Lenox — From music, poetry, and dance to outdoor art, this summer will be an eventful one for The Mount.
In 1902, Edith Wharton—renowned author of “The Age of Innocence,†“Ethan Frome,†and “The House of Mirthâ€â€”designed and built an estate on 113 acres of farmland at 2 Plunkett Street. The main house on the property was inspired by the 17th-century Belton House in Belton, England.
Wharton lived at the estate with her husband Edward until 1911, before divorcing two years later.
The Mount passed between several hands over the decades, including the Shattuck family in 1911, the Van Anda family in 1938, and the Foxhollow School in 1942. In 1971, the property was declared a National Historic Landmark by the federal government and was added to the National Register of Historic Places.
Foxhollow, a girls' boarding school, closed down in the mid-1970s, and the estate was subsequently sold to developer Donald Altshuler in 1976, who developed condominiums on the Lee side of property.
In 1978, The Mount was rented to the then-recently established Shakespeare & Company and was subsequently acquired by the National Trust for Historic Preservation's endangered properties fund.
In 1979, the Edith Wharton Restoration was formed to purchase the property and turn it into a museum. The organization purchased the property in 1980 and continued to lease it to Shakespeare & Company until 2001.
The organization has encountered several challenges over the years, including in 2008 when, according to The Guardian, The Mount owed $8.5 million to various parties and was facing foreclosure. However, as reported by The Guardian, the organization found its way out of its financial struggles through donations and local support.
This year, The Mount rebranded as The Mount, Edith Wharton Cultural Center. “I think going into this season, we have had a lot of internal conversations about the role of art in times that are a little more complicated—times of crisis, you can say,†Director of Programs Sarah Margolis-Pineo told the Berkshire Edge. “We really see our role as a cultural institution, whether you are coming just to walk the grounds for free and see our sculptures or just hear some jazz. To us, coming to an author's talk is an intellectual exercise. We all see The Mount as a site of inspiration to uplift people. We really want that sort of spirit to pervade all of the activities all across our campus.â€
Margolis-Pineo called The Mount “a site of reprieve.†“But not in an escapist way, but in a way that allows you to step back, consider the world, consider your life, and have a little reset,†she said. “I'm not trying to get all ‘woo woo' here, but I think that this is what art and nature does for us, while literature allows us to examine the world's most pressing questions, like, evaluate what it means to be human together right now.â€
“It's all about the visual, the intellectual, and the creative energy here at The Mount,†Marketing and Communications Director Jennifer Young said. “Our schedule of programs this year is all about opening the mind, the body, and the spirit.â€
“When you come to The Mount for a program, you are not just coming to a theater or sitting in a field,†Margolis-Pineo said. “You are coming to a landscape of fields, forests, woodlands, gardens, trails, and history.â€
Margolis-Pineo said Edith Wharton's life, work, and legacy is at the center of everything at The Mount. “All of that is our North Star,†she said. “For our season last year, we centered around the power of storytelling. It holds true again with the power of art and words to connect and inspire us.â€
This year's series of summer events at The Mount includes:
“Summer Author Seriesâ€
- Julia Ioffe, “Motherland: A Feminist History of Modern Russia, from Revolution to Autocracy,†on Monday, July 6, at 4 p.m., and Tuesday, July 7, at 11 a.m.
- Mark Braude, “The Typewriter and the Guillotine,†on Monday, July 13, at 4 p.m., and Tuesday, July 14, at 11 a.m.
- Martha Ackmann with Anastasia Stanmeyer, “Ain't Nobody's Fool: The Life and Times of Dolly Parton,†on Monday, July 20, at 4 p.m., and Tuesday, July 21, at 11 a.m.
- Carla Kaplan, “Troublemaker: The Fierce, Unruly Life of Jessica Mitford,†on Monday, July 27, at 4 p.m., and Tuesday, July 28, at 11 a.m.
