Worcester Magazine April 8 - 14, 2022

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Worcester Magazine 100 Front St., Fifth Floor Worcester, MA 01608 worcestermag.com Editorial (508) 767.9535 WMeditor@gatehousemedia.com Sales (508) 767.9530 WMSales@gatehousemedia.com VP, Sales & Strategy Andrew Chernoff Executive Editor David Nordman Editor Nancy Campbell Content Editor Victor D. Infante Reporters Richard Duckett, Veer Mudambi Contributing Writers Stephanie Campbell, Eric Casey, Sarah Connell Sanders, Shaun Connolly, Gari De Ramos, Robert Duguay, Liz Fay, Jason Greenough, Janice Harvey, Jim Keogh, Jim Perry, Craig S. Semon, Matthew Tota Multi Media Sales Executives Deirdre Baldwin, Debbie Bilodeau, Kate Carr, Diane Galipeau, Sammi Iacovone, Kathy Puffer, Jody Ryan, Regina Stillings Sales Support Jackie Buck, Yanet Ramirez Senior Operations Manager Gary Barth Operations Manager John Cofske Worcester Magazine is a news weekly covering Central Massachusetts. We accept no responsibility for unsolicited manuscripts. The Publisher has the right to refuse any advertisement.

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On the cover Michael Kane & the Morning Afters’ new album is “Broke But Not Broken.” CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

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4 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

FEATURED

Massachusetts Independent Film Festival comes to Worcester April 13-16 Richard Duckett Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

Worcester is a city without a regular movie theater, but it is going to be home to two movie festivals this year, with directors coming in to discuss their work, starting with the Massachusetts Independent Film Festival April 13-16.

MassIFF will screen short fi lms and feature-length fi lms (80 in all, including about a dozen full-length feature movies and documentaries) from around the world, nationally and locally at three locations: WCUW 91.3 FM Studio, 910 Main St.; Hilton Garden Inn Worcester, 35 Major Taylor Boulevard; and Traina Center for the Arts at Clark University.

MassIFF has shown fi lms annually since 2011 in the Boston area but has now been taken over by the The Shawna E. Shea Memorial Foundation Inc., which has moved the festival to Worcester.

The Shawna Shea Foundation was founded by Skip Shea — an acclaimed Uxbridge-based fi lmmaker, writer, director and producer — in memory of his daughter Shawna E. Shea, an Uxbridge High School student and a creative and artistic young woman who died at 16 in a 1999 automobile accident.

The nonprofi t organization supports young people, especially women, in fi lmmaking, performance arts and other artistic and cultural endeavors through fi nancial assistance, collaborative fellowships, mentoring and educational opportunities.

The foundation has also run the Shawna Shea Film Festival for several years. Last year it was held in Sturbridge.

This fall, the Shawna Shea Film Festival will also move to Worcester, Skip Shea said.

Worcester lost its one remaining daily movie theater operation when Show-

A scene from the movie “Magdalena.” MASS INDIE FILM FESTIVAL

case Cinemas Worcester North announced last June that it was closing for good after shutting down early in the pandemic. It doesn’t seem that long ago when Shari E. Redstone, then executive vice president of National Amusements Inc., was being interviewed in 1995 for the groundbreaking of the cinema complex (full disclosure: I was the one who interviewed her).

Cinema 320, in its 40th year this year, has kept the movie torch burning with weekly screenings of art house-style fi lms at WCUW 91.3 FM Studio since last September (it previously was at Room 320 of the Jeff erson Center at Clark University) in a space specially renovated to screen movies. Additionally, cinemaworcester has shown independent and

foreign fi lms on a pop-up basis and quite regularly at the Park View Room, 230 Park Avenue.

The Shawna Shea Foundation is also planning to have monthly screenings of movies at WCUW. Shea said he will work with Steve Sandberg of Cinema 320 and Andy Grigorov of cinemaworcester on the screenings.

“I think the more the merrier,” Shea said of the number of fi lm-showing organizations. “I think people will see there’s a really cool movie scene happening in Worcester.”

Shea is also planning monthly poetry readings along with putting on some music performances in Worcester, and will co-host a podcast.

“We’re expanding our reach in

Worcester,” he said. “We want to make Worcester our home.”

At the Shawna Shea Foundation, “We’re Worcester County people and this really brings it home to what it should be. I’m excited, and I can tell you there were years I didn’t think that,” Shea said.

Shea’s movies have included horror shorts and the award-winning 2016 fulllength feature “Trinity,” based on an event that happened in Shea’s life when he ran into the priest who had abused him when he was a child and who was now working in a local bookstore.

MassIFF has shown new independent features, shorts, documentaries and acclaimed foreign fi lms.

Shea had served on the board of MassIFF. “The director of Mass Indie was stepping down. No one seemed to want to take it over,” he said.

When the announcement was made about MassIFF coming to Worcester last year, it said that fi lms would be shown at the BrickBox Theater at the JMAC. “It just didn’t work out,” Shea said of BrickBox. The Shawna Shea Film Festival has described itself as “a fringe independent international fi lm festival. We love quirky and experimental fi lms as much as we love straight narratives. All are welcome.”

When it was mentioned to Shea that it looks like he’s going to be busy, he said, “I don’t think we’re busy enough yet. Mass Indie, Shawna Shea Film Festival, we’re a little fringe. It’s not a mainstream cinema.”

Still, “With the two together we can do more work for the foundation,” he said.

Over 400 fi lms were submitted for MassIFF, Shea said. Submissions ranged from world-wide to Worcester County.

See FESTIVAL, Page 5

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 5

A still from “My Friends the Plants” by Christine Celozzi, winner of the Woman in Film Fellowship. PHOTOS PROVIDED BY MASS INDIE FILM FESTIVAL

Festival Continued from Page 4

The fi lms to be shown include a special test screening of “Omar Sosa’s 8 Well-Tuned Drums,” a feature-length documentary fi lm by Soren Sorenson on the life and music of Cuba-born pianist and composer Omar Sosa. The screening will include a Q&A with Sorensen, who is an assistant professor of screen studies at Clark University. (7 p.m. April 14, Razzo Hall at the Traina Center for the Arts at Clark University. Tickets $10; free to students, faculty, and staff with valid Clark University ID.) “It’s a fi rst time screening. That kind of talk (Q&A) is interesting (to a fi lmmaker) when you’re still in the process,” Shea said.

Boston percussionist, composer and producer Julian Loida will give a performance following the screenings of a block of shorts, including his own, “Gentle Harp.” (8 p.m. April 14, WCUW. Tickets $10.)

“I was hoping he’d say yes, and he did,” Shea said about Loida agreeing to perform. At The Shawna Shea Film Festival in September rock singer and songwriter Robin Lane performed following the screening of her biopic documentary “When Things Go Wrong: The Robin Lane Story.”

“I’d really like to keep that going at both festivals,” Shea said of having music performances.

Other highlights include a special screening of “Execution,” in which a renegade band of females stages an execution of rapists and killers in a classroom, followed by a discussion with fi lmmaker Stavit Allweis. (2:30 p.m.

April 16, WCUW. Tickets $10; students

with ID free.)

Shea said that “Magdalena” from Poland is “an amazing fi lm. It’s a beautiful fi lm that I think speaks metaphorically to Europe.” Magdalena is a young woman who dreams of becoming a professional DJ and moving abroad, while at the same time trying to raise her 5-yearold daughter. When she meets the famous DJ Julia, her dreams have a chance of coming true. Shown with the short “Human” Trash” (Spain). (3 p.m. April 14, Hilton Garden Inn; $10.)

The documentary “The Price of Safety” explores national conversations of over-policing and racial bias as they unfold in the quaint community of Vergennes, Vermont — far away from the hustle and bustle of the city. While the Black Lives Matter movement is often seen playing out in more urban spaces, this fi lm watches a mostly white community grapple with a startling fact: their police force has some of the worst racial bias in the state and possibly the country. Shown with short documentaries “On the Island,” by Mariel Folk, “Becoming Black Lawyers,” by Evangeline M. Mitchell, and “Capitol Riots” by Ralph Celestin. (8 p.m. April 14. Hilton Garden Inn. $10.)

“The level of documentaries is really incredible,” Shea said. “A lot of short documentaries deal with Black Lives Matter. I’m encouraged by that and by the number of female fi lmmakers. We want to showcase fi lms made by people who are diff erent from what people picture a fi lmmaker looks like.”

Another trend is “the amount of comedies I got this year is staggering. I think people used humor to cope with what’s going on in the world and perhaps still is going on in the world,” Shea said.

MasIFF will screen two shorts that have come out of the Shawna E. Shea

A scene from the movie "Omar Sosa's 88 Well-Tuned Drums."MASS INDIE FILM FESTIVAL

Memorial Foundation’s Women in Film Fellowship program which supports fi rst-time women fi lmmakers with fi nancial and mentor support.

“My Friends the Plants” by Christine Celozzi and “Shadowed Refl ections” by Emma MacKenzie will be shown during a block of shorts at 5 p.m. April 16 at the Hilton Garden Inn. ($10.)

“They’re incredible. They’ve done incredible work,” Shea said.

For the MassIFF schedule, go to shawnafoundation.org/mass-indie-2022schedule Tickets for most blocks of screenings are $10. Tickets: https://fi lmfreeway.com/theMassachusettsIndependentFilmFestival/tickets

6 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Acclaimed ‘Execution’ set for MassIFF screening at WCUW In Case You Go

Richard Duckett Worcester Magazine

What: “Execution” with Stavit Allweis

USA TODAY NETWORK

Stavit Allweis’ award-winning experimental 45-minute fi lm “Execution” could be a conversation starter or a movie that stops conversation entirely.

It may be both.

In this radical revenge fantasy, a group of women appear to have taken over an empty classroom and bring in a succession of men already bound and gagged who have committed heinous crimes of rape and murder against women. Arjes (played by Natalie Plaza), who seems to be in charge, reads the charges, although dialogue is sparse and laconic, and then one by one each man is executed, often in bizarre ways.

“Execution” will be screened as part of the Massachusetts Independent Film Festival in Worcester at 2:30 p.m. April 16 at WCUW 91.3 FM Studio, 910 Main St. The screening will be followed by a discussion with Allweis. Allweis, who lives in New York City, also attended a screening of “Execution” at the Shawna Shea Film Festival last September in Sturbridge.

“I’m really hoping there’ll be an opportunity for open conversation with the issues that it brings up,” Allweis said of coming to Worcester. “That’s really exciting to me to come and show the fi lm and see what the responses are.”

Stylistically the mood of “Execution” is almost fl ippant with the women making lunch orders and sandwiches and each female character embodying an archetype. Visually there is a lot going on including colorful animations and the very top of the screen given over to split screen visuals. When there is violence blood goes “splat!” and guns go “bang!” like in a comic book.

Perhaps refl ecting Alweiss’ background as being an artist before becoming a fi lmmaker, the fi lm doesn’t follow conventional rules of form of exposition. But it is clear that the women in “Execution” are bonded, and as Greta Hagen-Richardson wrote in an appreciation of “Execution” when it was shown

When: 2:30 p.m. April 16 Where: WCUW 91.3 FM Studio, 910 Main St. How much: Tickets $10; students with ID free. https://fi lmfreeway.com/theMassachusettsIndependentFilmFestival/tickets

A scene from the movie, “Execution.” MASS INDIE FILM FESTIVAL

at the New Orleans Film Festival, “there is anger and frustration boiling at the center.”

“Execution” has been an award-winner at the Shawna Shea Film Festival, Athens International Film and Video Festival, the Austin Arthouse Film Festival, and Buff alo Dreams Fantastic Film Festival.

Skip Shea, executive director of the The Shawna E. Shea Memorial Foundation Inc., which is putting on MassIFF and also runs the Shawna Shea Film Festival, said, “We put on a panel last year (at the Shawna Shea Film Festival) and the talkback was amazing. It’s important for fi lm students and women in gender studies. She (Allweis) has a lot to say, so I’m happy to screen it again and screen it in Worcester.”

