People
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Jean Bergantini Grillo on Boston Media
Senior Editor and Art Critic for The Cambridge Phoenix
By: - Apr 21st, 2019Jean Bergantini Grillo was hired as a senior editor and columnist when The Cambridge Phoenix was launched by Jeffrey Tarter on October 9, 1969. She worked with renowned editor Harper Barnes trying to bring shape and coherence to a staff of hippie writers. Today she is writing a play about that era and its macho newsroom. She was one of three women on staff and knew how to use her elbows. She later wrote for The Village Voice, an experience described as chaotic, but loved four years with the Daily News.
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A Man for All Seasons Howie Levitz
Photographer, Piano Man and Raconteur
By: - May 30th, 2019In 1969 Howie and Dale Levitz moved to the Berkshires when he became head of the photography department at Williams College. After seven years they opened a photo store which had a smaller iteration on Holden Street in North Adams. He was the piano man with a vast command of songs. Howie loved to entertain with tales, anecdotes and jokes. He passed away over the Memorial Day weekend.
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Canadian Curator Claude Gosselin Turns 75
Founded Biennale de Montréal
By: - Jun 05th, 2019Today, June 5, friends will gather to celebrate the 75th birthday of the curator Calude Gosselin. Not having visited Montréal in some time we made plans for travel in the fall. That changed abruptly when we were bumped off a flight to the U.K. From the road we called Claude and told him we would arrive in a couple of hours. It was great to catch up. Since the 1980s he has curated major exhibitions including Les Cent jours d’art contemporain de Montréal and Biennale de Montréal. We covered many of those projects.
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Dr. John at "77"
Voodoo Hoodoo at MASS MoCA in 2002
By: - Jun 06th, 2019New Orleans master Dr. John has died. Perhaps he was 77 but like most aspects of the musician it is yet another factoid swathed in swamp gas. On June 1, 2002, with singer Jimmy Scott, he jammed the inner court yard of MASS MoCA. Over the years I covered him numerous times including his witch doctor Gris Gris phase in the late 1960s. He long ago earned a spot in the pantheon of America's greatest musical tradition.
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Reading by Berkshire Author Steve Nelson
Get Lit Wine Bar @ The Bookstore, Lenox, MA
By: - Jun 16th, 2019In 1967-68 Steve Nelson was the manager of the legendary rock and blues club The Boston Tea Party, and later ran The Woodrose Ballroom in western Mass. In his memoir Gettin’ Home: An Odyssey Through the ‘60s, he recalls the long and winding journey which took him from high in the Andes to become the foremost producer/promoter of concerts by The Velvet Underground. He will read from his book and chat about those times on Thursday, June 20 at 5:30.
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Faerie Festival On June 18
Honoring Phil Sellers
By: - Jun 16th, 2019Artist and Activist Phil Sellers passed away in July, 2020. He and his wife Gail were part of the team behind the successful Faerie Festival. It is being presented in his honor on June 18. This is fun for the whole family.
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Paul Pelkonen of Superconductor
Recalling a Brilliant Music Critic
By: - Jun 17th, 2019Paul Pelkonen, a brilliant critic, died suddenly of heart failure at the age of 46. Paul was one of the great pleasures of reporting on music. He loved it as much as anyone could, and knew more about it than most people. His taste was impeccable.
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Patricia Hills on American Art
Whitney Museum Curator and Boston University Professor
By: - Jun 25th, 2019A leading scholar of American Art, Patricia Hills curated major exhibitions for the Whitney Museum including "John Singer Sargent."Her books and catalogues range from Eastman Johnson, to Alice Neel and Jacob Lawrence. At Boston University she trained a generation of scholars and curators. As a Marxist she has been particularly involved in social justice projects.
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Gertrude and Claudius by Mark St. Germain
Rehearsal Break at Barrington Stage Company
By: - Jun 27th, 2019Mark St. Germain met for a lunch break on the first day of rehearsal for his play Gertrude and Claudius based on a 2000 novel by John Updike. Opening on July 31 it will be the thirteenth play by St. Germain to be produced by Barrington Stage Company in Pittsfield. The company's second stage is named for him. We discussed the process from Shakespeare to Updike and now St. Germain.
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The Newport Jazz Festival 2019
Talking with Bass Player Ron Carter
By: - Jul 15th, 2019Bass player Ron Carter at 82, still performing around the world – will bring his trio to the Newport Jazz Festival Saturday, August 3rd at Fort Adams. He shared some thoughts about performing, music and musicianship.
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ATCA at Sardi’s 2019
Marisa Tomei & Charles Busch Headline Broadway Luncheon
By: - Nov 05th, 2019When Marisa Tomei developed her role in Rose Tattoo at Williamstown Theatre Festival Mandy Greenfield made sure that she was off limits to local critics. That made it all the more exciting to get up close and personal with the her during the annual ATCA lunch at Sardi's. We also enjoyed quality time with the outrageous Charles Busch. He proved to be accessible, charming and down the earth.
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Arnold Trachtman Boston Protest Artist at 89
A Formidable Legacy of Social Concern
By: - Nov 09th, 2019An exhibition of Vietnam protest paintings by Arnold Trachtman was censored and closed by the admninistration of Harvard University. We remounted it at the Institute of Contemporary Art then on Soldier's Field Road. That formed a professional and personal relationship. He was a part of a niche of major Boston artists that existed out of the mainstream, Yesterday he passed away in Cambridge at 89.
