Next Wednesday Sept 9th, the Fine Arts Center at UMass Amherst will show the 2024 documentary film Wisdom of Happiness which offers an intimate and inspiring portrait of the fourteenth Dalai Lama. The showing joins not just the campus with the local and global Tibetan community, but with our representation and beyond in a talk-back featuring leaders of the International Campaign for Tibet, and our own congressman Jim McGovern. We speak with the many folx that have come together to make this event happen about the importance of the film, and the vigilance of hope: Betsy Cracco, Assistant Vice Chancellor for Campus Life and Well Being and Chair of the Planning Committee, Thondup Tsering Co-Chair of the committee, Dr. Dhardon Sharling, who will serve as emcee for the evening, and Elizabeth Gittens, the Fine Arts Center's director of education and engagement.One of the folx that will participate in that post film conversation is the producer on the film itself, Richard Gere. No stranger to UMass since his attendance in his early twenties, we speak with the world renowned Actor about his connection with the Nobel Peace Prize laureate, the experience of production on this work, and his ongoing ties to the plight of Tibet and the teachings of Buddhism. And at Provisions they’re getting ready to celebrate the land of the rising sun with Japan Fest, exploring the many beverages, snacks, and other comestibles of that nation. We head to their Northampton location with purveyor Benson Hyde for a preemptive thunderdome of Sake in preparation of the delights coming to their Amherst location.

After a summer of renovations and construction one of the oldest college museums in the country is on the verge of reopening. The Mount Holyoke College Art Museum is celebrating 150 years with a revamp and a rethinking of their collections in a way that is sure to inspire students and community members alike. We head to South Hadley to get a tour of the new layout with Museum Director Tricia Y. Paik and curator Kendra Weisbin to see some of their unique pieces Plus, we’ll see how they’re encouraging all of the public to come and experience their exhibits, especially for their upcoming grand opening. And Congressman Jim McGovern is officially back to work on Capitol Hill where we get to ask his impressions of the primary results from Tuesday, our very murky international policy landscape which mirrors our startling resemblance to an early 1930s Germany. Also we’ll hear about the ties his political career has to the late Gloria Steinem

We head to the fields to see where the highland cows venture in South Deerfield at Roaming Farm. There we meet co-owner Julie Chalfant who talks about her family’s journey to cattle raising on their 75 acres, the challenges and benefits of their unbelievably cute cows including how climate change impacts their herd, and how important local beef has been to the local community. We get an impromptu Live Music Wednesday from multi-instrumentalist duo Larry and Joe, who’ll bring their multi American sounds to the Parlor Room in Northampton tonight, and get a small update on the changes for their music since we last saw them at the Green River Festival for llanera legend Larry Bellorín and Grammy nominated Joe Troop . Plus summertime funtime interim word nerd and Jazz a la mode host Peter Sokolowski shows us one of the precursors to the dictionary’s digital age, with a whole set of definitions organized backwards, and learn about how that keys into the ways we now search for words on their website.

Franklin County Technical School is just starting its school year welcoming young adults to it’s many courses of study. But what pathways might the class of 2030 pursue? We learn more about the school’s 50 year legacy from the many teachers and administrators making this training possible. Then find out how the 19 towns and city in Franklin County could impact its future with a vote this October. Twin Peaks began with an intense following in the 90s that has only grown in the intervening decades, especially with creators David Lynch and Mark Frost reuniting to complete the ellipsis left after it’s second season. The Hope Center for the Arts is hosting a celebratory Q&A with some of the production and cast members from the series on Sept 19th and we’ll chat an iconic actor from that series who’ll be headed to Springfield to participate: Dana Ashbrook.

We sneak one more candidate in as the primary looms large on tomorrow’s horizon. Andrew Fitch is challenging the incumbent former mayor of North Adams for a seat with the State Representatives. We’ll talk with the small business owner about how he came to North Adams, his call to public service, the needs of the First Berkshires district, and more. We’ll also bring the nation of Wales very close to the town of the same name for a weeklong celebration of heritage. The Festival of Wales is making its first ever appearance in Western Massachusetts bringing folx of Welsh decent from near and far together in Downtown Springfield. We’ll hear from some of the folx making this year's festivities happen as we chat with Megan Williams and Margaret Karhonen about the 6 days of activity you can join in on. And Mr Universe, Kainaat Studios and temporarily UMass' Salman Hameed is excited about a new way to view the sky. We’ll learn more about the Nancy Grace Roman Telescope and how it is expanding the view for future astronomical research, including the ways its collaborative nature might just be a lesson for us all.

We connect with another candidate making an appearance on the Primary ballot this Tuesday: Senatorial Incumbent Ed Markey. The sitting senator speaks about his pursuit of medicare for all, campaign finance, and AI. We also get to hear his take on the age issue that keeps being raised, the future for bipartisan legislation, and the origins of his distinctive accent. In North Adams a hilarious multi hyphenate is taking the stage at Mass MoCA this weekend on Saturday, August 29th. Jay Jurden’s star is rising and we talk with him about the appeal of comedy and his many writing credits. Plus we learn how his southern roots have influenced his latest special “Yes Ma’am”, and whose laughter it feels best to earn.And just next door, a history of playing with gender and space is coming to the ‘62 Center for Theater and Dance (through a collaboration with the Adams Theater) at Williams College in the latest work of Sasha Velour titled Travesty on August 29th. The RuPaul’s Drag Race Winner talks with us about her comic and graphics origins, the importance of teaching history, her own history with drag and more.