Asked about what reactions she has seen to “Execution,” Allweis said, “I wish I knew all the reactions. I think there are some reactions people don’t convey to me. The people who come up

to me to talk to me have a positive reaction or an intrigued reaction.”

They include “women happy and appreciative and giddy about it. They had a good ride with it, which is really what I wanted to give in this genre, the revenge genre. And men get behind me in a really big way. Skip (Shea) is one of them. Other male festival directors and people like that, they give me support.”

The fi lm has become “a conversation-starter piece,” she said. “The fact that it fosters conversation is important to me.”

On the other hand, Allweis also noted that “one casting platform refused to put up my listing. One fi lm festival rejected the fi lm, (saying) ‘it’s just like this killing and there’s no real reason for it.’”

Allweis said, “I would defi nitely stress that even though it’s strong social content it’s also very much a new cinematic search into telling a story.”

The revenge fantasy in “Execution” begins with a man form Egypt being

pulled into the classroom. He raped his 16-year-old sister and then had her murdered in an “honor killing” because she had brought shame on the family.

In the typically unusual style of “Execution,” Arjes reads the charges in a monotonous voice and has diffi culties discharging her gun to put a bullet through his head (the heads of all the male murderers are blacked out on the screen).

Natalie Plaza sometimes addresses the camera with lines such as “This is a hostage tape.” There is humor in her performance but she’s also deadly formidable at the same time. “She comes from comedy,” Allweis said of Plaza.

“She was just awesome.”

Allweis has said the male cases in “Execution” are based on an amalgam of real-life stories that she researched from around the world. One of the men in the fi lm is from the United States and another from the United Kingdom.

Watching TV news with stories about women being raped and killed, “It just doesn’t stop. I just wanted to do a little mirror to that,” Allweis said.

“Whenever I hear about murders, rapes, torture, imprisonment — every time it just brought the blood to my head. The idea has always been there, like ‘What the … this is just wrong. I’m gonna do something physical.’ That doesn’t happen. The system will pursue the criminals. But it can’t change the discourse,” Allweis said.

Worldwide, women have a deep distrust that the system will bring about justice, she said. “Execution” is a “fantasy idea” where “women step in and do See EXECUTION, Page 8

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 7

Kennedy Health puts spotlight on transgender health needs Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

Until recently, it wasn't unusual for transgender patients to wait weeks or even months for an appointment at Worcester’s Edward M. Kennedy Community Health Center.

“When we got calls from trans folks, it would be just me trying to fi gure out when I could see them,” said Dr. Anna McMahan, who had been the sole PCP treating transgender patients since she joined Kennedy in 2016. Patients' only

other option would have been traveling to the Boston or Springfi eld areas for gender-affi rming healthcare such as hormone replacement therapy or behavioral and surgery referrals.

After two years of work, Kennedy Community Health Center launched its new Transgender Health Team this past October.

“There was a real dearth of trans care in Central Massachusetts,” said McMahan, one of the main healthcare providRegistered nurse Sarah Caplette, left, and Dr. Anna McMahan of Kennedy Health.

See HEALTH, Page 8

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Health Continued from Page 7

ers.

Worcesterite Jake Dziejma agreed — he currently travels to a trans health center in Western Massachusetts, over an hour away. “For a city that touts itself as being the second largest in New England, it can be really challenging to simply fi nd competent care as a trans person,” he said, adding that a local option for healthcare would be welcomed by the trans community.

The team currently consists of McMahan and two other main primary care providers, as well as a registered nurse, a community health worker and a medical assistant. As patient numbers continue to rise, the team in turn will keep expanding to absorb the growing caseload. According to McMahan, the support of a dedicated staff has made a night and day diff erence.

Now, when a patient calls, they can reach the team through a phone line going directly to registered nurse Sarah Caplette and Community Health Worker Claire Powell. While it may seem minor, such a change breaks down yet another barrier to gender affi rming healthcare. “Patients don’t have to continuously out themselves,” said Caplette, as they go through various phone transfers before actually reaching their PCP. About two years ago, McMahan began lobbying for greater support for transgender affi rming care, rather than handling each on a case by case basis.

“We can see that when people don’t get gender affi rming care, they have worse

Execution Continued from Page 6

the dirty work.”

Toward the end of the movie (spoiler alert), Arjes observes that the sun is coming up. One of the women writes on a blackboard “Sunshine is free.” Outside the women get in a van and ride over the male bodies.

“I’m a fi lmmaker not an activist … (‘Execution’ is also) about love between women, bonds between women. It’s also about color comics and graphic novels,” Allweis said.

health outcomes overall,” said McMahan.

The mission of Kennedy Community Health Center is to specifi cally help those who are marginalized and would not otherwise receive the care they need. With that in mind, McMahan argued that the clinic had a responsibility to do something. “I was able to go to the leadership team and say ‘look, this is a group of people who have worse health outcomes and we can help with that.'”

Clinic leadership readily agreed, having long been committed to LGBTQ+ healthcare, and work began in earnest to build the new initiative into the budget. In fact, Kennedy Community Health Center has earned a top score as a LGBTQ+ Healthcare Equality Leader in the Human Rights Campaign Foundation’s Health Equity Index for the last fi ve years. It is the only healthcare provider in Central Massachusetts to receive this designation.

Fast-forward to the present day, and “it’s going gangbusters,” said McMahan happily. The rise in patient numbers, she said, doesn’t necessarily represent a demographic change so much as a cultural one.

“It’s not that there are more trans people now than there ever were, but a slightly improved comfort level in being able to say that out loud,” she said. “Still a long way to go but better than it has been historically.”

Worcester resident Maeve Perry is not surprised that Kennedy has seen a rise in patients - and agreed with McMahan's analysis that more people are able to live visibly. Perry likened it to the stigma that used to surround lefthanded students in schools, as teachers

forced them to use their right hands.

“Once the restriction was lifted, the number of left-handed people shot up in the short term” before stabilizing, she said. A similar phenomenon could be happening with gender identity, aided by the pandemic encouraging self refl ection and social media helping spread educational information. “Numbers are bound to go up.”

However, Dziejma emphasized that acceptance — while essential — is only half the battle. “Trans people need to know that healthcare centers are, one, not hostile and, two, that they actually have the medical knowledge to back that up,” said Dziejma, who had just changed PCPs because “while providers were good people, they didn't have specifi c trans knowledge.”

Perry believes that hormone replacement therapy is relatively under-researched, which contributes to a lack of knowledgeable specialists. One HRT clinic she reached out to had only one doctor who could write the necessary prescriptions for adults.

Kennedy Health Center did not lack for knowledgeable staff , and brought them in from other parts of the organization, beginning with Caplette and Powell. While Caplette handles all medical aspects, as a CHW, Powell deals with non-medical issues that could directly aff ect a patient’s health.

“Everybody who is a CHW is going to have a diff erent defi nition of what that is,” said Powell, who explained that she works with the social aspects surrounding trans affi rming healthcare, such as housing, food as well as “a lot of really specifi c bureaucratic aspects that aff ect trans folks,” such as name changes.

Changing one's birth name is a “complicated multi-step process that the state has not designed to be user friendly and part of my job is to help people navigate those,” Powell said. Kennedy Health is no stranger to guiding patients through bureaucratic red tape, as similar services are off ered by the health center in helping patients navigate insurance coverage.

Perry agreed that name changes were diffi cult, requiring repeated travel, a $200 fee, and months of waiting. “And that’s before talking to banks, credit cards, social security and everything else.” She also says she is planning to ask WPI for a new diploma with her correct name.

Despite the headache, Perry says she still has it easier than many. “I’m a white woman with a college degree, with a car and license, so even in the worst case, I’m good. BIPOC trans people, unfortunately, have it the worst in these kinds of situations.” Services like those offered at Kennedy could be a step forward in combating the race and class based access issues that arise in these situations, she said.

This speaks to the larger mission of equity at Kennedy Community Health Center — of which the new transgender health team is a part of — that everyone is entitled to healthcare, regardless of socio-economic status, race, sexual orientation or gender identity. And the team at Kennedy Center will be coordinating with similar teams across Massachusetts, sharing knowledge and practices.

“We want people to come get excellent care,” said McMahan, “regardless of how they identify.”

Allweis is originally from Israel where she said she loved art growing up but was encouraged by her parents to become a graphic artist. She received her BFA in graphic design from Bezalel Academy, Israel, and her MFA in painting from Columbia University in New York.

When she came to the United States she started abstract painting again, she said.

As her paintings became progressively narrative, she began to experiment with sequential art and comics. In 2010, intrigued by the language of cinema, she launched the production of “ISNESS,” an epic photographic novel.

“I never felt I had the right to reach up to fi lmmaking,” she said. Then, “One day I said I want to make a fi lm.”

She took took courses in directing and acting, and joined the Brooklyn Filmmakers Collective. Her fi rst fi lm was the short “Cooking with Connie.”

“Then there was no going back for me,” she said.

“Execution” is her second fi lm.

She said what she did in the fi lm is “outside the norms of how an industry fi lm is made. I’m looking to shake up and refresh the look of fi lmmaking.”

With “Execution,” “In the end I think you’re sharing a day dream with somebody,” she said.

“She’s a visual artist, a painter by trade, she didn’t know the rules of how to make a movie,” Skip Shea said. “It’s almost like watching a symphony and a painting alive. It isn’t like a message type movie, it’s just incredible,” he said.

Allweis said her artistic journey has been “very round about and very long.

The (Brooklyn Filmakers) Collective has been so supportive.”

She is writing her next fi lm and hopes to start shooting in a year.

“In a way it’s better that I started so late. I would have become indoctrinated, but after having a family and raising my kids, I felt just detached from institutions,” she said.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 9

Runaways singer Cherie Currie to headline MusicCons in Boxborough Craig S. Semon Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Once described as “the lost daughter of Iggy Popp and Brigitte Bardot” by Bomp! magazine, “Cherry Bomb” chanteuse Cherie Currie will be rocking this weekend’s MusicCons Collectibles Extravaganza in Boxborough.

Best known as the lead vocalist for the infl uential, all-female rock band the Runaways (which also included legendary rockers Joan Jett, Lita Ford and the late Sandy West), Currie is one of the coolest and nicest people on the planet.

And she doesn’t pull any punches when asked about the Runaways, her rich musical legacy, her famous bandmates and the chances of a reunion ever happening with the surviving band members.

The 62-year-old “Neon Angel” confessed last week on the phone from her San Fernando Valley home that she initially felt the Runaways was just another forgotten ‘70s relic.

“I’ve thought that the Runaways were all but been forgotten about 25 years ago. I really thought that people didn’t really realize that we had really happened,” Currie said. “Even Madonna, putting on a corset and then claiming that she was the fi rst one to do it (when it was Currie’s signature get-up for “Cherry Bomb” performed live), that’s when I really thought that we just soared under the radar.”

To her surprise, Currie learned that there was a small but always growing group of diehard fans and even fellow musicians who appreciated and loved the Runaways.

“There were some people out there that saw what the band represented and our age and we were doing something that really hadn’t been done before,” she said. “And, we were pretty damn good at it.”

Currie said she has nothing but fond memories of Cheap Trick and Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, two bands that opened for the Runaways.

“I stayed very close friends with all the guys from Cheap Trick,” she said.

“Tom Petty was an absolute, wonderful

The Runaways in a 1977 photo, from left, Joan Jett, Sandy West, Cherie Currie, Vicki Blue and Lita Ford. TOM GOLD/AP

Cherie Currie, lead vocalist for the influential, all-female rock band the Runaways, is headlining the MusicCons Collectibles Extravaganza this weekend in Boxborough. SUBMITTED

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Reservations required doll of a man. They were people who looked at us and said, ‘Wow, these chicks are pretty good.’ They embraced us, very compassionate guys, because they were starting out too.”

