Arts
Making the cut: After years of ups and downs, screenwriter Nathan Graham Davis find his way to Hollywood
By STEVE PFARRER
Years ago, when he signed up to take an online screenwriting class taught at Holyoke Community College, Nathan Graham Davis had no idea he might find himself eventually penning the script for a Hollywood thriller.And Davis, who lives in Easthampton,...
The Beat Goes On: Early Baroque music and instrumental guitar in Florence, an a cappella fundraiser in Amherst, and more
By STEVE PFARRER
Day-night doubleheaders have been the standard for Major League Baseball for some time now: the same two teams facing off in two games played before successive crowds.This weekend the Bombyx Center for Arts & Equity in Florence is offering its own...
Short stories from a long road: James McMurtry delivers a standout show at The Drake
By STEVE PFARRER
He’s been hailed as one of the best songwriters around, a troubadour of small-town America and the hardscrabble lives of its citizens.But James McMurtry has always taken a low-key approach to his music, and he did it again last week when he played a...
Book Bag: ‘High Bridge’ by Michael Miller; ‘Homeland: My Father Dreams of Palestine’ by Hannah Moushabeck
By STEVE PFARRER
High BridgeBy Michael Miller; Köehler Books Fayetteville, New York is not exactly a well-known locale. But in the mid-19th century, this village outside Syracuse was home to two people who would later make significant marks in U.S. history: President...
Crossing the border with performance art: Documentary by Amherst native Amber Bemak profiles the Mexican-Chicano artist Guillermo Gómez-Peña
By STEVE PFARRER
When she was an undergraduate at Antioch College, Amber Bemak studied film before moving on to get an MFA in film, video and new media from the School of the Art Institute of Chicago.But Bemak, 45, who grew up in Amherst and now teaches film and media...
Arts & Culture: A theatrical fundraiser for Ukraine, a talk on local women’s basketball history, and more
Musician tackles his declining vision on new albumNORTHAMPTON — A few years ago, Mark Erelli got some bad news: The problems he’d developed with his vision — like not being able to see the neck of his guitar clearly during a gig — were caused by...
A burst of spring at the Fine Arts Center: Dance, music and acrobatics on tap at UMass in next two weeks
By STEVE PFARRER
The Fine Arts Center at the University of Massachusetts Amherst has continued to rebound from the pandemic with an expanded program this year featuring a range of shows in music, dance, theater and movement.As spring officially arrives, the schedule...
Waking up: One man’s journey from ad man to atman
By MELISSA KAREN SANCES
Before Tom Pedulla found the Eightfold Path, he had to admit that he was lost.It took the better part of a lifetime, because he didn’t look lost at all. As the eldest of four children born to Italian-American parents, he was expected to succeed, and...
Smith College Museum of Art hosts two public talks
By STEVE PFARRER
NORTHAMPTON — The Smith College Museum of Art (SCMA) is hosting two public talks that will examine some diverse subjects, from art and culture of North Africa to a look at how incarcerated people create art.On Wednesday, Abdessamad El Montassir, an...
Book Bag: ‘Writing the Land: Windbown I,’ edited by Lis McLouglin; coming book launches at Odyssey Bookshop
By STEVE PFARRER
Writing the Land: Windblown IEdited by Lis McLoughlin; NatureCulture LLC The beauty of nature has inspired countless writers and other artists for time immemorial. That beauty has also inspired any number of people to try to preserve the natural world...
Two roads converge: Academic and musician Florence Dore mines connections between her passions
By STEVE PFARRER
Who says you can’t merge a Ph.D. and rock and roll? As Florence Dore explains, she spent a long time traveling on seemingly disparate tracks. On one hand she was the professor who’d devoted years to studying American literature and teaching...
The Beat Goes On: Lots o’ Celtic music over St. Patrick’s Day weekend, blues and soul in Florence, and more
By STEVE PFARRER
Unless you’re planning to drink yourself into a stupor with a borg (blackout rage gallon) or some other kind of booze preparation, you can celebrate St. Patrick’s Day weekend by listening to any number of Celtic groups that will be playing in the...
Arts Briefs: Four Sundays program returns to Northampton, UMass alumna wins major opera competition, and more
Four Sundays (and a few Saturdaysand weekdays)NORTHAMPTON — The Northampton Arts Council’s “Four Sundays” program, which has gone through a bit of an evolution in the last few years, is back again in yet another format.The original program, “Four...
Singular jazz duo comes to Amherst College: PVJS concert will showcase renowned improvisational trumpeter Wadada Leo Smith
By STEVE PFARRER
Over the years, Glenn Siegel has worked with a huge number of jazz musicians and composers, both as the founder of the former Magic Triangle concert series at the University of Massachusetts Amherst and with his Pioneer Valley Jazz Shares program.But...
Remembering Leilah: Northampton exhibit a memorial to young artistic woman gone too soon
By STEVE PFARRER
In March 2020, just as the pandemic was about to force the country into lockdown, Lynn Marcus was dealt a much more serious blow: Her daughter, Leilah Cohen, took her life.It’s hard to imagine anything more painful for a parent than to lose a child,...
The different sides of James Baldwin: Mead Museum exhibit showcases writer’s artistic connections
By STEVE PFARRER
It’s mostly a lesser-known footnote to his career: From 1983 to 1986, James Baldwin was based at the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where he was part of the W.E.B. Du Bois Department of Afro-American Studies and taught students from across the...
EarthTalk: Is it bad for the planet to upgrade my phone every two years?
Dear EarthTalk: Is it really bad for the planet to upgrade my phone every two years? – A.J., Darien, ConnecticutSmartphones have certainly become ubiquitous, with some 85% of Americans and 67% of adults worldwide possessing one. Manufacturers sell...
Speaking of Nature: Conflict — The fight for survival
By BILL DANIELSON
We’ve reached that point in the school year when my biology students have learned about Gregor Mendel, his experiments with pea plants and the general concepts of genes and heredity. We’ve also taken a look at the structures and basic functions of DNA...
A piece of the Oscar action: Three ARHS graduates have hands in Academy Award-nominated documentaries
By STEVE PFARRER
The Academy Awards are almost upon us, and with it comes the endless handicapping and speculation on who will win best actor and actress, who’s likely to be voted best director, and which film will score an Oscar for best picture of the year.But...
Another ARHS graduate helps write the script for the Oscar-nominated ‘Elvis’
By STEVE PFARRER
AMHERST — The three Amherst High graduates who have had a hand in two Academy Award-nominated documentary films are not the only former students to shine at this year’s Oscars.Sam Bromell, a 2004 ARHS graduate, is one of the screenplay writers for...