Arcadia Folk Festival happens this weekend, bringing a slew of incredible artists to the 700 acres of conservation land in Easthampton, for a gathering that has proven itself super sustainable and impactful. We head to the trails where the stages will be situated for the now sold out festival, to take in the sounds of nature with festival founder and organizer Jim Olsen of Signature Sounds, and MJ Rappaport, sanctuary manager. Tonight in Northampton, someone who’s become an icon in punk music and gender is playing her second show at the Iron Horse this evening. Laura Jane Grace has always had a way of making songs that say *something* about the moments we are all living in, and we get a chance to gush over her catalog and explore her ever evolving artistic process. And Congressman Jim McGovern is currently on his farm tour of the district which makes him more philosophical about the role that agriculture plays in our lives, and his own role as legislator. But finds time to applaud the Bernardston Fire Dept, the Meta settlement, Dolly Parton’s legacy and more.

Today we’ll meet challenger in the US Senate contest, Seth Moulton, though he’s no stranger to government as he’s been in congress for 6 terms. We get to talk with the physics degree holding veteran about technology in the legislative branch, his views on healthcare, his critiques of the democratic party, the work he’s done over those 12 years, and other important issues in this upcoming senatorial battle. On August 28th, the Springfield Museums are celebrating one of the largest populations of Springfield. The 4th Latino Arts Festival is a culmination of culture with art, music, food and more. Mi Museo chair Lydia Martinez-Alvarez joins us to talk about this new tradition in the city of firsts and how everyone can come together for free this Friday. And our summertime interim word nerd, editor at large at Merriam-Webster and NEPM Jazz a la mode host Peter Sokolowski takes us through the ways English’s roots seep through a number of words to create a whole new phrase that is distinctly ours with folk etymology.

We continue to meet the folx appearing on the primary ballots this coming Tuesday Sept 1st with the second candidate for the 1st Franklin state rep seat. Lora Wondolowski is well known to those in Greenfield as she’s served on city council and is currently its president. We speak with her about the connections between her non-profit service origins and running municipalities, the biases that erupt in a political race like this, the changes she’s seen in the area over her years in Franklin County, and much more.This Friday, Aug 28th, Springfield Museums host the 4th Latino Arts Festival, and as part of that welcomes home someone whose taken their western Mass experiences and made them part of a national ethos. Dr. Ariana Curtis is Curator of Latinx Studies at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture and will give a lecture on this subject as part of the festivities. We talk about her work as a part of that national museum and how her youth in the 413 has helped shape her curation practice. And Hadley is heating up with hot peppers at Kushi Farm and the North Hadley Chili Pepper Company. . We head to their plot to learn the history and legacy of their family’s relationship with the land, and the pivot to hot peppers and hot pepper jelly with owner Matt Kushi.

We begin our quest to talk with all the folx on the primary ballot ahead of the elections next Tuesday Sept 1st.Starting with one of the candidates for the Franklin First State Rep. seat: Corinne Coryat. Stepping out of the shadow of the woman in whose office she’s worked for the past 5 years, we ask the former aide about the effect of those years with former Rep Blais, the impact of running for office amidst a number of other life changes, and the true course of her campaign which may get lost in the noise. Plus Mr. Universe, Consortium professor at UMass and Kainaat Studios’ Salman Hameed, is worried about the light, and crowding of the skies themselves. We talk about Reveal’s current project to launch more satellites in order to provide more light at night, and the many consequences that can have on humans, other earthbound species, the ways we study the skies, and much more.

Today we explore the boundaries of sound and togetherness.Because for 21 years Greenfield has been inviting the entire community to come and eat the bounty of the season in the center of Downtown. This Saturday the annual Harvest Supper returns to Greenfield inviting everyone to enjoy a full multi-coursed dinner featuring ingredients from farms all over franklin county. We speak with Kirsten Levitt of Stone Soup who’ve helmed the event in recent years about the important place this pay what you can feast and where it sits in the county’s ongoing issues with hunger. Roomful of Teeth returns to North Adams and the museum of its inception to bring a work in progress to life. The Puerto Rico Experiment is a song cycle rooted in our nation’s fraught relationship with our oldest colony. Artistic director for Roomful of Teeth Cameron Beauchamp and composer of the work Angélica Negrón, who’ll bring her own ensemble , Balún to participate, chat with us about how this collaboration came to fruition, and what sounds they’ll create at Mass MoCA this evening. And speaking of musical experimentation, Sable Island Pony, performs at City Space in Easthampton on Aug 22nd. The show celebrates a new single and marks the beginning of shows making up this year’s Pay It Forward Grantee schedule for the venue, and we’ll hear more about both for live music friday.

We once again enter THE THEATER.In Great Barrington, The Berkshire Opera Festival is launching its main-stage production of Lucia di Lammermoor, a difficult bel canto classic, on the stage of the Mahaiwe. But the festival does much more than present incredible works as it hones the craft of young singers in the summer months. We speak with festival founder Jonathan Loy, and the tragic romantic interest from Lucia Terrence Chin-Loy about the importance of this work and moreIn the north Berkshires is a wholly different take on theater and our connections with it. The Songbook is a theatrical experiment and expansion, one woman’s curious exploration on where script ends and drama and comedy begin to weave those threads in real time in front of an audience. We speak with the show’s creator and actor Williams College visiting professor Erica Terpening-Romeo about this work and the upcoming performance at 62 Center this weekend. And our weekly chat with Jim McGovern sees the congressman exploring Maine, and navigating his recent impromptu visit to a detention center in Plymouth, the local connections to the ongoing federal problems and shortfalls of SNAP, and answering listener questions on legislative AI Slop, presidential runs and more.