When asked if she’s angry about the Runaways not being in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Currie is clearly more upset that one of the Runaways’ biggest infl uences isn’t in there already.

“You know what I think is a tragedy?

It’s that Suzi Quatro isn’t in the Hall of Fame, because if it wasn’t for Suzi Quatro, Joan Jett (who is in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame) wouldn’t have existed,” Currie insisted. “Joan was an overSee CURRIE, Page 21

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10 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Forest Quaglia’s ‘The Investigators’ set for MassIFF Liz Fay Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Forest Quaglia never knew he’d become a professional actor. But at the age of 28, his self-written short fi lm, “The Investigators,” has been nominated for “best Massachusetts short fi lm” at the Massachusetts Independent Film Festival April 13-16.

According to Quaglia, a Leicester native who also stars in “The Investigators” as Detective Norfolk, “I like to get really crazy, emotionally demanding, I like doing something that challenges me. I think that’s real fun because you can’t always do that in real life, so, anything I can’t do in real life is my favorite role to play.

“Action and adventure, for me as an actor, is what gives me the passion to pursue this. It’s being able to experience the parts of life that you can’t always pursue everyday”.

“The Investigators” is a screwballdetective-comedy, which unpacks the many mishaps caused by the intense Detective Norfolk and his eccentric partner, Detective Chance, played by Will O’Connor.

Quaglia and O’Connor met in 2020 while fi lming “The Bootlegger,” a documentary-style drama created by Newport-based Black Duck Productions LLC. Quaglia stars as main character Charles Travers, captain of The Black Duck rum-runner, alongside O’Connor, who plays supporting role, John Goulart.

“We clicked on and off screen. While on set we had a lot of time to talk about wanting to be more than we are right now, and if we have to make our own stuff , then so be it,” said O’Connor.

A year after Black Duck producers called it a wrap on the Rhode Island set, Quaglia fi nished writing the script for “The Investigators.” When it came time for casting his co-star, Qualigua reached out to O’Connor, who, after reading the script, accepted the role without hesitation.

O’Connor, an acting student at The Strasberg Theatre & Film Institute, says Quaglia’s “work fi rst, play second” attitude was the most memorable aspect of working together.

“He’s one of the most driven people in the industry that I’ve come across.

Forest Quaglia stars in “The Investigators.” SUBMITTED PHOTO

(Quaglia) said ‘if we’re gonna do this, we’re really gonna do it’. I don’t see him not succeeding at what he wants to do.

He obsesses about it all the time, he’s watching fi lm on fi lm almost like a professional athlete, and watches how people react to certain things. He defi nitely carries himself way diff erently when playing characters. As soon as our AD (assistant director) says ‘rolling,’ he totally fl ips his facial expressions and everything,” O’Connor said.

Growing up, Quaglia says he never identifi ed as an academic or took well to a classroom.

“Even in high school, I was never cut out for a conventional lifestyle. I didn’t do well in school, I didn’t like structure or being told what to do. I dropped out of high school and got my GED, shortly after. I went to college for criminal justice thinking I wanted to get into law en-

forcement, but that didn’t last long. I knew I didn’t like the 9 to 5 stuff , so I would switch jobs probably every year,” Quaglia said.

After withdrawing from Wachusett Community College, Quaglia spent his twenties bouncing between industries like construction, auto mechanics, armed security, gunsmithing, retail, sales, and e-commerce before fi nding his current position working in solar energy as sales manager at Sunrun.

In 2020, Quaglia honed his business experience to begin developing his Worcester-based production company, Forest Quaglia Studios, which has three short studio fi lms to date. “The Investigators” was Quaglia’s fi rst studio fi lm to wrap production by late 2020, followed by the December 2021 wrap of dark comedy short “Body of Ashes” and action-thriller short “Agent Stone” in Feb-

ruary 2022.

Since expanding his fi lm experience beyond acting, Quaglia claims fi lming is still his favorite step in his creative process, but has learned to prioritize writing and producing before anything else.

“Everything I put into producing is so I can act more. I basically became a producer to make movies for myself to star in,” Quaglia said.

Quaglia credits his athletic background in mixed martial arts, basketball, football and baseball for his ability to fulfi ll the high-energy and stunt-fi lled action roles like Captain Charlie Travers and Detective Norfolk that he so desires.

According to Quaglia, playing the role of a 1920’s prohibition-era Coast Guard captain-turned-bootlegger Charlie Travers has been his favorite role to portray thus far — mostly because of the stunts.

“Filming ‘The Bootlegger’ was kickass,” Quaglia said. “I learned how to drive a Model T vintage truck, pilot a small speedboat, ride horseback, and was shot at by a Coast Guard machine gun”.

Still in the developmental stages of his fi lm career, the self-taught actor and producer has been cast in six lead roles and two supporting roles. Apart from his own short fi lms, Quaglia stars as Zach in “Damon’s Revenge” alongside “Saving Private Ryan” actor Tom Sizemore, and plays supporting role Brayden in “Secrets by the Shore,” which premiered on Lifetime Movie Network March 18.

Quaglia also plays the voice of Jackpot in “Junkyard Dogs,” a supporting role as Ryan in “A Criminal Aff air” and a lead role Pick in “Body of Ashes.” Release dates for these fi lms have yet to be announced.

Quaglia credits his acting career for growing him into a “go-getter” as an adult. “I’ve realized we as humans have a lot of power to create. We really do create the lives we want, and I just decided if I want this life, I really have to put in the work. With the amount of competition that’s out there, if I’m not willing to grind like the 1%, then I can’t have what they have,” Quaglia said.

“Investigators” screens at the 8 p.m. block located at the Hilton Garden Inn April 13-16. Follow Forest Quaglia on social media @forestQuagla and @fqstudios or visit his website www.forestquagliastudios.com.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 11

Pandemic, cancer battle spur JATK to music on new album

Sutton author’s name hijacked on Amazon by erotica writer

Veer Mudambi

Victor D. Infante

Worcester Magazine

Worcester Magazine

USA TODAY NETWORK

USA TODAY NETWORK

When Matt Jatkola received a cancer diagnosis at the start of the pandemic and was undergoing numerous treatments, he knew for sure that he wanted to make more music. Some of the songs on his new album, “Shut up and be the Light,” refl ect that journey.

Jatkola — who records under the name JATK — is clear that, “the sentiment in the title is something that I would love to see more people actually doing.” His mantra for life these days — sometimes it’s nice to not take part in the chatter, noise and negativity out there and quietly do good on your own.

With a digital release on April 15, it is the most collaborative of his work. Every song is recorded with a diff erent band with more than 20 collaborators on the album, but at the same time, they are his songs and he produced them. A power-pop’ artist, Jatkola has been making music since high school in Ashburnham and at Fitchburg State.

While his main instrument is the guitar, he dabbled in all sorts of stuff for the album — keyboard, bass and synth.

“I’ve been saying that I am multi-instrumental for a lot of stuff but my guitar is best and I would never call myself a keyboard player, for example.”

Though he was used to the old school way of having a band as a core group of people to work with all the time, the pandemic made it possible to do so much more remotely and collaboratively.

“I could ask people for their input and to record it. The album is all over the place stylistically but it really holds together at the same time. My recovery kind of brought all of that into place.”

He described it as just a lightbulb turning on. Some of the songs were fairly new, in that he wrote them during his recovery, but a few were older ones that he had been holding on to for a few years. “An eclectic blueprint, if you will, for anything I wanted to do in the fu-

Lisa Shea of Sutton is a pretty versatile author. In addition to being the president of the Blackstone Valley Art Association and running a free writing group at the Sutton Library, she has more than 500 books available on Amazon, mostly ebooks, on subjects as wide-ranging as mysteries and romances to books about cooking and meditation.

The one thing she has not done, however, is publish a work of BDSM erotica, a point she emphasized with her most recent ebook, “AMAZON MADE A MISTAKE – I DID NOT WRITE A PORN EROTIC BOOK!” The book — which is mostly a compilation of the fi rst chapters of some of the books she did write — came in reaction to the appearance of “The Sanders Collection: Collection of Short Stories,” by someone else writing under the name, “Lisa Shea.” “The Sanders Collection” is described as, “A collection of short stories, chronicling the birth of a natural born sub. Awoken by reading similar stories, this sub’s inner desires have brought to light her journey of fi nding the perfect Dom.” Shea of Sutton — whom we’ll just refer to as “Shea” from here on out — found out about “The Sanders Collection” the hard way: In an email to people who follow her Amazon Author’s Profi le.

“I got an alert from Amazon that I had written a porn book,” says Shea, in a recent phone conversation. “I got the same email all my other fans did. I got messages from other people saying, ‘What in the world are you doing!?!?’”

Amazon has, after some discussion, taken the book off Shea’s profi le, although it still came up fi rst in a search for her name on Amazon.com as recently as Friday. The book was removed some time late Friday night or early Saturday morning, after inquiries to Amazon from Worcester Magazine.

Matt Jatkola ANELEISE RUGGLES

ture.”

Recovering from cancer, according to Jatkola, kind of makes you feel like you can do anything. “Nothing fazes me anymore and I had a very ‘why not’ feeling about putting this album out. It puts everything into perspective and I’ll do what I need to do.”

He has been releasing singles from the album for about a year but when he began releasing singles, the album wasn’t quite done. “Japanese Butterfl y” is a song about his post-recovery life.

“It’s very joyful but it’s still a rock song.”

“When Tomorrow Comes,” which is the eighth song on the album (and the fi rst single), is about similar themes but was written during his treatment so has a diff erent energy.

“It’s a bit darker, but those are kind of sister songs in my head. I was literSee JATK, Page 25

Author Lisa Shea SUBMITTED

Still, the alarm was understandable, as Shea writes books that are intended to be safe for teens.

“Unfortunately,” says Shea, “Amazon doesn’t have any control over who can use what name.” As an example, she points to the case of someone writing under the pen name “Steven King,” who was forced in a lawsuit to add a middle initial to his pen name, to diff erentiate him from the more famous King. That was an exceptional case, though, because it was ruled the author was actively engaged in deceptive practices. Is that the case here?

“Shea” is not a particularly uncommon name, and indeed, Shea notes she’s had this happen before: once with a minister who wrote a children’s book, which she didn’t mind, and in 2018, two collections of hard-core bisexual porSee SHEA, Page 25

12 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CITY VOICES LANDGREN DENHOLM BUILDING MAY BE DUE TO BE

WORCESTERIA

DEMOLISHED, REDEVELOPED

Polar Park will enter its new season with several upgrades, most notably a new video screen. VICTOR D. INFANTE/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

Three vignettes from the Canal District Remembering names and HARVEY

phone numbers a no-go Janice Harvey Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

I know that face. It’s the name I can’t place.

I’ve never been great at remembering names of real people. I don’t know why this is; I can spot Adolphe Menjou and Zazu Pitts in old Hollywood movies, but don’t ask me the name of the lady with the little dog I see walking every day. Over the past 27 years as a columnist for this newspaper I’ve interviewed many wonderful local characters, in conversations I will never forget. It’s the names I fumble.

I can’t blame age — I’ve always been this way. My deepest anxieties as a teacher came on the fi rst day of school,

when I’d hold in my hand a student roster, and try to match names and faces.

Years ago, a seating chart was used for just this purpose, but along with red pencils and mimeograph machines, the seating chart was discarded.

