The Rogovoy Report: Berkshire and Hudson Valley Cultural Preview
June 15-22, 2023
With so much going on culturally speaking in our greater Berkshires/Hudson Valley region, this is my highly selective, curated snapshot of some of the most promising upcoming events …
GRACE KELLY BRINGS NEW JAZZ-POP SOUNDS to MCLA
Saxophonist, singer, and songwriter Grace Kelly will perform at MCLA’s Venable Theatre in North Adams, Mass., on Thursday, June 15, at 7pm. Kelly has rocked the jazz world with sold-out concerts, 14 acclaimed albums, and a resume that includes performing at the Hollywood Bowl as part of the house band for The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, as well as performing at Barack Obama’s 2009 inauguration at age 16. (Thurs, Jun 15)
COREY GLOVER BRINGS CLASSIC SOUL to THE FALCON
Corey Glover, best known as lead singer of Living Colour, brings his group, Soul Experience, to the Falcon in Marlboro, N.Y., on Thursday, June 15, at 7:30pm. With Soul Experience, Glover puts his spin on the soul and R&B classics he grew up on. (Thu, Jun 15)
BUDDY GUY BRINGS FAREWELL TOUR to UPAC
Eighty-six-year-old blues guitarist and singer Buddy Guy is making the rounds of his old haunts on his final, farewell tour, which pulls into UPAC in Kingston, N.Y., on Thursday, June 15, at 7:30pm. One of the greatest electric guitarists of all time, Buddy Guy has been inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and has been cited as an influence by rock titans including Jimi Hendrix, Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, and Stevie Ray Vaughan, all while being a minimalist at heart, doing more with the power of a single, whispery, bent blues note than an army of so-called rock virtuosos. (Thu, Jun 15)
SOUL ARTIST RAICHE RETURNS HOME to HEADLINE MASS MoCA
Pittsfield, Mass.-bred contemporary R&B singer-songwriter Raiche returns to her home county for a concert in the Hunter Center at MASS MoCA on Saturday, June 17, at 7pm. Raiche's songs boast positive messages and female empowerment, while her music blends pop melodicism and big beats, with heavy influences of gospel, trip-hop and classical soul. (Sat, Jun 17)
PATTI LuPONE SALUTES BROADWAY at THE BARDAVON
Three-time Tony and two-time Grammy Award winner Patti LuPone will share her love affair with the stage in Don’t Monkey with Broadway, at the Bardavon in Poughkeepsie, N.Y., on Saturday, June 17, at 8pm. Through indelible interpretations of classic Broadway show tunes by the likes of Richard Rodgers, Lorenz Hart, Leonard Bernstein, Stephen Sondheim, Cole Porter and Irving Berlin, LuPone explores how her life-long love affair with Broadway began and the unpredictability of the Great White Way. (Sat, Jun 17)
SITE-SPECIFIC DANCE to ‘UNFOLD’ OLANA
Choreographer Michael Spencer Phillips and architect Dino Kiratzidis will transform Olana’s picturesque landscape into a dynamic stage, presenting a series of thought-provoking dance pieces that pay homage to the vision of landscape artist Frederic Church, in Unfolding Olana, at the Hudson-based state park on Saturday, June 17, at 8pm. The dance performance culminates a day-long festival at Olana. (Sat, Jun 17)
MISHA DICHTER to PLAY BRAHMS, DEBUSSY, LISZT at MUSIC MOUNTAIN
Pianist Misha Dichter and clarinetist Oskar Espina Ruiz will join forces for the Brahms clarinet sonatas at Music Mountain in Falls Village, Conn., on Sunday, June 18, at 3pm. The duo will also play works by Debussy and Liszt. (Sun, Jun 18)
NELLIE McKAY BRINGS QUIRKY PRE-ROCK POP to THE LINDA
Sophisticated singer-songwriter Nellie McKay brings her eclectic musical reach and her dazzling lyrical wit, often delivered in the style of pre-rock pop, to The Linda, WAMC’s Performing Arts Studio, on Thursday, June 22, at 8pm. The multi-talented Nellie McKay made her smash debut in 2004 with her groundbreaking double-CD, “Get Away from Me,” showcasing her, which extended to the album’s title, a subtle play on “Come Away with Me,” the breakthrough album by a somewhat similarly inclined pop-folk jazz singer named Norah Jones. (Thu, Jun 22)
Roll Call: Founding Members
Anne Fredericks
Anonymous (6)
Erik Bruun
Benno Friedman
Richard Koplin
Steve and Helice Picheny
Rhonda Rosenheck
Elisa Spungen and Rob Bildner/Berkshires Farm Table Cookbook
Julie Abraham Stone
Mary Herr Tally