Vermont Theatre Company announced auditions for its fall production of The Receptionist, a comedy by Adam Bock directed by Bill Wieliczka. Auditions will be held on Thursday, June 22, at 6 p.m., in the Brattleboro Union High School auditorium.
There are four roles for two men and two women ages twenty to 60. The show calls for: Beverly, the receptionist, age 30-50; Mr. Raymond, the boss, age 40-60; Lorraine, the co-worker, age 20-30; and Mr. Dart, the Rep from the Central Office, age 20-30.
Actors will be asked to do cold readings from the script.
The Receptionist takes place in the Northeast Office at the start of a normal day as Beverly handles calls and standard office drama. However, this day is unsettled when the Central Office sends a rep to investigate the mishandling of a client. Suddenly the company's true purpose is revealed and things take a dark turn as the play questions institutionalized evil and the rationale of those who are culpable.
RAMParts Presents, in partnership with Exhibition on Screen, brings The Artist's Garden: American Impressionism and the Garden Movement, 1887-1920, to the Bellows Falls Opera house on Thursday, June 22, at 7 p.m. The 90-minute feature captures the Impressionist movement and its influence tied to a love of gardens by...
DPW gets new truck BRATTLEBORO - The Selectboard voted to award Shearer Chevrolet of South Burlington the bid for a new truck for the Department of Public Works. The truck, which will cost the town $23,482 with trade-in, was budgeted for $42,000. At the June 6 Selectboard meeting, DPW...
Latchis Arts presents the season finale of its popular new Exhibition on Screen, which features compelling documentary films about artists and their work. On Saturday and Sunday, June 17 and 18, at 4 p.m., at the Latchis Theatre, 50 Main St., Brattleboro, the series features Michelangelo: Love and Death, a bold new biography of one of the greatest artists of the Renaissance. The spectacular sculptures and paintings of Michelangelo seem so familiar to us, but what do we really know...
Led by August Watters, a Boston-area teacher and composer, the Festival of Mandolin Chamber Music IX, June 15-18 at Stone Church Center, 12 & 14 Church St., is designed for the classical mandolin community and for concertgoers interested in classical chamber music. The festival creates learning and performance opportunities for those interested in chamber music composed for mandolin and its related instruments (as well as classical guitar). This year, the fest introduces special guests from Novosibirsk, Russia, Aleksei Aleksandrov and...
The “diversity in municipal staffing” item at the June 6 Selectboard meeting was long on conversation and short on action. But, as many town officials and some attendees agreed, the process will take some time. The only motion from the Board was to accept the recommendations listed in Town Manager Peter B. Elwell's June 1 memorandum, which made few substantial changes to the hiring process, but invited more community input and mandated implicit bias training for management. Over the span...
While Leland & Gray lost to Oxbow, 11-2, in the Division III softball championship game in Poultney on June 10, the Rebels and their fans should not forget the memories of the game that put them into the finals. For me, the Rebels' come-from-behind 8-7 win in the semifinals over Green Mountain in Townshend on June 7 spoke volumes about the character of the girls on this team. When GM's Kassidy Cummings hit a grand slam to put the Chieftains...
Women have always been caregivers. Whether looking after small children, elders, other family members, or friends in small communities, whether tending to others in urban settings with limited support systems or acting as professional caregivers in institutional settings, we have been the primary providers of physical care and emotional support in a variety of settings and circumstances throughout the ages. Today, that remains true, and our gender's role as the main caregiver might be more vital than ever. As women...
On Thursday, June 15, the Jamaica Town Hall will come to life with a performance by Luminous Crush, whose music has been hailed as “fearless and original” by Dan Bolles, music editor at Seven Days. Luminous Crush is a rock and pop band fronted by Laura Molinelli and Ben Campbell. Joined by Christian Heins (bass), Brad Waugaman (keyboard), and Paul Carroccio (drums), they form a quintet that focuses on original dreamlike pop and rock vignettes. Waugaman, an accomplished videographer, will...
Pinnacle Cabin celebration postponed WESTMINSTER - The Windmill Hill Pinnacle Association says it must postpone the scheduled June 17 Cabin Celebration until a date to be determined in October. Holden Trail and the private access road - along which refreshments, chairs, and those who cannot hike to the site must be transported - are too wet for pleasant and safe travel. WHPA trail-maintenance experts have determined that, even if it doesn't rain from now until June 17, both the trail...
On Saturday, June 24, Latchis Arts presents “Michael Talking Meryl: A program featuring The New Yorker writer, editor, and Meryl Streep biographer, Michael Schulman.” Schulman will join Latchis Arts for a special afternoon dedicated to the celebrated actress Meryl Streep. A 4 p.m. screening of Kramer vs. Kramer (1979) will be followed by a talk led by Schulman, who will discuss his biography of Streep and share stories from his life as a writer and editor at The New Yorker.