The last 10 years of my career were spent scanning the sea of faces that changed location daily — once portable furniture arrived, my goose was cooked. I longed for the days when I was a kid and desks and chairs were bolted to the fl oor. The teacher kept a slotted chart with labeled oak tag squares she could move around at her pleasure, separating kids that needed separating, putting the near-sighted closer to the board and placing the inSee HARVEY, Page 13

Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine

USA TODAY NETWORK

1.) “What is grief, if not love persevering?” The quote comes from the Disney Plus/Marvel Studios show, “WandaVision,” and it’s been on my mind, lately. Certainly, it was on my mind March 27, as I read a poem by my late friend, the comic poet Shappy Seasholtz, in the open mic ahead of three excellent poetry readings by Richard Fox, Michael Milligan and Eve Rifkah at Nick’s Bar and Restaurant. I had still been reeling a bit from the recent news of a high school friend dying, and of a friend’s wife suddenly passing. I wasn’t the only one nursing grief: Many people in the room were in mourning for parents and other friends. And then, of course, there is the bar itself, which at the time of this writing is nearing its fi nal days. It seems the reaper’s scythe is

cutting too close lately, and that brings a sort of melancholy. I chose to read Seasholtz’s poem, “(Expletive) on My Valentine,” because it’s uproariously funny, and you can get the room to toast between verses. The humor was desperately needed, at least by me, and it’s how Seasholtz would want to be remembered. Still, as I examined my own grief and the grief surrounding me, I was struck by its root cause: That we have all loved people and places enough that their absence, or even the thought of their absence, hurts. Some days it’s easier to keep that love in focus than others. Some days it’s overwhelming.

2.) “I didn’t know the basements went that deep,” notes my wife, as we pass the pile of rubble that was once Sir Morgan’s Cove. Neither of us had ever been into the basement before, but it See CANAL, Page 15

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 13

Harvey Continued from Page 12

fatuated two rows apart so that some learning might happen. The point is, those names matched those faces.

I do think that technology has only exacerbated the problem — we don’t really need to remember anything, anymore. We can just look it up. Google has emptied our cerebral fi ling cabinets. I once took pride in remembering dates and phone numbers. The reason for that? I had to. I couldn’t walk around with a phone book, which is why I still remember Kathy Connole’s phone number was PL-41043 and her birthday is October 16. We were friends in kindergarten. I haven’t dialed that number since Kennedy beat Nixon.

Ask me my daughter’s phone number. We speak daily, probably a halfdozen times. I have no clue what her number might be, but Donna Hackett’s phone number was 791-0259 when we were kids. I still talk to her nearly every day. What is her cell number? I have no idea. Facebook recently informed me that it was my daughter’s birthday. I’d

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like to think I didn’t need to be reminded, but who knows? I can’t tell if my brain is deteriorating or just playing possum.

Hundreds of kids attended my classes over the years, and now when former coworkers mention a kid’s name I rummage through my brain for the face:

“You remember (fi ll in the blank.)”

Give me a hint. I remember behaviors more than names. Was the kid respectful? Did I cry when the kid graduated because I was proud, surprised or relieved? I’m having dinner with two former students later this week. I hope they don’t switch seats while I’m in the bathroom.

How is it that I know Victor Jory played both the evil carpetbagger in “Gone with the Wind” and Helen Keller’s father in “The Miracle Worker” and I can recognize him in any fi lm? Why hasn’t my brain deleted these tidbits?

I recently solved the forgotten password problem by writing everything down in a book entitled: “Sh*t I Can’t Remember.” I’ve given copies to several friends. I’m not alone in wading through the swamp of useless info, and separating it from actual important information. I know this, because the recipients ranged in ages from 35 to 65, and all have begun fi lling the pages with the stuff they need to know, instead of the stuff they never needed to know in the fi rst place.

I kid you not: I can’t fi nd my copy. I know it’s around here someplace.

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14 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CONNELL SANDERS

FIRST PERSON

In search of mindful moments Sarah Connell Sanders Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Some weeks clobber you with the force of a thousand Shondas. This was one of them.

Think of me as the “Bridgerton” of local writers. I try to be progressive and inclusive, but from time to time I miss the mark. Please forgive me. I swear I mean no malice. Despite my earnest efforts, I’ll never be “Downton Abbey” sharp, and I know that better than anyone.

In the aftermath of a recent literary fi asco, one reader called me “disgusting” and “arrogant” on the same day another one told me I was “relatable” and “engaging.” Maybe they were both right. I got sick to my stomach from the attention. Or, was it the baby kicking?

Either way, I felt off .

That night, I learned I tested positive for gestational diabetes and COVID-19.

A real twofer. My symptoms were mild, just a sore throat and congestion. I kept craving a soothing popsicle, but that was off the table. Served me right.

Perhaps no one said it better than the enlightened Poosh philosopher, Kourtney Kardashian: “Kim, there’s people that are dying.” Everything is relative.

Usually, my husband knows how to talk me down in these situations, but by no fault of his own, he was traveling for the better part of the week. I had to sort this one out in isolation. Literally.

I tried and failed to will my agitation away, eventually settling on a tool our school adjustment counselors taught me to use with kids — behold the almighty mindful moment. Mindfulness can’t turn back time, but it can stop you from replaying humiliation or despair over and over in your head like an episode of “Russian Doll.”

If you are having a week like mine, try one of these mindful moments and let me know if it helps.

Worry Stone: I keep a stone in my jacket pocket to stop my mind from rac-

No pill will ever solve the problem or bring you joy. No amount of money will create togetherness and you can’t survive on spirit alone. Your true self encompasses all dynamics for optimization of life experiences. LENINSCAPE Mindfulness can be as simple as eating a piece of hard candy. Notice its weight, textures, aromas, and sensations. If your mind wanders, continue to direct your attention back to the candy until it has fully dissolved. PIXABAY

Learning to love your ‘true self ’

ing. When I feel stressed, I turn it over in my hand, close my eyes, and try to identify accurate words to describe the texture or pressure I’m physically feeling, the noises I’m hearing, and the visuals I’m seeing — even if it’s just light spots or darkness. When I open my eyes, I imagine the problem shrinking down until it’s the size of a precious little worry stone.

Peppermint: There’s always a peppermint or a piece of hard candy stowed away in my purse for times when anxiety starts creeping up. I like to fi nd a quiet place and sit with my eyes closed while I enjoy the treat as if it’s the fi rst time I have ever eaten anything like it. I start by unwrapping it slowly, noticing its colors and shapes. I feel its weight and take in the peppermint’s distinct scent before placing the candy in my mouth and allowing it to dissolve in its own time. Whenever my mind wanders, I acknowledge the thought and direct my attention back to the sensation of sucking on the peppermint until it disappears.

Jason Ranieri

See MINDFULNESS, Page 24

Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Of all the dreams I’ve lost and found and all that I ain’t got I know happiness comes from feeling good about loving my true self. I’m sure you’re mistaken: it’s about good looks and a whole lot of money. Mountains will crumble and when the fairytale ends ultimately you’re left with yourself. After all your good time friends are gone you’re left with yourself. After all your lovers leave you’re left with yourself. Out of all these friends and lovers there is no one that compares to you. All the glory and honor is yours. To fi nd true self and release suff ering one must come to understand honor and glory as being something good. The perception is wholesome.

The true self feels better.

Some may think their identity is based on beliefs or emotions. These are just reactions to infl uences and external stimulus. Others believe we are the byproduct of biochemical reactions.

Still others feel their spirit or soul is their true self. Since we could question

existence we have pondered these things, but I can tell you none of this matters if you’re not happy with you.

No pill will ever solve the problem or bring you joy. No amount of money will create togetherness and you can’t survive on spirit alone. Your true self encompasses all dynamics for optimization of life experiences.

The peace I feel through mindfulness and proper being brings forth understanding, leading to happiness thus love of true self. It has nothing to do with the concept of ego. This idea is the result of a competitive game that a person plays on themselves or others. You can’t win them all, so ego suff ers. It’s complete nonsense. Saying someone has a big ego does nothing but hinder progress. It does nothing to help that person fi nd their true self. We should help people achieve peace, understanding and love for their true self. It also has nothing to do with acceptance.

Acceptance is just another way to pacify the masses.

True self is about survival and since See TRUE SELF, Page 24

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 15

BAD ADVICE

Miscalculation can leave Green Thumb with blood on his/her hands

When we fi rst started dating I tried to watch on TV and just couldn’t follow or pretend to care. Then he insisted we go to a game, but I ended up losing track of everything that was going on after I would get up to go get a snack and a drink. Can you help me like baseball to save our relationship?

DEAR TROUBLED ON THE DIAMOND: I love baseball. I always have.

However, I am also aware that most people don’t. They like to tell me that they don’t when I tell them that I do.

This I do not care for. When someone tells me that they like a song by Imagine Dragons, I don’t tell them that it’s boring, too slow and only lame old people like it (would you look at those parallels?) You are not those people and I get it. You genuinely would like to get into

baseball to be a good partner and that is so sweet. Here’s a fun game to play: it is called the 999 Challenge. Typically, the challenge is 9 beers, 9 hot dogs, 9 innings. Is it gluttonous? You betcha. Is it very gross? Absolutely. Does it get you to pay attention to what inning it is? Totally. This is not just a game of appetites, and Jim Belushi levels of drinking. It requires strategy. This game is a marathon not a sprint. If you pay attention to baseball, you know that there are times when no one is doing anything at all because someone is talking to the pitcher on the mound. There are going to be pitching changes that make the game go even longer. There is time in between each half of an inning where the players re-warm up for 3-5 minutes. You have to plan out those drinks, those dogs over the 3-4 hour span. I do not know anyone that has succeeded at this endeavor. But that’s not the point. It gets you focused on that game when the last thing you want to do is think about a hot dog after you have already eaten 7. Also please note, you can totally substitute all of these. Maybe it’s Coke if you’re sober, or popcorn if you’re vegan. Make the challenge yours. Play ball!

Worcester comedian Shaun Connolly provides readers bad advice in his weekly column. Send your questions to woocomedyweek@gmail.com.

punk rock, which ended with me at the bar talking to Dollyrots’ guitarist Luis Cabezas for a while. That was one of the great things about that club and clubs like it: It humanized the performers.

Even the biggest names that came through were people you can sit and talk to for a bit. There are bigger venues in town, but places like the Cove seemed to create a sense of connection, and that’s something one should never undervalue. I don’t know, maybe I’ll grab a brick myself, before they’re gone.

3.) I’m not a fan of the area behind the Fenway, which is the model developers have in mind for Polar Park-driven Canal District development. Mostly, I think the area is tacky, yuppifi ed, overpriced and a little soulless. Really, about the only thing that can lure me to that neighborhood is a good show at the

House of Blues, the last concert I saw there being Gary Clark Jr. in 2019, not long after the blues-blaster song “This Land” came out. Shortly after that show, he was playing support on stadium tours, so it was a real privilege to see him up close, and to really feel the power of his guitar playing. Sometimes, you can fi nd magic in places you don’t much care for. Still, we made a point of eating before we left Worcester that night, because honestly, the only food I’ve ever found in that neighborhood that I liked is the sausage stand on the sidewalk outside.

Stopping by Major Bloom on Millbury Street on a chilly recent Tuesday, I was struck that there are still places in the Canal District you can grab a quick bite that’s delicious and aff ordable: A sub from Tom’s International Deli, an empa-

nada from Che! Empanadas, the numerous food stands at the Worcester Public Market, including my personal favorites, Okra and One Love Café. A lot of the businesses and restaurants that have moved into the city in recent years have been either regional chains, or owned by Boston-based development groups.

Some are great, certainly, but it’s not the same as buying from a local business.

The latter often has a sort of soul that’s frequently beaten out of gentrifi ed areas. There’s often more to them than is immediately apparent on the surface.

There’s a feeling of connection that supersedes the transaction. Is it any wonder that each time one of those places disappears, the feeling of mourning is palpable? The word for that pain is “love,” and it persists long after the buildings are gone.

Shaun Connolly Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

DEAR SHAUN: I want to get into gardening, how do I do that?

