BRATTLEBORO-On on Friday, May 17, at 7 p.m., Epsilon Spires, 190 Main St., offers a rare screening of the 1916 silent film treasure, Snow White, with an original live score performed on harp and viola by sisters Leslie and Barbara McMichael. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the film begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are by sliding-scale and popcorn and refreshments are included.
Everyone knows Disney's classic animated film Snow White, but few are aware that a teenage Walt Disney growing up in Kansas City saw the original silent movie of the fairy tale, and it was this 1916 silent movie that inspired him to blaze a path in filmmaking and make his own version in 1937.
Like all silent films, Snow White was made on flammable nitrate film stock, and for many years, it was rumored to have been destroyed in a vault fire. But a single theatrical print was discovered in the Netherlands in 1992, and a heroic restoration was performed by the George Eastman House film archive.
Now the silent fantasy returns to the silver screen, and film goers can see the long-lost Snow White with live musical accompaniment.
SAXTONS RIVER-Join local artist Stephanie Sullivan at an artist reception for a new gallery show, "Form and Flora," at Main Street Arts (MSA), 35 Main St., on Saturday, May 18, from 2 to 4 p.m. "Form and Flora" will feature several paintings by Sullivan. The show will run from...
PUTNEY-Next Stage Arts Project and Twilight Music present an evening of Scottish, Americana, and Québécois music by The Hanneke Cassel Band featuring Keith Murphy and Jenna Moynihan with Yann Falquet, at Next Stage, 15 Kimball Hill, on Thursday, May 16, at 7 p.m. "The Hanneke Cassel Band blends originality...
PUTNEY-On Friday, May 17, at 5 p.m., Yellow Barn presents music of and conversation with composer Chaya Czernowin. Performing Czernowin's pieces will be a trio featuring Luke Hsu on violin, Rainer Crosett on cello, and Yehuda Inbar on piano. Following this hour-long program, Yellow Barn Artistic Director Seth Knopp will lead a conversation between Czernowin, the performers, and audience members. Born and educated in Israel, Czernowin continued her studies abroad in Germany and the United States, and lived in Tokyo...
SAXTONS RIVER-The Saxtons River Art Guild will offer a workshop on ink and watercolor with Lynn Zimmerman on Saturday, May 18, from 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., at the United Church of Bellows Falls, 8 School St. All materials will be supplied, but artists are invited to bring other supplies, such as watercolor paints, pencils, and crayons, inks, brushes, paper, and so on. "All that is needed is an open mind and a willingness to experiment and have fun," says...
HINSDALE, N.H.-On the front page of the May 8 edition of The Commons are two articles. One is about Winston Prouty seeking to build 300 housing units, but finding it difficult to secure financing. The other is about how wealthy Vermonters like Ben Cohen, Jerry Greenfield, and others favored a tax increase on the wealthiest Vermonters to (allegedly) raise funds for housing. Here's a thought: Instead of turning that money over to the government, why don't wealthy Vermonters concerned about...
WINDHAM-Nestled in the hills of Windham is the Fourth Corner Foundation, the brainchild of the late architect and artist Robert Foote Shannon. Shannon's work focused on balancing human-made designs with the natural environment. His former home, which includes striking buildings and structures as well as several acres of gardens, is open to the public. One of the first tours of the campus with the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) is scheduled for Saturday, May 18, from 1 to 4...
BRATTLEBORO-Let me begin by saying that I only have great distaste for the large orange guy and that I pray that he doesn't make America groan again. No, that wasn't a typo. That being said, what I would like to know is why the hush money incident he is currently in court for doesn't also make the adult film star who received the payment qualify for criminal prosecution herself? After all, Stormy Daniels accepted money to keep quiet about the...
BRATTLEBORO-Almost every spring for 20 years, Brattleboro Clayworks on Putney Road has invited the community to help make bowls to feed the hungry. This year's Bowlarama will be held on Saturday, May 18. "Volunteers will make hand-built bowls to donate to the annual Brattleboro Empty Bowls dinner," organizers said in a news release. "They won't need any experience or special skills, since artist-teachers Judith Thomas, Andi Matthews, and Karen Horton will provide basic instruction and gentle support to help shepherd...