- Jeff Chang, “Water Mirror Echo: Bruce Lee and the Making of Asian America,†on Monday, August 3, at 4 p.m., and Tuesday, August 4, at 11 a.m.
- Amanda Vaill, “Pride & Pleasure: The Schuyler Sisters in an Age of Revolution,†on Monday, August 10, at 4 p.m. and Tuesday, August 11, at 11 a.m.
- Nicholas Boggs, “Baldwin: A Love Story,†on Monday, August 17, at 4 p.m, and Tuesday, August 18, at 11 a.m.
- Peter S. Canellos, “Revenge for the Sixties: Sam Alito and the Triumph of the Conservative Legal Movement,†on Monday, August 24, at 4 p.m., and Tuesday, August 25, at 11 a.m.
All tickets are $27 for members and $32 for non-members, except for the Jodi Kantor event with ticket prices from $35 to $40.
The Mount will also offer its “New York Stories†series of talks exploring the lives of influencers, artists, and powerbrokers who shaped the political and cultural landscapes of New York City:
- “Lenox to Harlem: The Life and Art of James Van Der Zee†with Donna Van Der Zee and Jeff L. Rosenheim, on Wednesday, July 8, at 5 p.m.
- “Gilded Age Fashion: Iconic Looks and the Stories Behind Them†with Elizabeth L. Block, on Wednesday, July 22, at 5 p.m.
- “The Gods of New York: Johnathan Mahler on Egotists, Idealists, Opportunists and the Birth of the Modern City, 1986-1990,†in conversation with Sarah LaDuke, Wednesday, July 29 at 5 p.m.
- “Gilded Lives, Dazzling Tables: The Art of Food and Dining in Edith Wharton's New York†with Carl Raymond and Becky L. Diamond on Wednesday, August 12, at 5 p.m.
All tickets for the “New York Stories†series are $10 to $15.
The Mount's annual series “In Conversation†returns this season, which includes discussions curated by André Bernard, former vice president of the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation:
- Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Jodi Kantor on Thursday, July 16, at 5 p.m.
- Historian, foreign policy analyst, and author Max Boot on Thursday, July 30, at 5 p.m.
- Retired U.S. Army General, former CIA Director, and author General David H. Petraeus on Thursday, August 6, at 5 p.m. Per The Mount's website, this event has sold out.
- Booker Prize-winning novelist Kiran Desai on Thursday, August 13, at 5 p.m.
- Pulitzer Prize-winning author, screenwriter, playwright, and journalist Lawrence Wright on Thursday, August 20, at 5 p.m.
All tickets for the “In Conversation†series are $35 to $40.
Concerts currently scheduled this summer include:
- Natalia Bernal Quintet on Thursday, June 11, at 5:30 p.m. as part of The Mount's free “Sounds of Summer†concert series.
- “Music in the Momentâ€: An intimate performance with jazz pianist and composer Peggy Stern, featuring saxophonist Alex Coke on Thursday, July 23, at 5:30 p.m. Tickets are $30 to $35.
- “The Jazz Barn: Making Music History in the Berkshires†with John Gennari and Ron Ramsay's “Berkshire Salon Series†on Sunday, August 16, at 6 p.m. Tickets are $30 to $35.
- “GATO6†featuring Suzi Stern on Thursday, August 27, at 5:30 p.m. as part of The Mount's free “Sounds of Summer†series;
All throughout the summer, The Mount will host nature-related events, including birding programs with Mass Audubon, Forest Bathing and Tai Chi with Mary Hannah Parkman, and Qigong with Jamie Greene.
Every Sunday throughout the summer will feature free programming, including family arts events.
All throughout the summer, The Mount will hold various mansion, garden, and sculpture tours.
The Mount will hold its second annual free community day on Sunday, August 9, at 11 a.m., featuring a performance by Latin Grammy Award-winning musician Mister G, along with other activities.
For more information about The Mount and its summer programming, visit its website.