DEAR POTENTIAL GREEN THUMB: OK, OK. You got me. I don’t know anything about this. So I would say: Get some dirt, get some seeds, get a trowel (that looks like a made up word), and be prepared to be often more disappointed than satisfi ed with your outcomes. I want to pose a question back to you: Do you want to be a murderer? That’s what a lot of amateur gardening is. In my personal gardening experience I buy some seeds or a fully-grown plant, with the best of intentions to keep it alive and well. But if I place it in the wrong part of the house, or I forget to water it just by a day or two, I have killed the thing. Murdered it. I’m not proud, this isn’t a brag.

I’m just saying there was a time in my 20s when I could have been the bad guy in a reboot of the movie “Fern Gully.” I was deforesting the plant section at Lowe’s. So yeah, I would say gardening is a great option, but you must put the time, eff ort and care into it. Otherwise, I will put you up on charges at The Hague for mass murder.

DEAR SHAUN: My boyfriend loves baseball, but I can’t get into it at all.

Canal Continued from Page 12

does, from the street at least, appear that there was more beneath the surface than it seemed. I have friends – longtime afi cionados of the late club in its many incarnations – who have stolen bricks from the rubble pile as souvenirs.

I’ve not done that – I liked the club when it was the Lucky Dog and then the Cove Music Hall, but it was never one of my central hangouts. I strain my memory to remember the last show I saw there. I believe it was the Dollyrots in 2018, with local favorite bands the McGunks, the Pathetics, After the Blackout and the Evil Streaks opening. It was a fun, cathartic night of upbeat, high-spirited

Successful gardening requires time, effort and care. ALTANAKIN, GETTY IMAGES

16 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

COVER STORY

NOT ‘BROKEN’ Michael Kane & the Morning Afters on rise with new album Jason Greenough Special to Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

Michael Kane is not shy to admit that he is a self-proclaimed “record nerd.” Vinyls, cassettes, you name it – there’s just something about those mediums that give the music a whole new spirit. So, to hold his own record in his hands after pouring his blood, sweat and tears into the project he cultivated with his band, the Morning Afters, over the past few years is just surreal.

With the release of their fi rst full-length album “Broke But Not Broken,” which hits shelves April 8, Kane’s longtime Worcester punk roots have fi nally found the surface after quite a lengthy cultivation process, and the surrealism of the moment also stems from the numerous forms the album has taken on over the last fi ve years. More than once, between attempts to make the record in 2017 and 2018, batches of songs were created and then scrapped, as it just didn’t feel like the vibe both Kane and the band wanted to put out.

But after a few lineup changes here and there, as well as the addition of a keys section, Kane kept writing and tweaking the ideas until they took another crack at it in early 2020, and something just clicked for the whole group, just in the nick of time before the pandemic reared its ugly head.

However, things outside of the studio hadn’t exactly been copacetic for Kane, and he channeled the whirlwind of emotions he was experiencing into the mish mash of love, loss, joy and hope into the fi nal product. While the subject matter may not be all that bubbly and upbeat, Kane still sees the record as a celebration of hope and perseverance, and he’s excited to see how listeners, old and new, connect to it once they give it a spin.

See KANE, Page 17

Michael Kane peruses the album collection at That's Entertainment. CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 17

Kane Continued from Page 16

“When I was writing the bulk of this record, I was going through some medical issues, and I was also going through a divorce at the time, and a lot of the songs have that vibe where the lyrical content isn’t exactly dark, but they do deal with love and loss, and that whole thing,” says Kane. “I really feel though, at the end of the day when the record was done, and I sat down and played it back, it feels like a very hopeful record.

It’s a very ‘you can get through this’ type of record, so I am pretty proud of that. It has an optimistic feel to it, even though the subject matter is a little daunting, and I hope people get that from it.”

While Kane’s not-so-easy go of things at the time were a major driving force in the record’s minutiae and he does bring the collection of tracks through rollercoaster ride that visits the highest peaks and deepest valleys of human emotion, he was adamant that the placement of certain songs would be vital to the album’s vibe and fl ow, a-la Springsteen’s “Born To Run.” The foundation of it, though, was simply Kane’s unwavering sense of determination, or rather stubbornness as he puts it, that fully fi lls in the record’s sound, where nothing was going to stand in the way of delivering this batch of songs to the masses.

What further helped deliver this record, obviously, was the top-tier musicianship by guitarist Franklin Siplas, bassist Timmy Weagle, drummer Jeff Hoey and Joe Ferraro manning the keys, and Kane is quick to not only acknowledge, but nearly gush at the amount of artistic precision the band displayed during the process.

“We ran a Kickstarter campaign at the start of this, which I really went back and forth on a bunch, but we decided to do it, and that really bought us the time in the studio,” says Kane. “So, although it seems like we banged it out quick, because we did, we also had a little bit of extra time to take a breather and throw some additional things out there to see if it sticks, thanks to everyone who supported us. The band was just on top of everything. Everyone in the group was just so focused on what they needed to do, and worked to serve each song as best as they could. It was such a fun record to make and not stressful in the least. Everyone brought their A-game

Michael Kane & the Morning Afters’ new album is “Broke But Not Broken.”

CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

and absolutely killed it.”

Although the musical expertise of everyone in the band needs no assistance, there were a few bits and pieces that Kane outsourced to a few friends. Off ering his own swaggering six-string twist on the album’s opening track was Dropkick Murphys guitarist James Lynch, with whom Kane goes way back, while Helen Sheldon of Helen & The Trash Pandas lent her vocal range to a pair of tracks, and Roger Lavallee chimed in on guitars while also manning the producer’s chair.

While short in duration, the additional contributions were not small by a long shot, and Kane can’t help but feel lucky for the folks he calls friends.

“I called James up and told him that I had this solo in my head (for ‘Tear This World Apart’), and I thought it would be a great fi t for him, because he’s a great guitar player, and he really sunk his teeth into it,” says Kane. “Now, with Roger in the studio, he’s a genius. Not only does he know what I want to hear if See KANE, Page 24

April 7-10

sponsored by Berkshire Bank

TheHanoverTheatre.org Worcester Center for Performing Arts is a registered not-for-profit 501(c)(3) organization, which owns and operates The Hanover Theatre and Conservatory for the Performing Arts.

18 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

CITY LIVING CANNABIS CONFIDENTIAL

THE NEXT DRAFT

Cannabis Commission may In David vs. ramp up in-person inspections Goliath battle,

craft brewer beats Big Beer

Eric Casey Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

It’s a sight that sends a shiver down every cannabis business manager's spine: First, one unmarked car with offi cial state license plates pulls into the parking lot, followed by another. Soon, a gaggle of people with clipboards are standing in a circle outside, peering back at the security cameras watching them. Finally, they make a move for the door, and it becomes undeniable what is about to occur. It’s time for a surprise inspection from the Cannabis Control Commission, the regulatory body that governs the cannabis industry in Massachusetts and whose headquarters are located in Worcester’s Union Station.

With the worst of the pandemic now allegedly in the rear view mirror, sources tell me that the commission has been staffi ng up its investigation department and moving away from the use of remote inspections in favor of in-person visits, in its ongoing quest to hold cannabis businesses accountable. With businesses now unable to hide behind the chaos brought on by COVID-19, it would not be surprising to see an uptick in the amount of businesses that are found to be in violation of the rules in the coming months.

During inspections, commission employees take a comprehensive look at how cannabis businesses are operating, looking at everything from their personnel records, signage and advertisements, the health of the plants in the cultivation rooms, sanitation, and every possible violation in between. Since it started regulating the cannabis industry in 2017, the commission has sanctioned numerous companies, with violations ranging from use of pesticides to violations of rules restricting the amount of licenses that any one company can have control of.

Now, maybe you don’t particularly care if the dispensary you’re making a purchase from has pristine recordkeeping or if its signage is compliant with state law. That’s fair enough, but here’s one key detail about cannabis regulations in Massachusetts that every consumer should be aware of: Cultivation facilities are actually required by the commission to sell cannabis that is free of contamination, free of seeds and stems, and is well cured.

Like the fi ne print that Charlie neglected to read in Willy Wonka’s contract, it's all there, black and white, clear as crystal. We can obviously debate the defi ni-

Matthew Tota Special to Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

tion of what exactly entails a well-cured bud (I know some particular weed snobs who would claim that nearly every company in the state is failing to meet this requirement) but the concept of being free of stems and seeds is pretty clear.

To put things bluntly, any cannabis company in Massachusetts that is selling seedy buds or stemy shake is knowingly violating the state’s regulations.

While we have yet to see the commission publicly admonishes a company for selling schwag weed, a casual review of social media tells us that plenty of consumers have purchased cannabis from dispensaries that they found to be stemy or seedy, or even moldy.

Now, let’s be real: Commission inspectors aren’t going to be busting through the front door of your local grow facility in tactical gear just because you found a single seed in the bag of Super Silver Haze you just picked up. However, a consistent stream of complaints is more likely to draw scrutiny, and at a certain point, an avalanche of complaints about a particular product or company becomes diffi cult to ignore. Complaints detailing concerns where a consumer’s health is put at risk — mold, mildew, debris, etc. — are also going to be given priority.

What exactly compels investigators to aggressively

The cry of victory in the latest battle between craft beer and Big Beer resounded loudly, and not just because the underdog won.

Stone Brewing’s March 25 win in a trademark infringement lawsuit against Molson Coors Beverage Company may not dramatically alter the arena where the two combatants fi ght for dollars and shelf-space.

And so far a federal jury only awarded Stone $56 million of the $256 million in damages it sought.

But I hope the results of the lawsuit provide craft brewers protection against future branding that tries to capitalize, however subtly, on their popularity.

Stone alleged the beer conglomerate purposely stirred consumer confusion by rebranding its “Keystone” brand “STONE” in 2017, launching a deceptive and misleading marketing campaign that would later hurt Stone’s business. Stone’s fi nancial situation has worsened in recent years: the San Diego-based brewery stands nearly $470 million in debt to an investment fi rm and must start paying the loan next year.

Announcing the suit in a 2018 video, Stone founder Greg Koch said Molson Coors and other Big Beer companies know they can’t buy his brewery out like they have other craft brewers; but, he said, “they can obfuscate; they can co-opt our brand and our good name — or at least they can try.”

After the three-week trial, the jury found Molson Coors did infringe on Stone, but that its actions were not willful. Still, Koch cheered the verdict as a huge victory. “This is a historic day for Stone Brewing, and for the craft beer industry. Molson Coors threatened our heritage, but we stood up to that threat,” he said in a statement. “They will put the ‘Key’ back in ‘Keystone’ ending their hostile 4-year co-op of the Stone name. Cheers to our legions of fans, friends and supporters who believe in the good that craft beer brings.

See CANNABIS, Page 20

See DRAFT, Page 19

The offices of the Cannabis Control Commission in Union Station, in 2020. CHRISTINE PETERSON/TELEGRAM & GAZETTE

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 19

Draft

Stone used some of these images to make its case that Molson Coors purposely rebranded its “Keystone Light“ brand to confuse customers.

Continued from Page 18

This is your win too.”

Koch’s reaction isn’t hyperbolic. Forgetting for a moment that Stone must reckon with its debt, having planned to use damages from the lawsuit to help pay back its investor, the brewery stood up to the biggest beer conglomerate in the world to protect its heritage. Stone, founded in 1996, accepted its role as a leader in the industry, despite its own internal struggles and fl agging sales. Its victory should be lauded, not picked apart.

Robert Young, chairman of Worcester law fi rm Bowditch & Dewey’s craft beer practice group, also believes Stone notched a “huge win” in the trademark dispute. And Stone could take home more than the $56 million in damages the jury initially awarded. “While that is not everything Stone had asked for, it is a signifi cant sum, and the court still could triple that amount,” Young said.

“There likely will be multiple post-verdict motions, from both sides, as well as an appeal, so MillerCoors will not have

NORTH AMERICA’S

PHOTO COLLAGE COURTESY MATTHEW TOTA

to pay anything just yet.”