College news • The following local students recently graduated from Southern Vermont College in Bennington: Mariah Hinckley of Putney earned a B.S. in nursing and Darion James of Brattleboro earned a B.S. in psychology. • The following local students were recently named to the Castleton University Dean's List for the spring 2017 semester: Connor Bonneville of South Londonderry, Cody Driscoll of Vernon, Patrick Gilligan of Vernon, Seth Marcil of Brattleboro, Kaylea Niles of Whitingham, Brian Schilling of Saxtons River, Emily...
Town considers changes to dog ordinance VERNON - In response to community concerns, the Selectboard will review and revise their current Dog Ordinance over the next few months. Selectboard Chair Josh Unruh encourages public participation in the process. “We are hoping to address resident concerns and update our local ordinance to conform to state law,” he said in a news release. “Toward that end, we want to give the public ample opportunity to weigh in on the process and be...
In Windham County, it seems nothing comes easy with Act 46. The latest issue comes in Dover, where officials have discovered that a March vote warning mistakenly included school-closure language that wasn't on other communities' ballots. Dover voters convincingly approved the Act 46 school merger plan three months ago. Now, they'll have to weigh the issue again in a special July 11 election, and officials are hoping the result is the same so as to not disrupt a merger that's...
St. Mary's in the Mountains will continue its Red Door Concerts series on June 24, with “Night Music for A Summer's Eve.” In an evening of music with something for everyone, musicians from the Deerfield Valley area will offer a wide variety of musical styles and genres, ranging from classical music to folk to jazz, with many stops in between. All proceeds will benefit Mount Snow Adaptive Sports, a local nonprofit charitable organization providing sports, recreational, and educational programs for...
A Massachusetts company is boosting cellular service at Vermont's smallest hospital. CoverageCo has installed equipment that allows for cellphone use at the hospital or in the vicinity - an area that has had little to no service until now. There are limitations: For instance, AT&T customers can't access the new system. But a company administrator said the Grace Cottage installation fulfills the Cambridge-based company's mission to reach underserved areas. “In general, on most of the campus, you can't get any...
In response to objections from a Brattleboro anti-nuclear group, Vermont Yankee's current and prospective owners maintain that they've followed the “appropriate process” in seeking state approval for the Vernon plant's sale. And for that reason, attorneys for Entergy and NorthStar Group Services are asking the Vermont Public Service Board to throw out a motion for summary judgment filed last month by New England Coalition. The companies say the coalition's motion is “inconsistent” with state statute and also “would overturn established...
On Thursday, June 15, at 8 p.m., the Big Barn opens early for Yellow Barn's faculty percussionist Eduardo Leandro in a special pre-season performance of traditional, theatrical, and improvisational music for solo percussion. Saxophonist Travis Laplante will join Leandro for the final piece on the program. “This program consists of three pairs of pieces that represent three different stages of the performer's involvement with percussion music. The first pair is the more standard marimba repertoire, and it includes an early...
The Austine Campus auditorium was colorful, celebratory, and communal, as the New England Center for Circus Arts (NECCA) ProTrack students recently gave some of their final performances. “Wayward Ladies' Finishing School - A Circus Show” involved a variety of acts: trapeze, contortion, juggling, Cyr wheel, and aerial silk and rope. I sat on my bench in the auditorium, in awe and perplexed, while watching the ensemble of bodies. Students flew high; they stretched, contorted, and manipulated gravity while wearing tight,
As the end of this year's legislative session approached, Senate President Pro Tempore Tim Ashe, D/P-Chittenden, was feeling pretty good. “Everything was going smoothly,” Ashe told The Commons last month about his first year in charge of the Senate. “Things were working well and we were having a positive session. This wasn't a session where we were dealing with sweeping changes, it was just a session where we did just a plain good job.” But two weeks before a scheduled...
The next Wardsboro Curtain Call event features Mister Dix on Saturday, June 17. Admission is $10 at the door; pizza bites and other refreshments are included with admission. Doors open at 6:30 p.m.; Music begins at 7 p.m. at the Wardsboro Town Hall on Main Street. Mister Dix exists as a simple and joyful expression. The combined musical efforts of Colby Dix (guitar, vocals), Dan Gullotti (drums), and Jean Chaine (bass), culminate in a blend of rock, funk/fusion, psych-folk, and...
Centre Congregational Church's white steeple is a Brattleboro landmark, and it is the most visible feature of a historic structure that has stood on Main Street for 174 years. Soon, the steeple may serve another purpose - boosting cellular signals. After working with the church for several years, Verizon has proposed placing antennas inside the steeple's bell tower along with related equipment inside the the clock portion of the structure. The facility is designed to “significantly improve” cell service, according...
