Mass MoCA Presents Robin Frohardt: 'Shopping Center of the Universe'

03:53PM / Monday, February 16, 2026Print Story | Email Story

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art (Mass MoCA) presents Herb Alpert for a

preview of "Shopping Center of the Universe."

Award-winner Robin Frohardt, whose multimedia experience "The Plastic Bag Store" was at the museum in 2024, returns to the museum for a preview of "Shopping Center of the Universe," a theatrical work of speculative nonfiction.

The preview will be held on Feb. 20, at 7 pm

According to a press release:

This new work in development, grounded in reality yet deeply reflective, offers a poetic meditationon our relationship with the natural world. Blending puppetry, prose, live music, and intricate handmade sets, Frohardt gives shape to the cultural and personal grief she has experienced growing up surrounded by big box stores. Frohardt reframes the parking lot as part of the ecosystem, rather than separate from it: tree roots break through asphalt, condensation from an air conditioner wears a hole in a sidewalk, and a flock of birds crash-lands, mistaking the lights on the pavement for the surface of water. This genre-defying, live-cinema project is Frohardt's innovative attempt to reconcile the predicament of being born a soul in a body raised in Walmart.

Tickets are $34 for students, $44 advance, $54 week-of, $74 preferred; members receive 10 percent off

Tags: mass moca,

iBerkshires.com Text Ads

Now's the time...

to harvest value from your home. Click for more details about a HELOC. Insured by NCUA.

www.greylock.org

rk MILES Blding Materials

Are You Ready to Update Your Home? Start With rk MILES. 4 Locations (800)670-7433

www.rkmiles.com

If you would like to contribute information on this article, contact us at info@iberkshires.com.

Berkshires Remember First Responders, Military Personnel Lost at 9/11 and Aftermath

By Jack Guerino & Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
02:30PM / Friday, September 11, 2026

North Adams Mayor Jennifer Macksey, with Fire Chief Brent Lefebvre speaks at Friday's memorial.

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — The county's two cities held memorials on Friday morning to mark the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terror attacks.

Great Barrington was scheduled to hold a dedication of piece of steel from the World Trade Center at 6 p.m.

North Adams held its ceremony in the fire station's side garden starting at exactly 8:46 a.m., the time Flight 11 crashed into the World Trade Center's North Tower.

The small square of grass was packed with police officers, firefighters, wire and alarm personnel, dispatchers, and Northern Berkshire EMS employees, and city employees, officials and community members.

After the ceremonial tolling of the bell, an honor guard presented the colors.

Mayor Jennifer Macksey said it felt odd welcoming people to a very solemn event.

"What happened 25 years ago put a mark on emergency services. It put additional pressure on police, fire, EMS, and dispatchers," Macksey said. "While we remember those who lost their lives during 9/11, and those who ran to help as many as they could during 9/11, we have to pause and appreciate those who continue to serve despite that awful threat that occurred 25 years ago."

She said it was a direct attack on the United States and all of its people.

"It was a question of our freedoms and our ability to be safe in our communities," the mayor said. "I can say today that here in North Adams, it could happen to us, but I know with the professionalism of our Fire Department, Police Department, EMS, and our dispatch team, we are a better community; we are a safer community than we were 25 years ago."

View Full Story