According to the trade publication Brewbound, Molson Coors argued that it rebranded Keystone to compete with similar brands, and Stone and its lineup of IPAs never factored into the decision.

Molson Coors went as far as comparing the customers of both brands, Court House News Service reported, saying Stone’s buyers are craft beer afi cionados, willing to pay more for less, while those searching out Keystone Light focus on “price and value.”

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At one point in the trial, Molson Coors attorneys even questioned how someone in a store could confuse a 30pack of Keystone with a six-pack of Stone’s IPAs. As a dutiful employee of a busy beer and wine shop, I do fi nd Stone’s contention that a customer could be so befuddled as to mistake a 30-rack of Keystone Light for a six-pack of Stone’s Mexican hot chocolate imperial stout “Xocoveza” a little thin. Plausible? Maybe.

The signifi cance of Stone’s victory,

though, has nothing to do with the validity of its argument. Far more important is the precedence created that could shield smaller brewers from a large brewery or even another business entirely, such as a cannabis company, targeting a market based on their success and fanfare, then crafting deceptive, confusing branding. Some of the most popular craft breweries in the world reside in Massachusetts. Would it be so far-fetched to see a Big Beer brand focus sales of a new brand in this state, using similar art or descriptors as those wildly popular craft breweries?

“I think the case confi rms the importance of securing trademark protection for a brewer’s brand,” Young told me.

“Up until now, most of the beer industry trademark litigation I am familiar with involved a larger brewer going after a smaller one over the rights to a name for a beer. This case shows that trademark protection can help smaller brewers as well.”

Thanks to Stone’s lawsuit, craft brewers have better protection over their brand, which like their brew, they’ve struggled and sweated over to perfect.

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BOX OFFICE

‘Morbius’ wins week with $39.1M opening Marvel release weighed Ticket sales 1. “Morbius,” $39.1 million. down by bad reviews Jake Coyle ASSOCIATED PRESS

NEW YORK – Sony Pictures’ Marvel adaptation “Morbius” landed with dismal reviews but still managed to debut with $39.1 million in ticket sales, according to studio estimates Sunday.

That was enough to easily hand “Morbius,” starring Jared Leto as a vampire-transforming biochemist, the top spot at the box offi ce – even though it was an uncharacteristically low debut for a Marvel movie. Sony’s last movie to launch a Marvel character, 2018’s “Venom,” opened in 2018 with double the ticket sales.

But “Morbius” also drew unusually bad reviews for a Marvel release. On Rotten Tomatoes, it sits with easily the worst score for a Marvel fi lm at 17% fresh. “Venom” (30%) wasn’t a hit with critics, either. But given that forecasts had ranged closer to a $50 million opening weekend for “Morbius,” the poor word-of-mouth and worse reviews likely cut into its receipts.

“This is a weak opening by Marvel’s exceptional standard for launching a new superhero series,” said David A. Gross, who runs the consulting fi rm Franchise Entertainment Research.

“The weekend fi gure is well below average for a Marvel fi rst episode, and below average compared with a DC Comics new series, as well.”

Still, “Morbius,” delayed several times by the pandemic, was budgeted

Cannabis Continued from Page 18

pursue some complaints over others is a mystery to even those who are well connected to the commission, but there is an obligation to be consistent. So once one company gets knocked for a particular violation, similar problems at other companies are unlikely to go unpun-

2. “The Lost City,” $14.8 million.

3. “The Batman,” $10.8 million.

4. “Uncharted,” $3.6 million.

5. “Jujutsu Kaisen 0,” $1.9 million.

6. “RRR,” $1.6 million.

7. “Spider-Man: No Way Home,” $1.4 million.

8. “Dog,” $1.3 million.

9. “X,” $1 million.

10. “Everything Everywhere All at Once,” $1 million.

Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Comscore. Final domestic fi gures will be released Monday.

Jared Leto is shown in a scene from “Morbius.” JAY MAIDMENT/AP

somewhat modestly for a comic-book fi lm, costing $75 million to produce. Audiences also gave it a low grade – C+ from CinemaScore – though moviegoers still seemed to like it more than critics.

The audience score from Rotten Tomatoes for the Daniel Espinosa-directed fi lm is 69% fresh.

Overseas, “Morbius” grossed $44.9 million over the weekend, for an $84 million global haul.

Still, it will be hard for “Morbius” to get anywhere close to Sony’s recent Marvel successes. The last two were box-offi ce hits: “Spider-Man: No Way Home” has grossed nearly $1.9 billion

worldwide, while last year’s “Venom 2” took in $502 million globally.

Last week’s top fi lm, the Sandra Bullock-Channing Tatum rom-com adventure “The Lost City,” slid to second place with $14.8 million in its second week.

With a two-week total of $54.6 million, “The Lost City” is performing much better than other recent entries in the genre.

Following the Academy Awards, Apple put best picture-winner “CODA” into more than 500 theaters. The fi lm, which debuted on Apple TV+ last August, became the fi rst movie from a streaming

service ever to take Hollywood’s top honor. Apple didn’t share ticket-sales fi gures Sunday, making “CODA” the fi rst best-picture winner without any recorded U.S. box offi ce.

Also working against “Morbius”: The box offi ce is getting busier. While no new wide releases went up against the Sony release this weekend, the coming weeks bring the releases of “Sonic the Hedgehog 2,” “Ambulance” and “Fantastic Beasts: The Secret of Dumbledore.”

The next Marvel movie, “Doctor Strange in the Multiverse of Madness,” comes from the Walt Disney Co. on May 6.

ished. There is also an obligation to at least follow up on every complaint received, even if it's just a quick email or phone call to get the company’s side of the story.

Regardless of what your opinion of the Cannabis Control Commission is, it’s important to acknowledge that consumers are always going to be the front line of any fi ght to keep the cannabis industry in check. Even an army of wellfunded investigators aren’t going to be

able to inspect every plant, jar, and preroll. Even if you’re skeptical that the commission will act on your complaint, they obviously can’t do anything about complaints they’re not receiving.

So remember folks: If you see seeds, say something. Feel free to complain on social media (in fact, feel free to tag me in the post as well), but please make sure you also spend a few minutes to send a complaint to the commission if regulations have been violated. This is

particularly true for products purchased from well-funded, multi-state companies, who theoretically should have the fi nancial and technical resources to ensure that every product that leaves their facility is of acceptable quality. If companies with market caps of billions of dollars are incapable of producing products that are at least of the same quality as the guy you used to buy from in the parking lot of Market Basket, something is seriously wrong.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 21

Currie Continued from Page 9

the-top Suzi fan, where she, literally, dressed and acted like her. And I pretended to be David Bowie, as Joan pretended to be Suzi for the fi rst year of the Runaways until we fi gured out who we were.”

Born and raised in Encino, California, Currie joined the Runaways in 1975, at age 15, and she has been rocking ever since.

“We played every dive throughout the United States and then some over and over again and over 21 clubs when we were only 16 and 17 years old,” Currie said. “We knew that women could rock.

Suzi Quatro showed us that. We were going to go out and prove it.”

Proved it the Runaways did, but it came at a price, Currie said.

“We gave up a lot,” she said. “We gave up the high school prom. We gave up the necking on Mulholland Drive, all of those things that we didn’t experience as young kids, as well.”

One thing the Runaways had, at least in the early days, was each other.

“We came together as a band and we had each other’s back,” Currie said. “We were in a very male-dominated business and we had to protect each other and be there for each other.”

But the one thing the Runaways didn’t have that they desperately needed was an adult fi gure to arbitrate and advise the girls during the rise of a band, because, by the end, the band was hardly speaking to each other.

“Kim Fowley (the Runaways fi rst manager), unfortunately, felt that keeping us at each other’s throat made us better onstage. He was wrong. What it did was break up the band and we just had nobody to mediate and allow us to talk to each other,” Currie said. “And we were just too young to be that grown up enough to know that is something that really needed to happen or the band was going to dissolve.”

In the summer of 1977, the Runaways played a string of sold-out shows in Japan and experienced something they never experienced back home in the States, a rabid fan-base.

Japan was the Runaways at their highest point. It was also the beginning of the end for the band.

“To get off the plane and to see that Beatlemania, literally, Beatlemania, was shocking, shocking, stunning and overwhelming … And when I returned, I

Cherie Currie stands with one of her chainsaw carvings. SUBMITTED PHOTO

quit the Runaways because I wanted to quit on a high,” Currie said. “I didn’t want to go back out there with the poisonous baloney that was going on within the band. It was so destructive and so crushing and the things that were said and being blamed for things that I never did. Unfortunately, when you’re young like that, there’s so much insecurity and anger with the other bandmates.”

Currie insists that the Runaways all loved each other but insecurities and toxic things being said in the press got the best of them. And, Currie feels, if they just talked it out, the Runaways would have never broken up.

“It wasn’t until 25 years ago when me and Joan was talking, when we came back together as friends,” Currie said. “I was sure that they were thrilled that I quit. Absolutely thrilled. And Joan said, ‘That’s not true at all. We didn’t want you to quit.’ I said, ‘Oh my god! Really? I mean, it certainly didn’t feel that way.’

She thought I wanted to leave to pursue a solo career … No! It wasn’t that at all!.”

In 2020, Currie’s “Blvds of Splendor” was released. Although she is very proud of the album, Currie said she made the mistake of having Jett’s label Blackheart Records do her album, an album that the label shelved for nine years (with no explanation ever given), released during the COVID-19 pandemic with no promotion. The album is still not available on CD. “It’s the best thing that I ever done. I

think it’s almost the best thing that’s been on the label,” Currie said. “I should be out there playing with Joan. I should be opening for Joan. But no! and now Joan is opening for the Who and I totally get that. But, bottom line, there is always going to be the why. Why? I would really like to know the truth behind it.

Why? It makes no common sense whatsoever.”

In addition to rock ‘n’ roll, Currie is an accomplished, award-winning chainsaw wood-carver artist, who specializes in chiseling out mermaids and beautiful women and has carved her share of enormous tikis like the one Greg Brady wore around his neck in “The Brady Bunch” Hawaiian trip two-parter (By the way, Currie’s reference, not mine).

Currie is the only one of the Runaways who has been on stage with every single member in the band since the break-up.

“With Lita, a few years back we did quite a few shows together. With Joan, I have done quite a few shows with her.

Do I love Joan? Yes. I love her. I always will, because of what we went through as kids. Am I proud of her? Of, course. I feel the same way about Lita. I miss Sandy terribly. It’s terrible that we lost

her so young. Do I expect a Runaways reunion? Absolutely not.”

Although she doesn’t see a Runaways reunion with the surviving members in the cards, Currie insists she has always been on board and would agree to do one in a (black)heartbeat.

“The legacy of the Runaways leave behind is that no one grows up, even in their 60s … The members, except for myself, nobody grows up in the Runaways,” Currie said.

“It shouldn’t be this way. Joan and Lita should not have issues and we should be able to celebrate what we did. But that will not be because the two of them, they can get their (expletive) (expletive) together … Anyways, it is what it is and the thing is that I sing ‘Cherry Bomb’ better than both of them. And that will always be a fact.”

MusicCons Collectibles Extravaganza, featuring Cherie Currie, Barrence Whitfi eld, Gary Hoey, Rex Smith, Vinny Appice, Jon Butcher, Robin Lane, Liz Borden and many others, from 4 to 8 p.m. Friday, April 8; 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday, April 9; and 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Sunday, April 10 at Boxboro Regency Hotel, 242 Adams Place, Boxborough.

Free parking.

22 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

ARTIST SPOTLIGHT

Piya Samant “Beauty is fl eeting and my desire to capture the beauty of life (be it human, fl ora or fauna) is irresistible,” writes Piya Samant. “As an introvert, I connect more with people’s body language and less with their words. Through paintings I attempt to immortalize the beauty of my subjects in their entirety; not just their face/body but also their character. Floral still lifes are a delight to paint because I am able to project emotions onto unsuspecting fl owers through the play of light and strategically placed brushstrokes.”