BRATTLEBORO-Mitchell-Giddings Fine Arts, 181–183 Main St., presents two solo exhibits opening with a reception for the artists on Saturday, May 18, from 5 to 7 p.m.: "Paul Bowen: Woodlark," with sculpture fashioned from scavenged seaside material, along with his works on paper; and "Space: an odyssey," featuring artist Fran Bull's acrylic paintings inspired by cosmic imagery from the James Webb space telescope. The exhibit continues through June 30. Artist talks are scheduled 5–7 p.m.; Bull's will be June 8, and...
MARLBORO-The Marlboro Studio School presents a unique opportunity to observe ceramic artists Aysha Peltz and Michael McCarthy at work in a wheel throwing demonstration and Q & A in their studio on Saturday, May 18, from 9:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. Peltz is a Vermont-based studio potter and educator and has held a faculty appointment at Bennington College since 2006. McCarthy is a studio potter focusing on wheel thrown, wood-fired functional pottery. In addition to his studio practice, he is...
BRATTLEBORO-This month's edition of the Brattleboro Literary Festival's Literary Cocktail Hour, on Friday, May 17, at 5 p.m., presents Edward O'Keefe, author of The Loves of Theodore Roosevelt: The Women Who Created a President in an online conversation with Michael Cullinane about Theodore Roosevelt and the women in his life. Theodore Roosevelt wrote in his senior thesis for Harvard in 1880 that women ought to be paid equal to men and have the option of keeping their maiden names upon...
BRATTLEBORO-River Gallery School (RGS) is abuzz prepping for "Off The Wall: the art lottery where everyone wins." This fundraising event will take place on Saturday, May 18, from 5 to 8 p.m., at 118 Elliot. Those who cannot attend in-person may take part remotely. A complete show of the diverse and beautiful artwork can also be seen, by arrangement, at 118 Elliot. Proceeds from the evening will be used to help provide scholarships to the many art programs at the...
Kerry Secrest serves as honorary consul of Lithuania to Vermont. BRATTLEBORO-A heartfelt thank you to those who participated in the recent event marking the two-year anniversary of Russia's invasion of Ukraine, featuring a talk by Vaclovas Šalkauskas, consul general of Lithuania. Together with online donations and a family grant, we raised $14,500 for the purchase of individual first aid kits for Ukrainian soldiers on the front lines. Special thanks to the Vermont-based company Darn Tough, which donated 240 pairs of...
BRATTLEBORO-Thomas Hill tells us that, "like Hamas, the African National Congress (ANC) and Mandela were labeled as terrorists," and assures us that Hamas will lead the Israelis and Palestinians to a peaceful transition. The absurdity of that speaks for itself. Steven K-Brooks Brattleboro This letter to the editor was submitted to The Commons. This piece, published in print in the Voices section or as a column in the news sections, represents the opinion of the writer. In the newspaper and...
BRATTLEBORO-In 1991, my husband, Dr. John Ungerleider, took me to Gaza on our honeymoon. We went with an Israeli human rights delegation to take the testimony of Palestinians. This was the first of many instances when I had a front-row seat to John's life work, devoting himself to bringing together people from conflict zones to learn to trust one another. Most of this work happened right here in Brattleboro, at the School for International Training, where he founded the Youth...
-More than baseball, high school softball is a game where success is determined by pitching. A softball team with a reliable starting pitcher who can consistently throw strikes will win more games than they lose. Add steady defense and some power at the plate, and you have the makings of a team that can contend for a state title. Bellows Falls pitcher Izzy Stoodley is the Terriers' hard-throwing intimidator on the mound, and she is equally good with the bat.
