The Fabulous 413

We’re headed to Turners Falls where some of us are not defying gravity, but hoping it helps us and our relative need for speed. The 8th Montague Soapbox Races take place this Sunday Nov. 1st with community built and first law of physics powered vehicles of all sorts and contortions. We’ll speak with some of folx involved to hear how this event has made local impactSpeaking of local impact, since it is the spooky times, it seems only right that we delve into a bit of local history of the witchy kind. We’ll meet Al Weinberg of the Hadley Historical society to hear the tales, both true and legend, of Half Hanged Mary Webster, and her unique story against the backdrop of the Witch trials, plus her connections to other famous websters we might know of an etymological bent. Plus we'll hear a locally grown song telling her tale from Adam Sweet. And the Tina Turner Wine Thunderdome returns to its State Street origins, and increases it’s tasting panel by half as Emerson Stevens of importer Vineyard Road joins us, along with NEPM Reporter Nirvani Williams, to explore similar expressions of terroir from two totally different hemispheres. 

We’re headed to the east side of the Quabbin, which means they’re not quite 413 (but they’re sorta us in spirit, those towns on the reservoir). Hardwick Winery is on the verge of 30 years creating wine in the Baystate, broadening their scope from Mass grown grapes to involve more of the flavors that the state offers, and much more besides. We’ll talk with founder John Samek and his crew about the location’s start and the many stages of growth they’ve experienced over the past 3 decades. We’ll also explore the Shea Theater’s transformation, for it is the time of year where the whole venue shifts into a set piece for large scale thought provoking immersive and sometimes interactive theater. A Happening 6 is happening this weekend up in Turners Falls, under the theme SALVAGE, and we’ll speak with members of Cloudgaze productions about this new iteration of their ongoing theatrical exploration: Taylor Graves and Ezekial Baskin. And Congressman Jim McGovern fresh from a convention on Hunger at UMass gives his take on Tuesday’s upcoming midterms and on MA Ballot question 3, recent developments in Brazil and Israel and of course a few listener questions. 

You may have heard of the James Web Space Telescope but did you know that a new NASA telescope, set to launch in 2033 that will fill in the blanks for what the James Web CAN’T see, is being developed right here at UMass Amherst? We’ll visit Dr. Alexandra Pope on campus along with our resident astronomer, Salman Hameed to hear all about the PRIMA telescope and how it will dovetail with James Web to help us better understand the cosmos.Ken Burns is a name familiar to both public media fans and those associated with the soon to be late Hampshire College. Next week, Ken Burns will return to the Valley for a fundraiser for the Northampton Community Music Center and we’ll talk with their executive director, Jason Trotta, about the mission of the school and how you can get Ken Burns perspective on the importance of music to his documentaries.And pinch hitting for Word Nerd Emily Brewster our NEPM colleague, Peter Sokolowski who we will celebrate for his 20 years at the helm of the longest running daily podcast in history and we’ll call it a triple word score as we talk about the new edition of Merriam-Webster’s Scrabble Dictionary, and the 200 words you no longs have to fight your friends over. 

Since there’s only a week before the election happens, it seems like we should focus on  the gubernatorial race for the Bay State. So today we’ll meet the three folx vying for the seat in Massachusetts, with the NEPM Reporter who’s spoken to all of them: Nirvani WilliamsSo whether you’re curious about the triumphs and failures of the incumbent Maura Healey, or the veteran engineer full of possible solutions Mike Minogue, or the independent newcomer to politics running an impressive grassroots campaign, Andrea JamesWe’ll see how they fare on the issues of affordability, taxes, our housing crisis, education, and more. 

We’re out in the Berkshires to take in some beauty, and to celebrate because the Berkshires museum has recently re-opened after an 18 month renovation. We’ll speak with museum staff about the changes to their building great and small as Chief curator William Dore explains the shifts and the refocusing the museum had to make during the construction, and the familiar and new sights they’ve designed for folx to experience throughout their historic space. And Aquarium Manager Jordan Williams joins us to elaborate on the museum’s updated centerpiece, with nearly 6 times as much tank space as before and a plethora of new species and updated technology. We’ll meet their new occupants and learn the ways this section ties into the other exhibits the berkshire museum has curatedPlus the antiquities and art are not the only beauty we’re checking out at the Berkshire Museum. The Tanglewood Learning Institute and Tanglewood Music Center are launching a series they’re calling “Surprise Serenades” bringing string quartet performances to unlikely places. We’ll hear a performance and talk about the importance of connecting the community with this music from Mark Rulison, Artistic Administrator at TLI, Ed Gazouleas, TMC Director, and a trio of TMC fellows: Miles Huang, Yixiang Wang, and Alexander Davis-Pegis.