THE BERKSHIRES, MA.- In the Berkshires' largest-ever event of its kind, cultural, arts and historical venues countywide will present "American Traditions," an array of programming based on America's rich and varied heritage. Coordinated with the help of the Berkshire Visitors Bureau, the spring and summer 2005 festival features performances, dance, artwork and exhibitions highlighting a vast range of historical and contemporary aspects of America.

Scheduled American Traditions events include performances by Tony Award winning tap dancer Savion Glover at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival; the hundredth anniversary celebration of Edith Wharton's classic American novel, The House of Mirth, at Wharton's estate; and a display of "The Art of the New Yorker" at the Norman Rockwell Museum, honoring the 80th anniversary of the iconic American magazine. Other events in the wide ranging festival include a display of American masterpiece quilts from the 19th and 20th centuries at the Williams College Museum of Art; "The Stars and Stripes: Fabric of the American Spirit," a display of historical parade flags at Hancock Shaker Village; and an ongoing performance art piece featuring two construction cranes knitting an American flag at MASS MoCA.

Additional organizations centering their exhibitions and performances around the American Traditions theme include the Clark Art Institute, Berkshire Museum, Tanglewood, Shakespeare & Company, Berkshire Theatre Festival and Barrington Stage Company. Participants are still being added to this one time event.