The issue of cultural appropriation was raised when we were introducing Fiddler on the Roof, and that concern was surprising to me, especially because I had been vocal about partnering with local Jewish community leadership when discussing the possibility of doing this play.
Once the issue was raised, I began the process of doing some research online, speaking with adults in and out of the school community, and most critically, connecting with the Brattleboro Area Jewish Community — specifically, Rabbi Amita Jarmon, who put me in touch with Rabbi (5)Avremy Raskin of the Chabad Jewish Center of Brattleboro.
It was important to me to go directly to Jewish community leadership for two reasons: first, to determine whether they felt non-Jewish actors portraying Jewish people was indeed cultural appropriation — if they had, we wouldn’t be having this conversation!
And second, I knew I would need the support of the local Jewish community to make sure we portrayed characters, customs, traditions, and ceremonies as accurately as possible within a theatrical context.
Poets within a 50-mile radius of the Tri-State region around Brattleboro are invited to send no more than two poems to Write Action for the third annual Poems Around Town. Poems will be chosen to appear in downtown shop windows during April, National Poetry Month. Here are the guidelines,
There is uncertainty brewing in the town’s complex landlord-tenant relationship as voters prepare to decide on an amendment to the town charter. As proposed, landlords — with some exceptions, including owners who live in their duplexes and triplexes and who rent accessory units on their property — would be...
On Friday, Feb. 10, from 5 to 6 p.m., the Brattleboro Literary Festival will host U.K. author and environmentalist Fred Pearce to discuss his book, A Trillion Trees: Restoring Our Forests by Trusting in Nature. Pearce’s new book is a guide through spectacular forests around the world. Along the way, he charts the extraordinary pace of forest destruction, and explores why some are beginning to recover. “With vivid, observant reporting,” states a news release, “Pearce transports readers to the remote...
Following is the text of the proposed addition to the town charter: A. Residential tenants, as defined in Chapter 137 of Title 9 of the Vermont Statutes Annotated, shall be protected from eviction without ‘just cause,’ where just cause shall include: 1. a tenant’s material breach of a written rental agreement, 2. a tenant’s violation of state statutes regulating tenant obligations in residential rental agreements, 3. non-payment of rent, and 4. a tenant’s failure to accept written, reasonable, good faith...
As we begin a new year with the relief of midterm elections behind us, many Americans are enjoying a sense of comfort about our political future. We saw a blue wave when a red one was predicted and a long-overdue increase in diversity among those elected to office at all levels of governance. We moved closer to holding accountable those who wished to do us harm, including a past president and his collaborators and insurrectionists. So it may seem too...
One can only guess what is going on in Montpelier to explain why the Vermont Legislature recently passed Bill H.42 [“An act relating to temporary alternative procedures for annual municipal meetings and electronic meetings of public bodies”], which suspends the Vermont Open Meeting Law until July 1, 2024. Bill H.42 was signed into Vermont law by Gov. Scott on Jan. 25. There is no explanation in its language for the purpose or need for the sudden suspension of Vermont Open...
The ongoing saga of George Santos feels like a complete rerun of the Trump show, highlighting another completely unqualified and morally bankrupt candidate who has become a face of the Republican Party. The most interesting part of the Santos saga is not the abject failure of the Democratic Party to vet this scoundrel, not the inability of the local Republicans to see through his sorry tale, but the fact that he has succeeded in being seated and will probably remain...
Brattleboro and Mount Anthony are moving up, and Bellows Falls is staying put. That was the outcome of the new divisional realignment for Vermont’s 31 high school football teams for the 2023 season, which was announced last week by the Vermont Principals’ Association (VPA) and the Vermont Interscholastic Football League (VIFL). While Bellows Falls will remain in Division II for the 2023 season, Brattleboro and Mount Anthony will move back to Division I. These three schools have each been Division...
Regarding the “no-fault eviction”: Wrong! It should be called “no-fault termination”! I have been a landlord in Brattleboro since 1969. Because I am self-employed, no pension, I saw owning rental property as an opportunity to provide for my old age! All my apartments have one-year leases, which allows a tenant not to renew after one year. Why should the owner not have the same opportunity? If you have a good tenant, you hope to keep that person. However, sometimes it...
I’ve just finished reading the wonderful book Wintering: The Power of Rest and Retreat in Difficult Times by Katherine May, and her beautiful book reminds me why winter is such a precious time of year for me. Her story is a poetic memoir, an investigation of her inner and outer worlds. Most poignantly, the book opens with a courageous revelation of her inner-world struggles — a nosedive into fear and uncertainty as her husband faces a grave health challenge, her...