The works of Halifax visual artists and writers will be on display at the Silo Gallery at the Southeastern Vermont Welcome Center through June 26. The southern Vermont hill town of Halifax is home to artists and writers who find inspiration in the quiet solitude of the forested landscape and the scenic Green River. In 2012, residents concerned about land use formed the Halifax Conservation Group to bring attention to and preserve the town's forests and open spaces. As the...
Each year, the Friends of the Wardsboro Library sponsors a raffle to support the Gloria Danforth Memorial Building, the home of the Wardsboro Public Library. This year's prize for “The Best Raffle Ever” is a one-of-a-kind Christmas tree skirt, handmade and donated by Wardsboro fiber artist Linda Gifkins. The tree skirt, entitled Christmas in New England, is hand hooked in hand-cut wool, hand-dyed new and recycled fiber, on natural color linen backing. The binding is also wool and hand stitched.
Confluence Gallery's second show of the season, Botanical Art, will feature the work of Bobbi Angell, Briony Morrow-Cribbs, Steven Perkins, and Ellie Roden. The show is up from June 17 to July 30. Bobbi Angell was the illustrator for The New York Times “Garden Q&A” column, and is well known in the area for her finely rendered pen and ink illustrations and etchings of flowering plants, vegetables, and horticultural specimens. In recent years, Angell has been printing at Gallery Wright...
Current and recent artwork by mixed media artist Alyssa Hinton explores her indigenous heritage, especially her Tuscaroran ancestry, in a new exhibit at the C.X. Silver Gallery in West Brattleboro. Three years in the making, her “Earth Altar” was inspired by Native American astronomy, cosmology, and earth spirituality, and by traditional hide garments. Symbolizing the revival of indigenous culture and the unity and interdependence between humans and the universe, the five pieces of the Altar are an octagonal medicine wheel...
I chose to move to Brattleboro because of its location in Vermont, its relative nearness to Boston, its four-season climate (five, including mud), and the diversity of its people and culture. Having coffee in the morning on my sunrise-facing deck gives me a daily affirmation of my choice. When I first arrived, I read a lot in the local papers about living slow. At first glance, compared to my previous life in urban centers around the world, I thought that...
Two beloved local Summer Solstice traditions - the incomparable SIMBA dance party in Dummerston, and sacred dance and music in the forests of Manitou in Williamsville - could hardly be more different. But this year, they're coming together on June 21. After 30 years, SIMBA won't perform its Solstice celebration. But two of its artists, multi-instrumentalist Derrik Jordan and dancer Rupa Cousins, with others, will lead a different kind of music and dance experience in the Manitou woods - a...
In the winter of 2017, Putney photographer Kate Cleghorn went to the Galapagos Islands to document the wildlife “that struggles to survive in an environment now being impacted by climate change and the pressures of a growing human population, as well as the continuing threats of invasive species.” It was a “natural” choice, she said, given that her main photographic interests lie in the diversity in our environment. The results of that visit at the Putney Public Library at 55...
Good day to you! We just got through a blast of summer, with an official heat wave being recorded in portions of southern New England. Those types of temperatures are going away, at least for the next week. We will have a pair of gorgeous days on Wednesday and Thursday. However, the Canadian high pressure system responsible for such sweetness is helping to kick the Bermuda High pressure system (the one responsible for our toasty early-week weather) further east and...
With the bisection of Algiers village looming for the coming Route 5 bridge replacement, Jill Barrett, the Vermont Agency of Transportation's public information officer, has begun issuing weekly updates on a special page on the AOT's website. Beginning July 10, the bridge over Broad Brook will be closed to all traffic for four weeks. Renaud Bros., the contractor for the project, is replacing the bridge under the AOT's Accelerated Bridge Project, which offers financial incentives for getting the job done...
Lovers of lampreys will have to go elsewhere for now. The Bellows Falls Fish Ladder Visitor Center is closed indefinitely. According to a press release, “a huge sewage problem” at the visitor center on Bridge Street on June 6 required a cadre of cleaning staff and Department of Public Works workers to make things right inside and repair underground pipes connecting the center to the Bellows Falls water supply. Great River Hydro, LLC is the owner of the fish ladder...
This year's southern Vermont Pride celebration includes programs in Brattleboro and Putney, but the arc of most of the weekend's events begins and ends with - and in - Bellows Falls, specifically, at the former site of circa-1970s and 1980s gay bar and club, Andrew's Inn. In a collaborative effort between four local entities, the story of a once celebrated - and, depending on whom you asked, hated - locus for LGBTQ people to find safety and acceptance is getting...
Vermont artist Mary Admasian can imagine people grumbling when they discover that she has created Weighted Tears, a new outdoor sculpture for the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center: “Not that again: I am so over barbed wire.” Weighted Tears consists of five teardrop-shaped objects suspended from the eaves of the museum. Each object is made of aluminum rods, wire, and barbed wire, and is stabilized by a spherical weight. The smallest object has a light that will be kept illuminated...