Today we have a trio of badass women, all smashing proverbial ceilings and bringing us closer together in the things they are building. Ashfield has been the home of a theater company that pushes the boundaries of how acting engages with community and the world for the past 27 years. Double Edge Theater’s founder Stacy Klein has recently released An Alchemy of Living Culture, a book that outlines not just the troupe’s history, but its philosophies and endeavors to embody the art it makes and we talk with her about our discoveries within its pages. In Chicopee, a food desert if being transformed by the efforts of one grocer and it’s greenhouse. Fruit Fair has been in it’s location on Front Street for 90 years, but it’s the decision of the new owners to grow some of its offerings themselves that help it to stand apart and we talk with co-owner Sam Newell about their drive towards inclusivity and food autonomy for the community.. And there’s expansion of traditional music as well. The trio Cécilia joins three well renowned musicians on their respective instruments together for forays into Celtic, Quebecois, and cape Breton tunes, and we’ll chat with pianist Erin Leahy of that group about the upcoming performance this Thursday, Feb. 12th at Bombyx in Florence, as well as Jennie Darby, Irish Dance Teacher at Scoil Rince Bréifne Ó Ruairc whose students are a part of this particular performance.

We’re boldly going forward with new projectsThe first of those is an effort to check in on the proverbial health of the 7 cities of Western Mass with a brand new segment, Mayor of the Month. First up is the newly appointed leader of the Massachusetts Mayors Association, Holyoke mayor Joshua Garcia. We talk about the importance of connection to community with his city's very swift evolution into controlling its own destiny. Mr. Universe, Kainaat Studios and Hampshire College’s Salman Hameed, returns from a significant soft launch in Pakistan to a much divided and divisive United States for the first time in a while, but it’s the ongoing science and new looks at Orion that connect his work to both countries’ current circumstances. And despite the disappointment of yesterday, the true winners of the superb owl were all of us who got to witness the halftime show. We’ll check in about the loss of the patriots, and the incredibly patriotic show put on by Bad Bunny.

At Holyoke Community College nestled into the Taber Art Gallery is an exhibit bringing together organizations of many aspects and local artists to imagine a western Mass of the future. River Valley Radical Futures is a multimedia examination of post capitalist society and what it would need and encompass. We speak with curator Alix Gerber and gallery director Rachel Rushing about what the people involved in mutual aid see in the coming years. We also get folx together in song. It’s become a tradition for Northampton to gather a cappella groups in song in February. The Silver Chord Bowl this year will feature 7 groups from all over New England. For Live Music Friday we’ll hear from the Amherst College group who’ll take the stage on Sunday: The Zumbyes, the oldest group on their campus. And cold temps call for red wines that embody warmer, nicer times. So we head to the only store in Leverett for a wine thunderdome of lighter reds with our Franklin County Wine Friend and avid birder: Level 2 Sommalier, Ken Washburn.

We sit with a pioneer in methods of modern history. Dr. Deborah Grey White, who in addition to elucidating the nuances of intersectional history before that was a more widely used term, has been confronting the gatekeepers of history throughout her entire career. We speak with her about the importance of archives and first hand accounts before you can meet the Rutgers Professor Emerita of History in person at Mt. Holyoke and UMass Amherst.We’ll also have an extra special live music Thursday with Ablaye Cissoko and Cyrille Brotto before they take to the stage at Bombyx in Florence tonight, blending the unlikely combination of koro and accordion in an amalgam that tells stories of two cultures within one shared sound. And congressman Jim McGovern tackles not just the things he’s anticipating for Superb Owl 60, but the rash of retaliatory redistricting, the looming issue of national elections and what that means for a republic that styles itself as a democracy, plus an ongoing spectre of the Epstein files

Today is all about reparations, because repair can build things better. Aaron Vega is only a month into his tenure as the newly minted President and CEO of the Western Massachusetts Economic Development Council, but his ideas to restore the area as a sought after commodity for industries of all types are already taking shape and we’ll speak with him about his vision for the organization’s future. We’ll also head to UMass where a new exhibit seeking the restoration of the future from the lessons of the past will soon open. Land of the Free is a multi-media series of 4 works by Canadian artist Camille Turner that look at the transatlantic slave trade through document, video, and ritual. The artist herself takes us on a tour through the museum to explore those connections before you can meet her and the pieces on display at their opening event tomorrow night. And word nerd Emily Brewster, senior editor at Merriam Webster, is also looking at the ways we fix things, namely our bodies as we delve into the etymology of doctor, and the myriad uses it’s developed in its time

The dance mecca of the Berkshires, Jacob’s Pillow has just announced that it is moving to a year-round model for its programming, launching with two online classes and two performances in its recently re-opened Doris Duke Theater. We speak with executive and artistic director Pamela Tatge about this shift and the inspirational work on display this spring. We’ll also head to Ludlow where Jane Austen’s classic work of enemies to lovers finds its way onstage. The Exit 7 players perform a more modern adaptation of Pride and Prejudice for the next three weekends, and we chat with the show’s two leads, Heath Trudell and Emma Rucci about the present day appeal of this 200 year old work of romance. And in Granby, a beloved spot is serving up the most local food they can find. Something Special Cafe is the evolution of a catering company into more concrete digs, and we’ll speak with one of its two chefs, Laurie Bernier, about the shift to a brick and mortar eatery, and the importance of breakfast to the greater community.

