Stand-up comedian Hari Kondabolu brings his incisive, sociopolitical commentary to Club B-10 at MASS MoCA in North Adams on Saturday at 8pm. The son of Indian immigrants, Kondabolu grew up in Queens, N.Y., with a first-hand look at what it means to feel like an outsider in contemporary America, an experience that fuels his work and has made him a regular on late-night TV shows including Letterman, Conan, Kimmel, and Comedy Central, and at festivals from South by Southwest to Bumbershoot to Sasquatch.
Speaking of MASS MoCA, the cultural laboratory announced its 2015 Winter/Spring events this past week. Indie-rock band Neutral Milk Hotel brings its farewell tour to MASS MoCA next April; Lucinda Childs’s landmark dance presentation Available Light, featuring sets by Frank Gehry and music by John Adams, will be staged in March; alt-country icon Steve Earle performs an encore gig in February, and Steven Bernstein’s Sex Mob performs its new live score to Maciste in Hell in April. Complete details and more events can be found at rogovoyreport.com or on mass moca’s website at massmoca.org.
Monet | Kelly, the first exhibition to consider the influence of Impressionist painter Claude Monet on the works of leading contemporary American artist Ellsworth Kelly, is on view at the Clark Art Institute in Williamstown. The works in the exhibition were selected by Kelly, and include two paintings and eighteen unpublished drawings by the artist, together with nine paintings by Monet from his Belle-Île series and of his garden in Giverny. The exhibition examines how both Monet’s motifs and the sites that inspired his paintings have shaped Kelly’s approach to his work. Monet | Kelly will be on view through February 15, 2015.
Robert Randolph and the Family Band bring their unique blend of gospel-influenced soul-rock to Club Helsinki Hudson tonight at 9pm. Randolph's unprecedented prowess on his instrument garnered him a spot on Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time" list, and also attracted the attention of such giants as Eric Clapton and Carlos Santana, who have collaborated with him on stage and in the studio.
Warren Street, a solo exhibition of oil paintings by Ken Young that captures life along the main commercial corridor of Hudson, goes on display at Valley Variety on Saturday, and remains on view through February 1, 2015.
And finally, knishes. Who doesn’t love a knish? Laura Silver, the author of “KNISH: In Search of the Jewish Soul Food,” will discuss the humble Jewish pastry and lead participants in a cooking demo and knish-tasting at Valley Variety on Saturday from 5:30 to 8:30pm.
Seth Rogovoy is editor of Berkishire Daily and the Rogovoy Report, available online at rogovoyreport.com.