BRATTLEBORO-Wealth and taxes: two entwined topics that often quickly provoke strong emotions. It seems we often get stuck in the same patterns talking about them. I wonder what would happen if we approached them differently. For instance, what if we did not react to having to pay taxes as some kind of punishment and instead saw it as an opportunity to pay for what our communities need? When we hear a firetruck's sirens, drive on smooth roads, or pass a...
DUMMERSTON-Kate Casa's response to John Ungerleider's letter concerning local debate about the horrific state of affairs in Gaza definitely crossed the civility line from my perspective. Instead of simply staying with her defensible points about Israeli occupation and military assault on Palestinians and the intractability of the conflict, she chose to engage in a gratuitous personal assault on John. Her comments disparaging his entire career, one dedicated to transforming conflict and bringing warring parties together to further peace, were lamentable...
GUILFORD-As the latest legislative session draws to a close, I'd like to thank all our elected representatives for their hard work toward creating a Vermont that is viable for all. Particular gratitude goes to Emilie Kornheiser, one of three representatives from Brattleboro and chair of the House Ways and Means Committee. Kornheiser has shown great wisdom in addressing issues, researching possible solutions, and evaluating how these ideas can work in Vermont. She has the courage to propose bold ideas and...
BRATTLEBORO-When I worked at a major airport, I learned to refer to people on airplanes as "souls on board." If, for example, a 747 was having landing gear problems as they approached the airport, you could be talking about at least 400 souls on board. Or upwards of 800 on an Airbus. Gaza's Rafah has 1.3 million souls on board, and they are squarely in Netanyahu's sights. These displaced Palestinians are the target of Israel's invasion of Rafah, aided by...
BRATTLEBORO-On May 18, at 7:30 p.m., the Vermont Jazz Center will present Artemis, voted the Jazz Group of the Year in DownBeat's 2023 Readers' Poll. This supergroup was initially organized by pianist and music director Renee Rosnes. The other members are trumpeter Ingrid Jensen, saxophonist Nicole Glover, bassist Noriko Ueda, and drummer Allison Miller. The first incarnation of Artemis was formed in 2016 when Rosnes put together a band for a European tour. In an interview with Don Was of...
BRATTLEBORO-The Brattleboro School of Dance's annual spring show, "Shadows & Glimmers: An Evening of Dance," will feature more than 50 dancers, ages 6 to 72, who live, work, and attend school in the community. "Evoking themes of shadows, where light and darkness meet, and glimmers, where inescapable joy bursts forth in our everyday lives, this show reflects and transforms our daily experiences, both individually and collectively, into works of art," says Bridget Struthers, in a recent phone call with The...
Leslie Zucker is a certified professional life coach, a facilitator of a women's group, and a co-founder of Brattleboro Conscious Dance and ParaLabs, a collaborative experiment in awakening to our individual and collective potential. Maria Buscaglia, who died Nov. 14, 2023, at age 63, will be honored this month, on her birthday, by her family and friends at a private celebration of life. "If you'd like to learn more about empowering people at the end of life, visit patientchoices.org and...
Corey DiMario is a musician and the proprietor of Patio Coffee, at the Hooker-Dunham block, at 139 Main St. in Brattleboro. BRATTLEBORO-I learned of Byron Stookey's passing on the morning of April 12, just before I opened my pop-up coffee shop at the Hooker-Dunham building, where he and his wife, Lee, have lived for 15 years. You can read the beautiful obituary that was published in The Commons on April 17 to know the kind of life Byron lived. He...
BELLOWS FALLS-Three Vermont hydroelectric dams and generating stations on the Connecticut River in Wilder, Bellows Falls, and Vernon, plus two in Massachusetts, are in the process of renewing their operating licenses - a process that has been extended for public comment by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) until Wednesday, May 22. The operating license renewing process has been going on since 2012. The facilities were last issued licenses by FERC over 40 years ago and the licenses for the...
