Rehearsing TriArts’ ‘42nd Street’

“The Red Shoes,” 1948’s gorgeous, technicolor film about ballet, choice and tragedy inspired little girls to strap into toe shoes. Not any more. Now it’s the Broadway musical “A Chorus Line” that turns young people on to the power and glory of dancing on a stage. Among those smitten by that musical about Broadway “gypsies” was Kate Vallee, dancer, Rockette member, teacher and, right now, choreographer for TriArts’ “42nd Street,” opening June 23 at the Sharon Playhouse. “I was the little one dancing in the aisle while my older sister was performing on stage,” Vallee tells me after rehearsal. “I knew really early it was my dream.” Then she saw “A Chorus Line” and that did it. Friday afternoon, Vallee is working with Rachel Perin from Ohio (who got her part here via a YouTube video), and Jenny Piersol, “originally from Pennsylvania, now New York City” where she auditioned for a leading role in this show. In tap shoes with high heels and cute rehearsal garb (Perin sports a Batman logo, Piersol, a big silky gardenia), eyes glued to a vast mirror in the Bok Gallery, the dancers follow Vallee’s words and moves. Then Vallee works with the young men. She tells them to dance as though “light were reflecting from their chests,” making them look “masculine and debonair. Like Fred Astaire.” “Feel that line,” she tells them. “I want energy like ballet.” But this is definitely tap: throbbing, clipped, crackl-ing, breathtaking tap. “It’s part of being a musician,” Vallee says about this dancing. “Your feet are your instrument.” As for “42nd Street,” the story of a newcomer tapping her way into the big time on Broadway, “It’s very inspirational for ensemble dancers.” For anyone, really. “42nd Street,” with D.J. Salisbury, director; and music director Michael Berkeley, opens at TriArts’ Sharon Playhouse June 23 and runs through July 10. For tickets, 860-364-7469.

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Club baseball at Fuessenich Park

Travel league baseball came to Torrington Thursday, June 26, when the Berkshire Bears Select Team played the Connecticut Moose 18U squad. The Moose won 6-4 in a back-and-forth game. Two players on the Bears play varsity ball at Housatonic Valley Regional High School: shortstop Anthony Foley and first baseman Wes Allyn. Foley went 1-for-3 at bat with an RBI in the game at Fuessenich Park.

 

  Anthony Foley, rising senior at Housatonic Valley Regional High School, went 1-for-3 at bat for the Bears June 26.Photo by Riley Klein 

 
Siglio Press: Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature

Uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.

Richard Kraft

Siglio Press is a small, independent publishing house based in Egremont, Massachusetts, known for producing “uncommon books at the intersection of art and literature.” Founded and run by editor and publisher Lisa Pearson, Siglio has, since 2008, designed books that challenge conventions of both form and content.

A visit to Pearson’s airy studio suggests uncommon work, to be sure. Each of four very large tables were covered with what looked to be thousands of miniature squares of inkjet-printed, kaleidoscopically colored pieces of paper. Another table was covered with dozens of book/illustration-size, abstracted images of deer, made up of colored dots. For the enchanted and the mystified, Pearson kindly explained that these pieces were to be collaged together as artworks by the artist Richard Kraft (a frequent contributor to the Siglio Press and Pearson’s husband). The works would be accompanied by writings by two poets, Elizabeth Zuba and Monica Torre, in an as-yet-to-be-named book, inspired by a found copy of a worn French children’s book from the 1930s called “Robin de Bois” (Robin Hood).

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Cycling season: A roundup of our region’s rentals and where to ride them

Cyclists head south on the rail trail from Copake Falls.

Alec Linden

After a shaky start, summer has well and truly descended upon the Litchfield, Berkshire and Taconic hills, and there is no better way to get out and enjoy long-awaited good weather than on two wheels. Below, find a brief guide for those who feel the pull of the rail trail, but have yet to purchase their own ten-speed. Temporary rides are available in the tri-corner region, and their purveyors are eager to get residents of all ages, abilities and inclinations out into the open road (or bike path).

For those lucky enough to already possess their own bike, perhaps the routes described will inspire a new way to spend a Sunday afternoon. For more, visit lakevillejournal.com/tag/bike-route to check out two ride-guides from local cyclists that will appeal to enthusiasts of many levels looking for a varied trip through the region’s stunning summer scenery.

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