Today is about gathering together and enjoying what the season has to give. For the United Way of Hampshire and Franklin Counties, that means gathering on a slope and tackling the powder at Berkshire east. Ski United is a multifaceted fundraiser for all that the organization does and we’ll chat with executive Director Geoff Naunheim, committee member John Ebbets about the power of community in winter. We’ll also bring folx together in Amherst in song. Calm and Candlelight is an event hosted by South Church in Amherst based on practices and chants in the style of the monks from Taizé, France and we’ll speak with Rev. Dr. Susan Cartmell and Director of Music Marilyn Brayne about the centering practice of communal singing especially in these out challenged times. And to get ready for the massive spectacle of the superb owl, Three generations of football loving Belmontes headed out this weekend to wish the pats a good journey and a good game in San Francisco, so we’ll eavesdrop as the torch of the new patriots correspondent of the past handing off to the one of the future.

Next Sunday, the Super Bowl pits the Patriots and Seahawks against each other. Perhaps even more important is that this year's halftime show will feature global superstar Bad Bunny. We speak with Clark University Professor Juan Pablo Rivera and NEPM News Editor Elizabeth Roman about the cultural significance of this occasion to the greater Hispanic community, and where you can delve even deeper into these ideas on Saturday at 33 Hawley in Northampton And next week in South Hadley, folx have a chance to get an inside glimpse into the rock world of the early 90’s. The Royal We is an intense new memoir from Faith no more and Imperial Teen member Roddy Bottum that looks at the assemblies of both bands, the scenes they came from, and the impact of his coming out towards the height of the AIDS crisis. We speak with the author before you can meet him in person at Odyssey Bookshop on Monday. Plus at Tip Top Wine Shop in Easthampton, Lauren Clark and Miranda Brown brave the cold weather and former soviet bloc to help us discover the native Georgian grape Saperavi for this week’s wine Thunderdome.

We encourage you to engage your programming chops with the Global Game Jam happening at Hampshire College. Game developers of all experience levels and ages will gather in Amherst to create games over the course of 48hrs, starting on Friday Jan. 30th, and being presented on Sunday Feb 1st. We speak with organizer Violet Henriques about the appeal of this sort of creation, and how to get involved. Then we’ll head off to Hatfield to one of the few estate wineries in the northeast who are keeping even their grapes local. Black Birch Vineyard truly leans into the fact that wine is a local farm product through their many vintages, and even in the ways they maintain their fields. Owners Michelle Kersbergen and Ian Modesto speak with us about bringing wine to western mass and some of the agricultural challenge such a venture presents. Plus our weekly chat with congressman Jim McGovern addresses the very dangerous situations in the US of increasing violent confrontations, not just ICE, and not just against elected officials, but on a global stage as well, and highlights the need for balance in the results of the upcoming midterm elections.

We head to Northampton where this year’s annual Ice Sculpting Event is taking on a contemplative tinge with the community coming together to celebrate the life of one of the artists whose absence will be felt among the produced work. Dave Rothstein was a lover of all things winter and especially where the cold season and art intersected and we’ll chat with Park Hill Orchard's Russel Braen and others about the beautiful legacy he left behind. Speaking of art on one’s own terms, we’ll also see how the DIY scene and local beloved venues are intersecting as well. Genderqueer noisepunk outfit Film And Gender are wrapping up an 8 date tour with a late night show at the Iron Horse, and we’ll talk about their new member, the intersection of community and politics, and the nuances of punk and diy scenes before you can see their electrifying set on Jan 31st. And Word Nerd Emily Brewster senior editor at Merriam Webster helps us navigate a little improvised vocabulary repair as we bring three very similar phrases concerning construction under our lexicographical microscope.

Today is all about learning. For those beginning life’s journey, we look at a local television show that’s given them a platform to challenge themselves and each other and bring the whole community together in the process. As Schools Match Wits is western Mass. grown and sustained, and has been highlighting the knowledge excellence of students in the area for 65 years. We’ll chat with executive producer Tony Dunne and host Beth Ward about the new documentary highlighting the show’s legacy in the region and beyond. Plus let you know how you can see the directors cut in a showing at our studios.And there’s also ways that all of us can learn to change the world. The Sojourner Truth School for Social Change Leadership offers free education classes to the public so that we all can learn how better to fight the good fight for ourselves and the world we’d like to see those changes in. We speak with board member and teacher Amihan Matias about the school’s founding and her upcoming class “And Still We Rise” which focuses on BIPOC women and genderqueer folx and discover more about shifts in the ways we frame leadership that can benefit everyone.

Today amidst the snow, we give you two places in where you can learn new ways to interact with art in ways you may not have beforeFor instance, it's not often that you get a chance to hear certain Bach works on the instruments that he originally composed them for. A new recording seeks to remedy that with modern sensibilities. The Bach Dialogues joins keyboardist of many tempers Christopher O'Riley with cellist Matt Haimovich to pair a viola di gamba with a clavichord to get as close to the original sounds of the works as possible and we speak with the pianist and former NPR host about the collaboration and interpretation. And in Greenfield, a film festival is putting the cameras in the hands of the people. Greenfield Community Television brings back its annual film festival for a sixth year, challenging filmmakers to see just how fast creativity can move.Lights! Camera! Greenfield!, the two-week film sprint and festival, kicks off on February 9th, and we speak with GCTV station manager Bella Levavi about last year's films and how they can help you to make your own.