BRATTLEBORO-Carolyn Pieciak can tell you how she made peanut butter, jelly, and Fluff sandwiches for her son, State Treasurer Mike Pieciak, long before he sank his teeth into Vermont's financial ledgers. But the 78-year-old Brattleboro resident would rather chew over the smorgasbord of meals she has coordinated as founding leader of St. Brigid's, one of the region's largest soup kitchens. "They say to cook chicken to 165 degrees," she began a recent interview, "although dark meat isn't fully done at...
BRATTLEBORO-Medically, the only two ways in which white patients and Black patients differ are skin color and hair type. That's it. Everything else is a social, not a racial, construct. Yet it is not widely known, at least among the white population, that there is medicine for them and then there's medicine for African Americans and other people of color. The medical establishment has now acknowledged that there is a problem. And, in Windham County, both Brattleboro Memorial Hospital and...
College news • Hana L.S. Aleshnic, daughter of Barry Aleshnick and Martina Sczesny, has graduated with a dual Masters of Science in Nurse-Midwifery and Family Nurse Practitioner at the University of Michigan Graduate School of Nursing in Ann Arbor. With a focus on removing health inequities in our healthcare system, she will start a fellowship in the fall at Erie Healthcare Centers in Chicago. • Amy Nelson of Putney was named to the President's List for the 2023 winter Practical...
BURLINGTON-The Vermont Professionals of Color Network (VT PoC) has announced the launch of its BIPOC Community Survey, aimed at gathering insights and experiences from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) living in Vermont. Launched on May 1, the survey offers BIPOC individuals an opportunity to share their perspectives to enhance economic opportunities and community building across the state. The survey, designed to take approximately 15 minutes to complete, is open to all individuals who identify as BIPOC and reside...
NEWFANE-Community Substance Use Response (CSUR) and West River Valley Thrives invite the public to join them on Thursday, May 23, at 6 p.m., for "Empowering Communities: Harm Reduction & Overdose Education for Substance Use Disorders," an insightful night of education and discussion on harm reduction and overdose prevention. The event is free and will be held at the Vermont EMS Academy (VEMSA), 1096 VT Route 30, next to the Lodge at West River. This training, presented by Vermont Cares, will...
ATHENS-The Athens Brick Meetinghouse Committee, in conjunction with the Athens Historic Preservation Society, will hold its seventh annual Plant Sale on Saturday, May 18, from 10 a.m. to noon at the 1817 Brick Meetinghouse in Athens. Visitors will find a variety of perennials, annuals and vegetable seedlings on the Meetinghouse lawn, as well as garden-related raffle prizes. Experienced gardeners will be there to answer questions and offer gardening advice. The Athens Brick Meetinghouse is historically significant to the Windham County...
GRAFTON-Nature enthusiasts are invited to explore the forest landscape in the upcoming Botany Hike Series led by botanical expert Tom Groves and hosted by The Nature Museum at the Molly Beattie State Park in Grafton. Three Saturday outings comprise the series: May 18, June 29, and August 17, from 9 a.m. to noon. During these hands-on excursions, participants can learn to identify rare, native, and invasive plant species; gain insights into invasive plant control options; and deepen understanding and appreciation...
WESTMINSTER-Vermont became the sixth state to designate a state mushroom on May 7. Christopher Denette, a Williamsville naturalist, forager, and mushroom cultivator, along with state Rep. Michelle Bos-Lun, D-Westminster, who introduced the bill, are offering a guided mushroom walk on Monday, May 20, to celebrate and learn about Vermont mushrooms. "Foraging, mycography (mushroom photography) and mushroom identification in Vermont's rural areas are ways Vermonters and visitors to Vermont can enjoy being active in our natural worlds," said Bos-Lun in a...
Volunteers needed for tree planting LONDONDERRY - The Windham County Natural Resources Conservation District will be planting a streamside buffer in Londonderry on Friday, May 17, from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. They are calling for volunteers to help plant native trees, improving water quality and wildlife habitat along the West River. No prior experience necessary! They recommend wearing comfortable shoes and clothes that can get muddy. Shovels, water, and snacks will be provided. Volunteers are welcome to join for...