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The building of wall drawings at MASS MoCA has become a pilgrimage site for Sol LeWitt one of the foremost artists of his generation. They are on semi-permanent display with a contract for 25 years. For a more limited time, through June 11, there is the opportunity to experience the work on a more personal and intimate manner with Strict Beauty: Sol LeWitt Prints at the Williams College Museum of Art.

Annie Baker has established herself with a naturalistic stream of plays, including the trilogy taking place in the town of Shirley, Vermont, of which this play is a member.  These are narratives about ordinary people doing ordinary things, often written and acted with such uninflected manner as to elevate boredom and long silences as virtues.

“Spring at Hancock Shaker Village is a joyous time,” said Director Jennifer Trainer Thompson. “Our farm literally ‘springs’ to life and there may be nothing cuter than a baby animal. When you add to that 20 historic buildings, and a lot of creative programming --- from farm talks to concerts to the spiritual richness of brooms --- you find a union with content that creates an unparalleled experience. Welcome back, and welcome to our 2022 season!”

Dishwasher Dreams looks through the lens of two generations of an immigrant family. Written and performed by Alaudin Ullah, it is filled with humor but also sharp observations. Ullah was a ground-breaker as one of the first East Asian standup comedians who gained wide appeal.

Unionized staff at the Whitney Museum of American Art will be outside in front of the Museum for tomorrow evening’s VIP opening of the 2022 Whitney Biennial, handing out leaflets with information about union negotiations. The Union, consisting of almost two hundred professional, facilities and visitor services workers has been negotiating for several months for a first contract.

The Hours is the highly anticipated new work by Kevin Puts. Renee Fleming, Kelli O'Hara, and Joyce Di Donato will star.

Since its 1897 founding, the Boston Marathon has regularly transformed in its appearance, its demographics, and its meaning.  As its 126th running on April 18 nears, The Lotvin Family Gallery examines how the marathon’s changes have been reflected in the pages of another Boston institution, The Boston Globe, now celebrating its 150th year of publication.

Michel Van der Aa's music theatre works.  This is a miracle, because he deploys many instruments, not only a libretto, often based on wild imaginings, yet sensibly based on a very simple story. In Upload, we are in the revere of the last act of Walkerie. Now a father is defying his daughter, not the reverse. The Park Avenue Armory mounts a compelling case fot his work.

"Ben Butler" is a comedy that takes place at the beginning of the Civil War. The play, by Richard Strand, is part comedy, part historical drama, and part biography. Boca Stage is presenting the play through April 10.

“Motherwhere” continues Jeremy Gill’s ongoing collaboration with the award-winning Parker Quartet, and is his first work for New York Classical Players. It premieres in New York on April 1. The author of the book that inspired the work, Zsófia Bán, is arriving from Hungary for the performance.

The musical ran on Broadway for over four years, garnering six Tonys, including the most coveted – Best Musical, Best Score, and Best Book.   Accordingly, any production of “La Cage aux Folles” starts with great material.

Laiona Michelle inhabits and projects the great American soul singer, social activist and classical pianist Nina Simone in a compelling stage show.  Designed as two of the evenings Nina Simone actually created, mixing storytelling and moving melodies, Michelle brings the Little Girl Blue to life.

In action that shifts back and forth between scenarios, playwright Quiara Alegría Hudes’ clever 2012 Pulitzer Prize winning “Water by the Spoonful” follows two seemingly independent threads through Act 1.  One is a chat group for recovering cocaine addicts.  The other concerns two young adult, Puerto Rican American cousins bereaving the passing of one’s mother.   The threads will intertwine in Act 2.

A non-equity national touring production of Anastasia is traveling the country. The production has included a stop at Miami's Adrienne Arsht Center for the Performing Arts of Miami-Dade County. This production is a visual delight, and also delivers emotionally. For information about touring stops, go to https://anastasiathemusical.com/tour.

Pittsfield CityJazz Festival has moved from our traditional mid-October date to become part of the nationwide Jazz Appreciation Month activities, which take place every year in April. The music starts on April 23.

In conjunction with "Strict Beauty: Sol LeWitt Prints," exhibition curator David S. Areford gives a lecture exploring the Jewish dimensions of Sol LeWitt’s art through five projects—two structures, two wall drawings, a work of architecture, and a site-specific installation—which together represent the most socially and historically contingent of LeWitt’s career.  

We are very excited to invite you to our first Open Studios in 2 years! As the weather gets warmer, and things are feeling safer, we are looking forward to opening our doors to you to get to know this month’s artist cohort.

With her most recent world premiere, “Escape from the Asylum,” Patricia Milton provides a sequel that is starting to suggest a series of crime-procedural, period-pieces of the sort that would run on PBS.  Like its predecessor, this comedic play charms with quirky characters, clever dialog, feminist issues, and a plot twist leading to a surprise ending. 

Otto Frank was the father of Anne Frank.  He gave his daughter a blank autograph book on her 13th birthday in which Anne diligently recorded her thoughts and experiences from mundane activities to pathos to hope over the next two years.  Otto retrieved the diary after World War II and had it translated and published.  It would become the biggest selling non-fiction book in the world after the Bible.  In English, its title is “The Diary of a Young Girl.”

Berlin is dancing again, despite the rumblings of war from the Ukraine. Despite this horrible situation Germany tries to keep going. Against all odds, the Tanzplattform Deutschland returned in 2022.

Leyma Lopez discusses her work with Berkshire Fine Arts

The Hours, a new opera by Kevin Puts, previewed at Verizon Hall in the Kimmel Cultural Center in Philadelphia.  The stellar cast featuring Renee Fleming in what we call the Meryl Streep role, Kelli O’Hara in Julianne Moore’s and Jennifer Johnson Cano in the role for which Nicole Kidman, with a fake nose, won an Academy Award for best actress. Philip Glass wrote the score for the film. Puts gives us a richer diversity in orchestration.

On Sunday, September 4 at 7 p.m., Grammy Award-winning singer, songwriter, author, poet, and multi-instrumentalist Van Morrison performs for the first time at Tanglewood.

Palm Beach Dramaworks in South Florida will present Lynn Nottage's "Intimate Apparel" from April 1-17. South Florida actress Rita Cole will portray Esther Mills, one of her "bucket list" roles. Palm Beach Dramaworks is a professional, nonprofit company located at 201 Clematis St. in West Palm Beach.

With “Passing Strange,” musician/playwright Stew created a multi-faceted coming-of-age story set to music and verse.  The music is a mashup of rock era styles that never hits a false note.  Both song lyrics and spoken sections set to music drive the narrative forward.