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Pictures at an Exhibition
Giuliano Opening at Real Eyes Gallery
By: - Nov 10th, 2019Many artists and friends attended the opening of my exhbition "Then and Now: Analog to Digital" at Real Eyes Gallery in Adams, Mass. For the occasion I wore my Senegal robes. That reflected the exotic nature of the work. Music was performed on electric sitar and percussion by Nana Simopoulos and Caryn Heilman. There were lively dialogues about the work anticipating an artist's talk on Saturday, November 23 at 4 PM.
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Critic Herbert Simpson 1934-2019
Covered Theatre Insight Out
By: - Nov 26th, 2019During conferences of American Theatre Critics Association the Rochester based critic, Herbert Simpson, was a raconteur and noble presence. Rooted in the classics he had little patience for current foibles. His opinions were always crusty, witty, scholarly, loquacious and well crafted. As a correspondent we were honored to repost his reviews.
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Boston Artist John Powell at 73
Memorial Exhibition at Howard Yezerski Gallery
By: - Feb 13th, 2020John Powell finished but did not see his final exhibition. He died at 73 just days before the opening of Neon Shadows at Howard Yezerski. Artists and former fellows of the Center for Advanced Visual Studies at MIT will gather to pay their respects. He will be celebrated for a career in art, science and technology. That was manifested in large public art projects. Using dramatic lighting he transformed quotidian into sublime. A bridge we traverse every day and hardly notice was transformed into an enormous sculpture with light shaping its form.
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Actress Lynn Cohen at 86
Remembered for Magda in Sex in the City
By: - Feb 16th, 2020New York critic Edward Rubin remembers Lynn Cohen an actress fondly remembered as the Ukranian maid Magda in the TV series Sex in the City. Ed has often been close with the performers he writes about.
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Country Singer Kenny Rogers
Performed at the Colonial in 2012
By: - Mar 21st, 2020The Gambler, country music star Kenny Rogers, has passed at 81. In September, 2012 he made a rare Berkshire appearance at the Colonial Theatre in Pittsfield. This is how we covered him at the time.
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Alan Shestack, 1938 to 2020
Former Director of the Museum of Fine Arts
By: - Apr 16th, 2020From 1987 to 1993 Alan Shestack was director of the Museum of Fine Arts. He followed Jan Fontein who was director from 1975 to 1987.
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Actor Brian Dennehy at 81
Recalling a Visit to Williamstown
By: - Apr 16th, 2020Today the two time, Tony winning, character actor Brian Dennehy died of natural causes. He was 81. During what was then the annual Williamstown Film Festival he joined Steve Larson for a talk back at Images. In 2012 we saw him in Chicago's Goodman Theatre production of Eugene O'Neill's "The Iceman Cometh." With an all star cast his performance was indelibible in an evening of theatre from which you never recover.
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Broadway Actor Nick Cordero
Suffers Complications of Coronavirus
By: - Apr 19th, 2020Tony nominated Broadway actor, Nick Cordero, is recovering after having his right leg amputated following Coronavirus complications.
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Corona Cookbook: Baking
Yum Cake from Fast Eddy
By: - May 10th, 2020One might say that the New York critic best known as Fast Eddy is a tad eccentric. When he came to visit in the Berkshires he sent a long list of ingredients. He came with a friend and invited two more from Connecticut. We were relegated to cleanup. For dessert he baked rum cake. The recipe is found here. It was indeed divine and we became friends with his friends. Typical of Fast the formatting here is as topsy turvy as it was sent.
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Monumental Conceptual Artist Christo at 84
It’s a Wrap
By: - Jun 01st, 2020They were known by first names, Christo and Jeanne-Claude. Until her death in 2009, and now his, they astonished the world with virtually imnpossible, monumental, site specific works. The official and bureaucratic opposition to their projects was formidable. Routinely it took years and decades to raise money and overcome obstacles. That all became part of the work. Solving that resistance made the end result all the more astonishing. Their amazing projects will be remembered by the millions who experienced them.
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David Felton Wrote for Rolling Stone
Covered Manson and Fort Hill Lyman Cults
By: - Jun 04th, 2020When David Felton came to cover the Lyman Family, he knocked on my door in the Harvard Square Murder Building. He introduced himself as sent by my friend Bill “Dr. Gonzo” Cardoso. In his Rolling Stone piece, I was caricatured as a political thug, Harry Bikes. He covered Lyman and Charlie Manson both of whom he interviewed.
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Former MFA Director Alan Shestack
Served from 1987 to 1993
By: - Jun 11th, 2020On April 14, 2020 Alan Shestack passed away at 81. From 1987 to 1993 he was director of the Museum of Fine Arts. He was notable as a mediator and problem solver. As director he presided over 26 departments with an uneven distribution of resources and power. This interview took place not long after he arrived at the museum.
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Alan Shestack Two
In 1992 the MFA Had an Annual Deficit of $3 Million
By: - Jun 15th, 2020When I interviewed Alan Shestack in 1992 he had been MFA director for five years. It was a time of economic downturn and the museum faced an annual deficit of $3 million. We discussed ways in which the museum might meet this challenge including a relationship with a museum in Nagoya, Japan which it helped to launch and program. He spoke adamantly that selling works to cover costs violated the mission and covenant of museums and their donors.
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