The Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center  in Great Barrington, Massachusetts will have a Summer Chocolate Celebration this Saturday, August 2nd beginning at 6:30 PM.  The featured speaker is Francine Segan, a food historian and author whose lectures are very entertaining. Francine has written an article about Brook Farm Inn, in Lenox Massachusetts, for the Berkshire Eagle, calling our breakfast one of the best in the Berkshires.  This Saturday, the program will also include a screening of the movie “Chocolat” and a tasting, of course! Call the box office for more info:  413-528-0100.

There’s a great new place for lunch in Lenox Massachusetts.  It’s called The Haven, and it’s on Franklin Street, in the heart of the historic district.  It’s centrally located for your visit to the Berkshires. The food is fresh and the presentation is appealing.  The decor is minimal, filled with natural light.  There’s something for everyone on the menu, including dishes with meat, or chicken, or vegetarian.  Luscious baked goods are available with a big mug of delicious coffee or tea. We had a great lunch there yesterday, and we’ll be recommending it to the guests of Brook Farm Inn.

SECRETS OF THE SKY & SEA will be performed on Thursday, July 24, 2008; 8pm at the Mahaiwe Performing Arts Center. Berkshire Opera leaps out of the box for this presentation, an extraordinary cultural collaborative featuring music by composers ranging from Reynaldo Hahn, W.A. Mozart, and Giacomo Puccini to Stephen Sondheim, Kurt Weill and Irving Berlin. The program traces the universal appeal and immediacy of water and the heavens in an imaginative and entertaining survey of childlike dreams, romantic desires, and untold mysteries. Guests of Brook Farm Inn in Lenox, Massachusetts will enjoy this  unique performance.

The Lenox Library Association presents the stories behind America’s premier musical performance place:

Now through August 31st the Cranwell Resort in Lenox Massachusetts Presents the Capitol Steps.  The Capitol Steps was created by a former group of Senate staffers who set out to satirize the very people and places that employed them.   For more than twenty-five years, the Capitol Steps have recorded albums and appeared on “Good Morning America,” the “Today Show,” “20/20,” “Entertainment Tonight,” “Nightline,” CNN’s “Inside Politics,” and dozens of times on National Public Radio’s “All Things Considered.”

 Many of the the guests at Brook Farm Inn have already seen it and loved it.  Even Republicans from Oklahoma liked it!  We have our tickets for this coming Wednesday.  Performances are at 8:00pm Nightly, except Tuesday.  Call the box office  at (413) 881-1636 or email capstep@cranwell.com. 

We’re delighted and proud to announce that Bob Jacob, former owner with his wife Betty of Brook Farm Inn, has been nominated for a Pulitzer Prize and the National Book Award. Now a resident of West Hartford, CT, Bob has touched the lives of countless persons with his poetry. His latest book of poetry, “Perspective,” was nominated recently for these two highly prestigious awards.  Bob was responsible for bringing the theme, “There is poetry here” to Brook Farm Inn in Lenox, Massachusetts, in the Berkshires.  A lover and writer of poetry for decades, Jacob, 76, said he started writing the book’s 62 poems, which he prefers to call “loving words” instead of poems, while doing volunteer work at the Connecticut Hospice in Branford. There, Jacob reads poetry to the dying and their loved ones every other week and says the work is draining, but rewarding. We’ve been inspired by Bob’s poems ever since we met him, and he’s been back to the inn for readings. Revenue from the book is donated to the hospice. 

There are several beautiful golf courses in the Berkshires.  Many of Brook Farm Inn’s guests enjoy a round of golf while they are here.  Below is a list of the courses that welcome visitors:

1. Cranwell Golf Club in Lenox Mass. is 1 1/2miles from Brook Farm Inn.  It is an 18 hole par 70 course that is 6204 yards.  They also have a driving range and a golf school.  Their website is www.cranwell.com and the phone number is 413 637 2563.  Have lunch at the Sloane’s Tavern overlooking the 3rd tee.
2. Greenock Country Club in Lee is one of the best maintained courses in the county.  It is a 9 hole par 35 course that is 3080 yards.  Stay to the left on the par 4 third hole or you will be in the woods (you’ll find some of my balls there).  It only takes a few minutes to get there from Brook Farm Inn.  The restaurant is Pauline’s and the food is good.  The website is www.greenockcc.com and the phone is 413 243 3323.
3. Another 9 hole course is the GE Athletic Association in Pittsfield.  It is a par 36 and 3022 yards.  The phone number is 413 443 5746.
4. Pontoosuc Lake Country Club is one of my favorites.  The 18 hole par 70 course is 6224 yards.  It’s about 20 minutes away but is less crowded in the summer season than the courses that are closer to Lenox.  The 15th hole is a par 5 that is 610 yards long.  I’ve been on in 4 several times but I have yet to do better than a bogie.  The phone number is 413 445 4217.
5. Egremont Country Club is about 30 minutes away.  It is an 18 hole par 71 course that is 5771 yards.  Watch out for the stream that runs the lengthof the eighth hole, that  also runs behind the green.  The website is www.egremontcountryclub.com and the phone is 413 528 4222.

You will find the Berkshire courses challenging, scenic, less crowded and less expensive than the golf clubs in and around New York or Boston.  Bring your clubs and come to the Berkshires!

The Mass Audubon Society and the Housatonic Valley Association are offering free guided educational canoe trips down the Housatonic River.  The route begins at the Mary Decker boat launch in Lenox MA and goes to Woods Pond.  The three hour trip will be a good way for novice paddler to be introduced to the beauty and nature of the area.  You may encounter many types of birds, deer, moose, muskrats, and an occasional black bear.  Canoes, paddles and life vests are provided.  For more information call 413 637 0320.  Dates and times of the trips are:

9 am to noon       July 12,13,19, and 26

                            Aug. 4,11,17,23,25 and 30

2 to 5 pm            July 14 and 28

Noon to 3 pm      Aug. 3 and 9

The Boston University Tanglewood Institute has announced its series of concerts by the Young Artists Orchestra, Wind Ensemble, and Chorus, which will take place at Ozawa Hall on the grounds of Tanglewood.  For the audience, this is a great opportunity to enjoy the music of students who represent the next generation of  outstanding professional musicians. This Friday at 8:00 pm you can enjoy the Wind Ensemble, and Saturday at 2:30 the Orchestra will perform.  Get tickets at the door for only $11. It’s less than a mile from Brook Farm Inn in Lenox Massachusetts.

Colors of War:

A Story of Love and Courage

produced by Ventfort Hall in cooperation with Shakespeare & Company

Written and Directed by Mary Guzzy

Susannah Melone returns as Annie Haggerty

June 26 – Aug 31, Thurs & Fri 7:30pm, Sat 4pm, Sun 10am

Tickets $25

Reservations 413-637-3206

The moving story of Civil War hero Col. Robert Gould Shaw (subject of the film Gloryand leader of the first all-African American regiment in the North) lovingly told by his wife Annie Haggerty of the original Vent Fort.

VENTFORT HALL

MANSION AND GILDED AGE MUSEUM

104 Walker Street

Lenox, MA  01240

413-637-3206

www.GildedAge.org

Ventfort Hall is a short walk from Brook Farm Inn and we highly recommend this production.