
The Homelands PowWow brings members of the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians from Wisconsin back to their ancestral homelands in the Berkshires for a weekend of dancing, drumming, music, arts and crafts, food and Native vendors. Grand Entry, the formal procession that opens a powwow session, begins at noon both days, as dancers enter the arena together accompanied by drumming and singing. Another Grand Entry takes place Saturday at 6 p.m. Proceeds help cover travel expenses for Stockbridge-Munsee tribal members making the journey from Wisconsin to Massachusetts.
Easthampton Porchfest
Saturday, Oct. 3 from 12 – 6 p.m.
A fabulous “Easthamptoning,” Porchfest is kind of like open studios (typically for visual artists) but for music instead. When you check out the schedule, you’ll find a long list of local musicians performing on porches, steps, storefronts and driveways throughout several neighborhoods in Easthampton, playing just about every popular music genre imaginable. It’s a great way for neighbors to connect with one another and share their enjoyment for playing and listening to live music.
Pioneer Valley Symphony 88th Season Opener
Greenfield High School
Saturday. Oct. 3 at 2 p.m.
The Pioneer Valley Symphony opens its 88th season with Louise Farrenc's crackling Overture No. 1, Dvořák's beautifully lyrical Violin Concerto, and Janáček's Sinfonietta, a blazing showcase for the orchestra's brass. Plus, with the concert, PVS launches a collaboration with Hadley-based Multi arts for children. Kids 4-12 can listen to the first piece on the program, then go with Multi-arts for art activities. And childcare will be provided for 2 and 3-year-olds.
Phantoms by Firelight: Frankenstein Encounter
Old Sturbridge Village
Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays, Oct. 3 – 25
Old Sturbridge Village will be transformed into a shadowy world of dense fog, chilling music, crackling electricity — with one of literature’s most iconic and misunderstood creatures lurking somewhere in the darkness. History will be woven throughout, with interpreters exploring what frightened New Englanders more than 200 years ago when the Frankenstein was first published. There will be coffin-making, gravestone carving, spooky 1800's insights, ghost stories by the fire, experiments with electricity, theatrical performers, games and trick-or-treat for kids, and more.
Nicole Zuraitis Quartet
Indigo Room, Great Barrington
Saturday, Oct. 3 at 5:30 p.m.
Nicole Zuraitis is a New York-based two-time Grammy-winning jazz singer-songwriter, producer, pianist, arranger, bandleader and winner of the prestigious American Traditions Vocal Competition Gold Medal. With a “heart as big as her remarkable voice,” (Jazz Police), Nicole has positioned herself as one of the top artists and “prolific songwriters” (Broadway World) to watch in jazz and beyond. Nicole’s latest studio album, The Devil I Knew, was released in July 2026.
Springfield Public Forum
Jessica Tarlov: I Disagree: Winning Arguments Without Losing Friends
Springfield Symphony Hall
Saturday, Oct. 3 at 6 p.m.
Imagine you’re sitting down to Thanksgiving dinner, knowing it’s going to get heated. One uncle is ready to argue about politics, another relative has very different views, and you usually try to stay out of it, even though you have strong opinions yourself. Conversations like these have split some families up. Now imagine that dinner table debate broadcast daily to millions. Welcome to the world of Jessica Tarlov, an unflappable liberal voice on Fox News Channel’s The Five.
Annual Polish Film Festival
Alumnae Library Theater, Elms College, Chicopee
Sunday, Oct. 4 at 2 p.m.
The Kosciuszko Foundation New England Chapter’s annual festival marks two anniversaries this year: America at 250 and the centennial of Polish filmmaker Andrzej Wajda. It opens with Kosciuszko: A Man Before His Time, a documentary about the Polish military engineer and revolutionary who fought in the American Revolution, followed by a Q&A with author Alex Storozynski. The festival continues at Elms College with Wajda’s Zemsta (Revenge) on Sunday, Oct. 25 at 2 p.m., and concludes with Wajda’s Katyn at the Northampton Center for the Arts on Saturday, Oct. 31 at 2 p.m. All three screenings are free and presented in Polish with English subtitles.
Tuesday Morning Music Club: Opening Day Concert
Trinity United Methodist Church, Springfield
Tuesday, Oct. 6 at 10:30 a.m.
The Tuesday Morning Music Club opens its 125th season with clarinetist Hannah Berube, cellist Karl Knapp and pianist Clifton J. Noble performing an all-Brahms program. Concerts are free for members and their guests. Season memberships are $40; non-member tickets are $10; available at the door.
Summer, 1976
The Unicorn Theatre, Stockbridge
Wednesday, Oct. 7 – Saturday, Oct. 31
Two-time Tony Award nominee Kate Baldwin and Jennifer Van Dyck star in Summer, 1976, a show about two women who meet during the Bicentennial summer and form an unexpected friendship that shapes their lives for decades. Baldwin’s Broadway credits include Hello, Dolly! and Finian’s Rainbow; Van Dyck has appeared in Hedda Gabler and Dancing at Lughnasa. Written by Pulitzer Prize winner David Auburn and directed by Isadora Wolfe.
COMING SOON
Music @ Amherst: Jeremy Denk, piano
Buckley Recital Hall, Amherst College
Saturday, Oct. 17, at 7:30 p.m.
Tickets go on sale Saturday, Oct. 3
Jeremy Denk is one of America’s foremost pianists opens the 2026–2027 Music @ Amherst season. Renowned for his vivid imagination, depth, and wit, Denk is also a New York Times bestselling author, recipient of a MacArthur “Genius” Fellowship, the Avery Fisher Prize, and a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Remember: single tickets for the Music @ Amherst series go on sale two weeks before each event.
Four Roads to Freedom
Bombyx, Florence
Saturday, Oct. 17 at 7 p.m.
Four Roads to Freedom explores how music has given voice to movements for justice and equality across cultures and history. The concert brings together Black Civil Rights anthems, Irish rebel music, South American Nueva Canción and Yiddish labor songs. Related partner events include a Spanish-language family concert at the Hispanic American Library in Springfield on Oct. 17; a guided tour at the Yiddish Book Center in Amherst on Oct. 18; “Supporting Trans and Gender Inclusive Community Members” with Translate Gender at the Unitarian Society of Northampton and Florence on Oct. 18; and an Underground Railroad tour of Northampton led by the David Ruggles Center on Oct. 18.
Rhythm & Rails
Union Station, Northampton
Tuesday, Oct. 20 at 7 p.m.
With Northampton’s railroad history at its center, Rhythm & Rails uses a blend of narration, theatrical cameos, archival images, and music to explore the complex history of the nation's railroads and the changes they brought to almost every aspect of American life. This popular event, presented by Historic Northampton, is sure to sell out.
Write Angles: Straw Dog Writers Guild Conference
Bay Path University, Longmeadow
Saturday, Oct. 24 from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m.
The largest writing conference in Western Massachusetts returns for its 39th year. Participants can choose from 20 workshops on topics such as ghost stories in modern fiction, memoir, speculative fiction, and poetry, as well as three panels on the role of independent presses in the publishing world, book promotion, and a conversation with working literary agents. Authors can schedule meetings with five literary agents who will critique authors’ query letters and first five pages. The conference will feature keynote speaker Essie Chambers, award-winning local author best known for her debut novel, Swift River.