Vogue.com is headlining “The Return of Big Belt Buckles.” People is heralding “The ’70s Flip,” “’80s Workout Headbands,” and “’90s Supermodel Blowout.” But in Vermont, this season’s biggest retro trend will showcase plaid flannel, mud boots, and gloved hands raised high in the air. After a pandemic pause, March Town Meeting is set for a comeback. Some 70% of the state’s 247 municipalities are scheduled to return to shoulder-to-shoulder decision making on or around the traditional first Tuesday in March,
For nearly 32 years, Susan Dedell has pumped the organ, plied the piano keys, and shaped the choirs — and musical landscape — of St. Michael’s Episcopal Church. And now she’s moving on, after an arousing big-hearted sendoff. The St. Michael’s community was joined Jan. 14 by many from the region and beyond to celebrate more than three decades of Dedell’s music directorship at the 170-year-old church on Bradley Avenue. Among familiar faces from a rich past were the Rev.
Through her local nonprofit, Inshuti of Rwanda Incorporated, Rosa Marino continues to connect people in Rwanda with the “socially conscious and giving” community here, hoping to build 25 new houses in 2023. “Inshuti” means “friends” in the Kinyarwanda language, Marino says, adding that if successful in achieving the goal, the number of families sheltered since she founded the nonprofit in 2015 will rise to 100. “Our mission is to construct sustainable houses in Rwanda to build wellness, stability, and a...
In these early days of 2023, we have been introduced to the concept of “embellishment” as a synonym for lying. I believe it is a new interpretation of the word, as I cannot find it in my Roget’s Thesaurus. A certain Congressperson claims not to have lied on his resume but merely to have embellished it. If you have two good knees, how is claiming to have two knee replacements an embellishment? Is a claim to have relatives who survived...
This year marks the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Civilian Conservation Corps (CCC). (1)The CCC was a public works program that operated from 1933 to 1942 as part of President Franklin D. Roosevelt’s New Deal. It targeted single men, 18–25 years old, and World War I veterans in relief of families who had difficulty finding jobs during the Great Depression. The program provided unskilled manual labor in environmental conservation and the development of natural resources in rural lands.
Dear Becca Balint, Many congratulations on your recent election to the U.S. House of Representatives. We look forward to your skill, energy, and dedication to making this a country and world that works well for all people. We do recognize that it will take some time for you to get to know your colleagues and the whole culture and system in Washington. We do want to call your attention to a particular bill that has been there awhile. We urge...
Brattleboro’s Charter Revision Commission meets Feb. 9 BRATTLEBORO — Brattleboro’s Charter Revision Commission will meet on Thursday, Feb. 9, at 6 p.m. in the Selectboard Meeting Room in the Municipal Center, 230 Main Street. The meeting agenda includes a discussion of how to structure the charter review and revision process and how to encourage, gather and review public input. All commission meetings are open to the public and are recorded and available on BCTV’s website, brattleborotv.org. The seven-member commission was...
College news • Sydney Hescock, a childhood/special education major from Wardsboro, was named to the Dean’s List for the fall 2022 semester at The College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York. • Lucas Forthofer of Dummerston was named to the fall 2022 Dean’s List at Quincy (Illinois) University. • Griffin Waryas of Bellows Falls, Ansley Henderson of Brookline, Savannah Sylvester-Neal of Putney, and Claire Holmes of Wardsboro were all named to the fall 2022 Dean’s List at the University...
Theatre Adventure, Inc. is a nonprofit organization providing year-round performing arts programming for people with disabilities. Working with student’s individual abilities, they create productions using multiple artistic media in which the unique abilities of each student can flourish. Theatre Adventure recently received a $15,000 Creative Futures Grant from the Vermont Arts Council to create innovative performances throughout the pandemic. “In response to creating and developing our hybrid program, the students have risen to new levels of independence and leadership, as...
The past two winters have seen thousands of visitors attend Brattleboro’s Artful Ice Shanties exhibit, presented by the Brattleboro Museum & Art Center (BMAC) and Retreat Farm. They saw ice shanties shaped like a giant iridescent fish, a black die with moon-shaped dots, a seascape with a three-dimensional octopus, a cockeyed castle, and more. The Artful Ice Shanties are coming back for the third time, Saturday, Feb. 18, through Sunday, Feb. 26, generously sponsored by Foard Panel, Brattleboro Subaru, and...
Guilford Center Stage announces open auditions for the play, Our Town, on Wednesday, Feb. 8, and Thursday, Feb. 9, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m., at Broad Brook Community Center, 3940 Guilford Center Road. The Thornton Wilder classic, directed by Ian Hefele, will be performed the first weekend in May, marking the return of theater to Guilford after a three-year Covid hiatus. Those interested in auditioning may arrive anytime during the session; no appointment is necessary. They should prepare or bring...
