In Winter, Berkshires Culture Moves Indoors
Nathaniel Brooks for The New York Times
Top: Ventfort Hall in Lenox, Mass., where Anne Undeland performs “Open Marriage” in the library, right. Above: A work by Adrian Paci, left, at Mass MoCA in North Adams.
Original Article By Mark Vanhoenacker
There’s far more to the Berkshire Mountains than Tanglewood, and the arts and culture do continue after Labor Day all around our Lenox Bed and Breakfast. As Mark Vanhoenacker says in The NYT, “even in January, cultural life here thrives, at museums, theaters and music halls. And when it’s time for a little après-edification, you’ll find acres of elbow-room on area slopes.”
Why not start your cultural tour in North Adams, at Mass MoCA, one of the largest museums of contemporary art in the world? There are currently some exciting exhibits. And Mass MoCA’s performance stages are busy as well, such as jazz vocalist Catherine Russell on Feb. 18.
“The grande dame of Berkshire museums, the Sterling and Francine Clark Art Institute, just down the roadin Williamstown. The Rembrandt and Degas exhibition runs until February 5. “Clark Remix” opens Feb. 12. Pittsfield, which celebrated its 250th birthday in 2011, Pittsfield host 10×10 on North, the county’s first-ever winter contemporary arts festival, Feb. 16 to 26, featuring “exactly 10 of a number of things, including short pieces by two theatrical groups, Barrington Stage and New Stage; performances by poets, tango dancers and singer-songwriters; and short films.”At the Colonial Theater, a treasure from the Gilded Age, offers a busy winter calendar, including the Turtle Island Quartet (Feb. 17) and the Cajun masters BeauSoleil Avec Michael Ducet (Feb. 24).
In Lenox, Shakespeare & Co., as Vanhoenacker notes, “never lets the floorboards cool.” This season’s winter programming includes Molière’s comedy “The Learned Ladies,” which opens Feb. 3.
We hope you have the opportunity to enjoy some of these fantastic cultural events during your stay at our Berkshires Inn!












The leafy hiking trails in Kennedy Park across the street are very pleasant. There is plenty of shade under the ancient oaks at
It Was the Best of Times
Says Quinn: Despite Irene’s unwelcome end-of-summer visit, this was one of the best of my 12 summers at Birchwood Inn.
Ellen and I have created a Top Ten Best of Summer 2011 list:
# 10 -Best play we missed: “Sylvia” — about a dog of course — at the Berkshire Theatre Festival
# 9 -Best Tanglewood Concert we missed: “Porgy and Bess”
# 8 -Best book read this summer: “The Greater Journey”
# 7 -Best exhibit: Pissarro at The Clark Art Institute (until Oct. 6)
# 6 -Best new Lenox food experience: Berkshire Gelato next door to Prime
# 5 -Best new breakfast recipe: Peach Croissant French Toast Panini
# 4 -Best breakfast fruit course: Honeydew “Gazpacho” and Bircher Muesli
# 3 -Best food blog: Eight Broads in the Kitchen at Bed and Breakfast Foodies
8 Broads... and a Dog
# 2 -Best park for hiking or walking a dog: Kennedy Park
# 1 -Best summer weekend: James Taylor and the annual 4th of July Party Time at our Lenox MA Bed and Breakfast!