Samant is a self-taught visual artist and art curator.

Born and raised in India, she now resides and paints out of her home studio in Massachusetts. She received her master’s degrees in technology, and after working in the tech world for over a decade, decided to pursue her career as a full-time practicing artist in 2014. Sa-

“Hope S07,” oil on paper, 12.5” x 14.2,” by Piya Samant PIYA SAMANT/ ARTS WORCESTER

mant works primarily in oil but enjoys working with graphite, ink and gouache. She paints commissioned portraits of people, pets and homes. Her current body of work features three ongoing series: HOPE, a fl oral still-life series, LIFE, a fi gurative series and landscapes. Her work is available to view and purchase online, and in local museums, galleries and cafes. She is represented by PXP Contemporary and ArtsPlus galleries. To view more of Samant’s work, follow her @art.by.piyali on Instagram or visit artbypiyali.com.

This Artist Spotlight is presented by Worcester Magazine in partnership with ArtsWorcester. Since 1979, ArtsWorcester has exhibited and advanced the work of this region’s contemporary artists. Its exhibitions and educational events are open and free to all. Learn more at www.artsworcester.org.

SONG TO GET YOU THROUGH THE WEEK

Jay Gudda delivers brooding ‘Snake’ Victor D. Infante Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

“Snake,” the recent single from New England hiphop artist Jay Gudda, is a moody, brooding piece of work with a dark edge that draws a bit of blood. The song presents a vision of the world wherein no one is trustworthy, not even the song’s narrator. It’s not an encouraging view of humanity, but there’s something darkly familiar in the song’s distorted mirror, and

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Gudda’s tightly controlled rap style sizzles with constrained emotion.

“Snake,” raps Gudda, “You slithered on me/played tricks, like a wizard on me/Done cold, like a blizzard on me.” The betrayal, according to the persona, came because, “You think I slithered on you/Changed colors, like a lizard on you.” The persona gets his revenge by getting involved with his betrayer’s girlfriend: “Wait, was it hate? Was it fate?/‘Cause your Miss understood it was not a mistake.”

Honestly, no one looks good in this song, but really, that’s not the point. What’s more important is the cycle of payback, and how it just tends to make everything worse with each go-round. Everyone hurts each other in the song, until all that’s left is anger: “I got out the basement, but we came out the pavement/Traded on your brother, not someone you could hang with/ You got double faces, you don’t get the basics/Sinners sing Grace, but I ain’t that gracious.”

If there’s one lyrical quibble to be made about the song, it’s the multiple uses of the misogynistic expletive that rhymes with witch to represent both the persona’s and the betrayer’s romantic partners. It turns the women in the song into props, when a step forward would have created another layer of complexity.

It’s not a unique problem — referring to women as “my

"Snake" is a recent music video from New England hip-hop artist Jay Gudda. SUBMITTED

(expletive)” seems to have come back into the hip-hop vernacular lately — but it’s tiresome. That aside, though, this dark little song conveys a complicated storm of emotions with skill and fearlessness, and if it’s not the most comfortable of songs, that’s just a sign it’s working the way it should.

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 23

5 THINGS TO DO

St Luke Passion, Eric Clapton tribute and more ....

Richard Duckett Worcester Magazine | USA TODAY NETWORK

Through the ‘Secret Doorway’

A work of ‘Passion’

Boston area mind-reader, comedian, hypnotist and sleight-of-hand artist Peter Gross is coming to the BrickBox Theater at the JMAC through “The Secret Doorway” April 14. Actually, that’s the name of his show as he reveals thoughts, predicts what you’ll do next and acts as a human lie detector. The show takes the audience on a highly interactive, intellectual rollercoaster ride of “impossible outcomes.”

Gross has performed at the White House, The Kennedy Center, Canada’s National Theater, and on national television.

The Music at Trinity series at Trinity Lutheran Church resumes April 10 with a performance of William David Cooper’s St. Luke Passion.

Cooper’s setting of the story of the betrayal, suffering, crucifixion and death of Jesus is a 60-minute work in English for singers, strings, harp, percussion and organ. The work was commissioned and premiered last year at St. Peter’s Lutheran Church in Manhattan under the direction of Cantor Balint Karosi. Soprano Addy Sterrett, who sang the premiere performance last year, will be the featured vocalist in the performance at Trinity Lutheran Church, singing the role of Jesus. Other singers include Travis Benoit (tenor), Nicholas Tocci (baritone), Christine Petkus (soprano), and Devon Russo (bass-baritone). Mark Mummert, Cantor at Trinity Lutheran Church, will conduct the chamber ensemble which includes violinists Krista Buckland Reisner and Yulia Potvin, violists Lu Yu and Peter Sulski, cellists Joshua Rohde and Johann Soults, double bassist Andrew Arceci, and percussionist Pieter Struyk. The composer, William David Cooper, will serve as organist. Face masks are encouraged but not required. The performance will also be video livestreamed. All in attendance, whether in-person or online, are urged to make a donation of $25.

What: Peter Gross presents “The Secret Doorway: Magic + Mind Reading” When: 7:30 p.m. April 14 Where: The BrickBox Theater at the JMAC, 20B Franklin St., Worcester How much: $23.50 to $43.50. www.jmacworcester.org Soprano Addy Sterrett, who sang the premiere performance of St Luke Passion last year, will be the featured vocalist in the performance at Trinity Lutheran Church. SUBMITTED PHOTOS

What: St. Luke Passion — William David Cooper When: 4 p.m. April 10 Where: Trinity Lutheran Church, 73 Lancaster St., Worcester, and livestreamed at www.vimeo.com/trinityworcester How much: $25 donation. More information at www.trinityworc.org/music-at-trinity

Both traditional and new Classical guitarist Michael Poll and flutist Emi Ferguson present “The Court, the Palace, the Ocean, the Trees” at the Stone Church Cultural Center in Gilbertville April 10. Poll and Ferguson’s original arrangements of music from The Goldberg Variations by J.S. Bach, two Scarlotti Sonatas, Piazzola’s “History of the Tango,” and music by contemporary composers Toro Takemitsu, Elizabeth Ogonek and Gabriella Ortiz promises to please lovers of traditional and imaginative new music alike.

Mind-reader, comedian, hypnotist and sleight-of-hand artist Peter Gross.

What: “The Court, the Palace, the Ocean, the Trees” — Michael Poll and Emil Ferguson When: 2 p.m. April 10 Where: The Stone Church Cultural Center, 283 Main Street (Route 32) ,Gilbertville How much: $25. www.tickettailor.com/events/friendsofthestonechurch/644691/. A subscription to the seven-concert series of Concerts at the Stone Church 2022, including a silent film by Peter Krasinski and two free Concerts on the Lawn, is available for $100.

Continued on next page

Flutist Emi Ferguson

24 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

Mindfulness

Clapton tribute Journeyman is the only national touring tribute to British guitar great Eric Clapton.

The group was founded by Shaun Hague, who has built a great guitar résumé in his own right including being named “The Best Young Blues Guitarist” by The House of Blues. Journeyman also features Robert Monroe (keys/ vocals), Darius Peterson (drums) and Laura Lopardo (backing vocals). Together, they provide a performance of all aspects of Clapton’s career with hits such as “Layla,” “Tears In Heaven,” “I Shot The Sheriff,” “Change The World” and many others.

What: Journeyman: A Tribute to Eric Clapton When: 7:30 p.m. April 14 (doors open for dinner and seating at 5:30 p.m.)

Where: Bull Run Restaurant, 215 Great Road, Shirley How much: $35. www.bullrunrestaurant.com

Continued from Page 14

Body Scan: I start by laying down on my back or sitting in a chair with my feet fl at on the ground. Beginning at my toes, I squeeze every muscle in my body from bottom to top until I am as frozen as a stone sculpture. With each breath, I imagine the oxygen fl owing into my

True self Continued from Page 14

Journeyman is set to perform at Bull Run Restaurant. PROMOTIONAL PHOTO

Protest and Satire “Sometimes humor is the most effective way to point out absurdities, or to confront abuse of power,” said poster collector Stephen Lewis. His exhibition “Bushwhackers and Other Misleaders” this month at the Pearle L. Crawford Memorial Library in Dudley consists of posters challenging the policies and actions of those who are now or once were in One of the political posters on display at the power worldwide. Among Pearle L. Crawford Memorial Library in Dudley. those getting the satirical SUBMITTED treatment are George W. Bush, Ronald Reagan, Richard Nixon, F.W. De Klerk (former president of South Africa), father and daughter LePens of the Nationalist Party of France, and Margaret Thatcher, former British Prime Minister. Lewis is a retired union leader who has been collecting posters for the past 20 years and exhibiting in many venues around Massachusetts.

What: “Bushwhackers and Other Misleaders” — An international poster exhibit from the collection of Stephen Lewis When/Where: Through April 27. Pearle L. Crawford Memorial Library, 40 Schofield Ave. Dudley. Open Monday & Thursday 10 a.m. to 8:00 p.m.; Tuesday, Wednesday & Friday 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. For information, call (508) 949-8021

survival is a dynamic principle people should consider this next time they try to force ill will against somebody for profi t or otherwise. The true self will fi ght back! Love, however is not a business. A business must capitalize to succeed. Love does not take advantage nor should it. A person who has achieved true self has high morals, ethical values

Kane Continued from Page 17

I describe it to him, because I’m not a very musically technical guy, he also played some guitar on some of the tracks, as well. Helen has such an amazing voice, and if I hadn’t been on such a time crunch, I would’ve put her on the record more, but she does backing vocals on ‘Tear This World Apart’ and ‘Lost My Mind,’ and she was just unbelievable. I just really lucked out that I have such talented friends.”

From the musicians to the spirit of the city that organically exudes through the songs, every part of the record is graced with the touch of Worcester in one way or another, and that was by no means an accident on Kane’s part.

“Just as I feel this is a hopeful record, I feel like Worcester is a hopeful city.

I’ve always felt that, and having lived closer to Boston for a few years in the past, I never felt like I fi t in there,” says Kane. “I’m glad I’m back out in this direction again, and if I can say one thing

body and relaxing the tension, again moving from bottom to top until all of my muscles are released.

I still desperately want a fudge popsicle, but the mindfulness exercises defi nitely helped me to ease my troubles and regain my focus. If you have other mindful moments to recommend, fi nd me on Instagram at @sarah_connell. I expect I’ll be avoiding the internet for a few days, but I look forward to your tips upon my return.

and a capacity to love. Love is feeling good. The true self desires pleasure over pain in any form. Feeling good directly improves the chances of survival and fi nding suitable relationships for peaceful coexistence. Togetherness is one of the reasons why good time friends and lovers come around. Your true self is the reason they stay.

Jason Ranieri is a graduate of Worcester State University. He is the author of the poetry collection, “The Good Old World,” and a work of political satire, “Polka Dots and Politics.”

about Worcester, not only is it a hopeful city, but it’s also super underrated when it comes to the arts and music, and it sort of gets brushed off due to Boston being such a powerhouse of a city.”

There are a lot of aspects at play with this record that make it so special for Kane and the gang, from watching it take its truest form and the support they’ve received from fans, to the fact that it’s the fi rst full-length vinyl record any of them have made. They’re humbly blown away by what they’ve made together, and at the end of the day, Kane is just hoping that he and his crew can help listeners tear their own worlds apart in their own ways, while keeping the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll alive and well in the process.

“Honestly, I just want people to know that rock ‘n’ roll music is still out there. I know some of them like to say rock music is dead, but it’s still out there, and it’s not just what you hear on the radio. So, I hope that when people listen to this, it points them in the direction of other local bands or smaller indie bands. I would really like that to happen.”

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 25

ADOPTION OPTION

JATK Continued from Page 11

ally writing the lyrics in my bed when I was sick. I wrote JB (’Japanese Butterfl y’) much later, when I was feeling freer. They’re just forever linked as these during and after the storm songs.”