Richard H. Hamilton, who celebrated his 100th birthday on Sept. 28, 2022, was recently selected to receive the Tompkins Award. The Tompkins Award is named after Daniel D. Tompkins, who became the first Sovereign Grand Commander of the Northern Masonic Jurisdiction of Scottish Rite in 1813, and served as Vice President of the United States under President James Monroe. It may be conferred by the Supreme Council or by the Sovereign Grand Commander upon a deserving Masonic or Scottish Rite...
Three of the top musicians in jazz come together to perform as as one in an evening of adventurous and energetic music at the Vermont Jazz Center, Saturday, Feb. 18, at 7:30 p.m. Johnathan Blake’s Trion is a chord-less jazz trio (includes no chordal instrument such as piano or guitar) featuring three of the leading players of their generation: Chris Potter on tenor saxophone, Linda May Han Oh on acoustic bass and band leader Blake on drums. Reviewing their self-titled...
Musical duo Sharon & Daniel and All Souls Unitarian Universalist Church will present a Valentine’s Day Love Party on Saturday, Feb. 11, starting at 7 p.m., at the West Village Meeting House. The evening will include music for singing and dancing and party fare including fondue, myriad desserts, and a “Love Potion” punch. There will be a hands-on art table where participants can create their own valentines. Door prizes and a pop-up boutique of local handcrafted and vintage accessories round...
The Brattleboro Music Center’s Chamber Series continues Saturday, Feb. 11, with a visit from the Musicians from Marlboro Group II. The 7 p.m. concert at the BMC at 72 Blanche Moyse Way will include a work titled Moon Songs by Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Shulamit Ran, who was in residence at Marlboro in 2018 and worked extensively on her music with these artists in Vermont. Also on the program is Haydn’s String Trio in G major, Op. 53, No. 1 and...
Harmony Collective at 49 Elliot Street will be hosting Hilltop Montessori School students’ artwork for the month of February in downtown Brattleboro. Hilltop’s 50th Anniversary Steering Committee members reached out to the local organization to create this partnership and celebrate the school’s 50th anniversary in a creative, community-connected way. “We are delighted to be hosting this presentation of the children’s art work from Hilltop Montessori,” said Harmony Collective founder Kay Curtis in a news release. “Children’s art is so uniquely...
Latchis Arts’ Spotlight Series returns in February with a month of films curated in collaboration with Keene State College’s KSC Film Society. Spotlight is a curated series featuring films that highlight different voices in film, in this case the curatorial voice of students at Keene State College. The KSC Film Society is a student organization of film aficionados who meet weekly to share their passion for film and to program weekend screenings at KSC’s Putnam Theater, bringing the best of...
The Rock River Players (RRP) present “Food of Love, a Valentine’s Cabaret,” Friday, Feb. 10, and Saturday, Feb. 11, at 7 p.m. at the Williamsville Hall, 35 Dover Road. Admission is $10 per person and includes sweet and savory treats. Cabaret-goers are asked to bring their own beverages. For reservations, visit rockriverplayers.org and, for more information, email [email protected]. Producer Annie Landenberger notes that “the cabaret, with deep roots in France and Germany in the early 20th century, has historically been...
This year’s musical at Brattleboro Union High School, the 50th to be staged there, is “Fiddler on the Roof,” opening on Thursday, Feb. 16, at 7 p.m. With book by Joseph Stein, music by Jerry Bock, and lyrics by Sheldon Harnick, it tells the story of Tevye, a poor dairyman, who lives with his wife Golde and their five daughters in the small Jewish village of Anatevka, in czarist Russia, in 1905. It is based on the short stories of...
Mitchell-Giddings Fine Arts, 181–183 Main Street, introduces Mutsu Crispin and Jessie Pollock, featured artists in “Winter Oasis,” opening with an artist reception Saturday, Feb. 11, 5 to 7 p.m. All are invited to an artists forum scheduled for Sunday, March 12, at 4 p.m. The exhibition continues through April 2. Presented as a rotating exhibit, “Winter Oasis” includes recent paintings, prints, photographs, and sculpture by Amy Arbus, Eric Boyer, David Brewster, Rona Lee Cohen, Jim Giddings, and Gay Malin. Mutsu...
The Boys & Girls Club of Brattleboro is hosting a Meet the Candidates Forum for candidates vying for two Selectboard races “to talk about the important issues facing our town,” the organization writes in a news release. In the upcoming Annual Town Election on Tuesday, March 7, voters will vote for one candidate for a three-year seat and two candidates for two one-year seats at American Legion Post 5 at 32 Linden St. The forum will take place at the...