The cultural highlights for our region this weekend include roots music, classical, jazz, Cajun, theater, dance … plus a whole lot more.
French-Caribbean singer, bassist and producer Adeline brings her unique blend of funk, R&B and soul to MASS MoCA in North Adams on Saturday at 8pm. Adeline’s songs range from neo-soul ballads in the vein of Erykah Badu to upbeat tunes that will get everyone up and shaking it on the dance floor.
Popular roots musicians Jay Ungar and Molly Mason perform Outside On The Great Lawn at Berkshire Theatre Group’s Unicorn Theatre in Stockbridge, Mass., as part of Bobbie’s Summer Series on Saturday at 7pm. Jay and Molly draw their repertoire and inspiration from a wide range of American musical styles, including 19th-century classics, lively Appalachian, Cajun and Celtic fiddle tunes, and favorites from the golden age of country and swing—along with their own songs, fiddle tunes and orchestral compositions.
Louisiana supergroup The Revelers bring their unique blend of roots music to Dewey Hall in Sheffield, Mass., for three concerts this Sunday at 3, 5, and 7pm. Composed of founding members of the Red Stick Ramblers and the Pine Leaf Boys, the Revelers embrace all styles of Louisiana music including Cajun, zydeco, Swamp Pop, and Americana.
Dallas Black Dance Theatre makes its Jacob’s Pillow debut today through Sunday performing a Pillow-commissioned world premiere entitled LIKE WATER by choreographer Darrell Grand Moultrie. The ensemble will also perform “Face what's facing you!” by Claude Alexander III and “Night Run” by Christopher L. Huggins. Performances take place today and Saturday at 6pm as well as today, Saturday, and Sunday at 2pm.
Speaking of dance, the Paul Taylor Dance Company performs at PS21 in Chatham, N.Y., on Saturday at 8pm. The program will include “The Green Table” and Taylor’s 1962 masterwork, “Aureole,” featuring music by Handel.
Lauren Ambrose, perhaps best known for her role in TV’s “Six Feet Under,” showcases her jazzy, rootsy musical side at the Egremont Barn in South Egremont, Mass., on Saturday at 7:30pm, backed by her group, the Leisure Class.
This weekend is your last chance to catch the East Coast premiere of David Mamet's new play, “The Christopher Boy's Communion,” staged by Great Barrington Public Theater tonight through Sunday, at the Daniel Arts Center at Simon’s Rock College.
Tanglewood is still going strong, with concerts this weekend featuring superstar violinist Joshua Bell joining the BSO for an all-Beethoven program on Saturday night at 8pm, and an adventurous Sunday afternoon program featuring “Sinfonia (for Orbiting Spheres)” by American composer Missy Mazzoli, Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 4, and Tchaikovsky’s Variations on a Rococo Theme, featuring a cellist named Yo-Yo Ma.
The Carrie Haddad Gallery in Hudson is celebrating its 30th anniversary with a special group exhibition paying tribute to some of the first artists who exhibited with Carrie Haddad in the early 1990s. This exhibit will juxtapose an early work with a more recent creation by artists including David Halliday, Phyllis Palmer, Joy Taylor, Ann Getsinger, Peter Hoffman, Valerie Hammond, and others. An opening reception takes place this Saturday from 5 to 7pm.
The Bard Music Festival kicks off this weekend at the Bard Fisher Center with a two-week exploration of “Nadia Boulanger and Her World.” In twelve themed concert programs, Bard examines Nadia Boulanger, the pioneering Parisian pedagogue, composer, conductor, pianist, organist and indomitable personality who shaped more than a generation of American musicians. Concerts today, Saturday, and Sunday, will focus on music from Paris.
Seth Rogovoy is editor of the Rogovoy Report, available at rogovoyreport.com
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