Jatkola says there are a few songs that haven’t been released as singles that are his favorites.

“There’s one song I was able to do with a mini orchestra. We had two people playing the cello and violin, a trumpet player and a euphonium player. That song, I didn’t think I could do it because I’ve just never gone there in terms of production, but it came out great and I’m really excited.”

He was also happy about the artwork — a broken donut theme. Each single that has been released has been a diff erent donut but damaged in some way, and they come together for the main album cover, which is kind of a mess of broken and damaged donuts. “I felt like it was a good symbol, you take something that people love and it elicits some kind of reaction so it’s kind of a perfect symbol for the album in some ways.

All of this, again, was remote collaboration. A friend did the photography for the cover and he recounted that it was funny talking about donuts in that way.

Collaboration on the album was a lot of fun and an effi cient way to work for him during recovery, he said.

In life, he likes to be spinning many plates in the air and that spilled over into his music life.

“It was nice to hand over a song to a drummer and they could just take it for a couple of weeks and work on it and I could hop onto another project about guitars or keyboard. I could constantly work on things and wait for each individual thing to be done.”

The album itself is his commentary on how we live in this world of heady speed with social media and hyper fast communication, but that negativity spreads equally fast. He says it would be nice to have positivity spread in the same way, but quietly and organically. “I hope people understand that from listening to the songs.”

As to what’s next, he says it feels very surreal, exciting and strange.

“I’ve been holding on to this for so long so it’s kind of scary, but I’m ready to share it with other people and hope that they can take something from it for themselves.”

Luna is available for adoption through WARL WARL

Meet Luna Meet Luna, “The Love Bug.” That is what Luna’s foster mom says about this lovely, sweet girl. At 8 years old, Luna came to the shelter in need of a diet and exercise routine. With the help of staff and volunteers, Luna has received lots of love, exercise and playtime. This girl is now fi t and trim and ready to go home. Luna is currently with a foster family, but still longs for a home of her own. Sometimes being kenneled can confuse a house-trained dog. Luna’s foster mom is working on house-training her to get her ready for her adoptive home. Luna is looking for a permanent home without other animals. She would love to have a fenced yard, but as long as you enjoy daily walks, a fenced yard is not a requirement. Email the shelter at dogs@worcesterarl.org to fi nd out how to set up an appointment to visit this lovely lady!

Adoption Option is a partnership with the Worcester Animal Rescue League highlighting their adoptable pets. Check this space often to meet all of the great pets at WARL in need of homes. WARL is open seven days a week, noon-4 p.m., 139 Holden St. Check them out online at Worcesterarl.org, or call at (508) 853-0030.

COVID-19 Protocols: The Worcester Animal Rescue League remains closed to walk-in visits with the animals and appointments must be made, in advance, to meet with any of the animals. Masks are required. Visit https://worcesterarl.org/ for more information.

Shea Continued from Page 11

nography. The latter — far more explicit than “The Sanders Collection” — didn’t attach to her author profi le, although it did come up in search results. It is unclear whether the latter collections are from the same author as “The Sanders Collection.”

Still, Shea believes — at least in the most recent case — that she’s been intentionally targeted. Not because of anything personal, but because she says this is the sort of thing that happens to authors who publish a large number of titles as ebooks. Someone gloms onto their name, in order to accelerate sales.

“Brand new books come up on top of search results,” she explains. I know other authors who have had this happen to them, and it seems to be a common theme … The porn titles are defi nitely under a pen name, and to deliberately choose an author’s name over a (unique) pen name, it’s a little iff y.”

If Shea is correct, it would seem, on its face, a sort of identity theft, and while it can’t be proven that’s what happened here, it’s something Shea has faced with Amazon before: Not just with her name, but with an entire book.

Earlier this year, Shea says someone copied the entire contents of her book, “Chakras in Yoga Meditation and Stress Relief,” and reuploaded it to Amazon under the name “Lisa Shea.” The new version of “Chakras” overtook the original version, and apparently sold at least a few copies. Shea fi rst reported the book on Jan. 24, and it was taken down on March 8. Shea has received no restitution for the plagiarism and identity

theft.

“I have no idea who the thief is,” says Shea. “Amazon’s automated systems are super-broken. Amazon was making money off the thief ’s copy that they happily kept … This stuff happens all the time.”

A representative from Amazon was unprepared to immediately answer questions.

Still, for all the headaches, Shea seems to be a true believer in ebook publishing, and doesn’t want her story to dissuade other people from publishing in that manner.

“I want people to not be afraid to publish,” she says, adding that she believes her travails are, on the whole, “a fairly rare thing. It seems to be happening to authors who have enough books to be worth the hassle.

It shouldn’t stop people from publishing what they want to publish, to get their voice out there.”

This Week’s Answer

0408

26 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

J O N E S I N’

Enjoy Fun By The Numbers puzzles? Then you’ll love sudoku. This mind-bending puzzle will have you hooked from the moment you square off, so sharpen your pencil and put your sudoku savvy to the test! Here’s How It Works: Sudoku puzzles are formatted as a 9x9 grid, broken down into nine 3x3 boxes. To solve sudoku, the numbers 1 through 9 must fill each row, column and box. Each number can appear only once in each row, column and box. You can figure out the order in which the numbers will appear by using the numeric clues already provided in the boxes. The more numbers you name, the easier it gets to solve the puzzle!

If you would like to place your ad in our classifieds please call

800-695-1924 or email classifieds@telegram.com

Across 1. Letter before lambda 6. Tale spinner 10. Ear warmer 14. Snacks in sleeves 15. Award now presented by the American Theatre Wing (previously the Village Voice) 16. Huron’s neighbor 17. Classical symphony also called “Eroica” 20. Wild West Wyatt 21. Showtime show that returned with “New Blood” 22. Twelvesome in a Crash Test Dummies title 23. “The Last King of Scotland” name 25. Go on the radio 27. Outdoor alternative to D&D with actual props 36. Minecraft substance 37. Power 38. Madagascar primate 39. Have an itch for 41. DMV worker in “Zootopia” 43. Response when you identify with something that happened to you 44. Provide with gear 46. Went over like ___ balloon 48. Pester 49. Marathoner’s specialty 52. Jacques Plante’s jersey number (retired by the Montreal Canadiens) 53. Official language in Vientiane 54. Garment with hooks 57. Response when you identify with something that maybe happened to you?

61. Outscore 65. Modernist sculptor who became a Dame in 1965 68. Leave voluntarily 69. Hair colorist 70. “Absolutely Fabulous” mother 71. KFC side 72. Princess who’s Dorothy Gale’s best friend, in the book series 73. Up to this point Down 1. Japanese seaport famous for beef 2. Geometry class calculation

“Room Dividers”--some partitioned phrases.

by Matt Jones

3. Member of the jury pool 4. Crusty frozen food entree 5. Barty with a March 2022 tennis retirement announcement, to fans 6. Valentine’s Day theme 7. Alpine wild goat 8. “___ No Sunshine” 9. Put back in a baggie 10. “It’s just OK” 11. Panic! At The Disco singer Brendon 12. Mattress option 13. Government agents, for short 18. Execrable 19. Experimental period 24. 76ers legend, familiarly 26. Dark deli breads 27. Emulated a cow 28. Mosul resident 29. “King Richard” character 30. Pale purple color 31. School, on the Seine 32. Director Bogdanovich 33. Singer Coppola 34. “Cars” and “Are ‘Friends’ Electric?” singer Gary 35. Duane Allman’s brother 40. Second-oldest of the Jackson 5 42. Use a pulley 45. Bamboo-munching beast 47. Type of test no longer done on “Maury” (once the series ends in 2022)

50. ___-well 51. Z-lister 54. Grilling events, briefly 55. Gomez Addams portrayer Julia 56. Operatic highlight 58. Blue Ivy Carter’s dad 59. “Uh, I’m right here ...”

60. Designer Wang 62. Brockovich who inspired a movie 63. ___ point (never) 64. Leave out of the freezer 66. Texting shorthand that some end with “dubs” 67. Haunted house decoration

Last week's solution

©2022 Matt Jones (jonesincrosswords@gmail.com) Reference puzzle #1087

WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | 27

LAST CALL

Jessica Hopkins, the face of Faces of Worcester Veer Mudambi Worcester Magazine USA TODAY NETWORK

Thinking of who you are as a professional and how to best fi nd clients to build your business can lead you down a new path, as Jessica Hopkins found out.

As a longtime foster parent, she is passionate about the idea of service to the community. So as a real estate agent, she signed on to the idea of celebrating individuals in Worcester with TheFacesOf.com, a website that showcases a community. Hopkins sat down with Last Call to discuss how Faces of Worcester at https://thefacesofworcester.com came about, and her goals.

How did Faces Of Worcester get started?

Faces Of Worcester is not just about the business owners and notables but the crossing guards, the volunteers — everyone who pours their lives into making our community better.

I came across this book called “The Go-Giver” and it talked about the laws of success and two of them resonated with me — the laws of value and the law of receptivity. The fi rst is that true worth is determined in what you give in value (more) than what you give in payment, and the law of receptivity is to be open to receiving.

When you put out what you’re looking for, somehow what’s meant to be will fi nd its way to you. I’ve always had a special place in my heart for the community and the people who live here.

One of the things they teach you in real estate is to fi nd your niche — fi rst-time home buyers or investors or the luxury market.

None of those ever felt right to me and it’s more about the person and not to classify them by their real estate transaction. Buying and selling a home are some of the biggest decisions you will make — not just fi nancial but life decisions. I wanted to honor that piece of the puzzle and highlight that in connecting with clients as people. Connecting a community and the life decision that goes into buying a home.

Are you the fi rst to kickstart Faces of Worcester?

Yes — there’s only one other in New

Jessica Hopkins is the instigator of Faces of Worcester. COURTESY JENNIFER HOPKINS

England and I believe it’s in Maine. I really started this only at the beginning of this year and we’ve highlighted 30 people so far. It’s so heartwarming to read the stories about our community members and what I love about the interview. It’s not just about their career

and how they contribute but who they are as a person. I chose the questions from a larger selection of questions from the company.

How have you gone about reaching out to people?

I started with some of my friends

who I felt would be interesting to share and from there it’s just grown. Part of the process is you nominate someone else — you can highlight someone you think that should be celebrated — it’s great to see how it’s growing.

Why hasn’t it expanded to Massachusetts or the rest of New England?

I’m not sure why. It started in Hall County, Florida, with a real estate agent.

We all have to build our careers and our work and it’s important that my work is connected to something bigger.

I connect with someone and send them over to the interview page and they fi ll it out and submit a picture for the website. We’ll share it on social media, and tag anything that’s taggable within our community and get some extra exposure for that person.

Is there a goal or endgame?

I don’t have any quantitative number to reach but I foresee this going on for years and highlighting as many people as we can. I would love to get to in-person interviews and host events — just share our lives and connect.

Really want to stress that this is more than just business owners — it’s math teachers or construction workers or just about anyone in the community. I think it’s the way we all need to model how we go about our lives — this connecting and giving to each other in a meaningful way — we need each other. I think it’s a model for life, not just real estate agents.

How did you make it your own?

I’ve done a lot of work in foster care since I used to be a foster parent and have fostered six children. Community in foster care is something I hold very dear to my heart — our children are our future. Everyone contributes diff erently.

They say that when you’re raising children it takes a village — whether or not they’re biological or a foster child.

Especially in this circumstance because they’ve been dealt a diffi cult hand to begin with. It’s a misunderstood world, these kids have been through a really rough time. When you’re supporting a child who has gone through something traumatic, you need even more support, you need a bigger village. That’s really where the community part resonates with me — my way of giving back is to celebrate each person.

28 | APRIL 8 - 14, 2022 | WORCESTERMAGAZINE.COM

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