Seen enough Saw sequels? For horror fans, this Halloween weekend offers some alternatives to the standard big-screen fear-mongering. On Thursday, the Firehouse Center For the Visual Arts kicks off a weekly series of David Cronenberg screenings with Videodrome, the 1983 conceptual chiller that gave cinema the indelible image of James Woods popping a VHS tape into his abdomen ... and playing it.... Read more

Committing to another person — for life — can be pretty scary. But Brennan Guerriere and Michelle Peters figure they’ve got the fright stuff. And that’s not a typo: The couple are getting married this Saturday dressed as Frankenstein and, of course, the Bride of Frankenstein. Peters’ father will walk her down the aisle in the guise of Dr. Frankenstein. The other family members are keeping their outfits a secret until the big day.... Read more

Patrick Kane was surprised when he got a call from the New England chapter of the American Institute of Architects saying he had won one of the association’s annual awards. After all, he has a solo practice in tiny Hardwick, Vt., and was up against stiff competition from big firms in Boston and Connecticut.... Read more

Charlotte-based documentary filmmaker Fritz Mitchell says in the intro to his latest work, “Like fishermen, gamblers are known for stretching the truth.” That’s a provocative statement, especially considering that the film’s subject matter — and narrator of sorts — is the late gambling icon Jimmy “the Greek” Snyder.... Read more

A bold and affecting show at the Vermont Folklife Center pairs 35-year-old photos of African American prisoners in New York with contemporary audio narratives by young Vermonters returning to society after serving time.... Read more

A few years ago, you wouldn’t have gone to the Vermont International Film Festival expecting to see Troll 2, a hilariously inept “horror” film from 1990, and a documentary exploring its status as the Best Worst Movie. Or The House of the Devil, a campy-looking satanic scarefest.... Read more

Burlington metal sculptor Kat Clear has another oversized work to add to her growing list of credits (the last was a 40-foot quilt for Fletcher Allen Health Care). This one’s a lobster, dubbed Libby the Langosta — the Spanish word for the critter — that’s mounted on the side of the aptly named Langosta Lounge in Asbury Park, N.J.... Read more

Derby residents knew that Michael Dunn was a wealthy and generous art lover, but they were still shocked to learn recently that he had donated at least $10.5 million to the Museum of Modern Art in Manhattan. MOMA was taken by surprise as well, acknowledges “delighted” director Glenn Lowry, who says it “could not have come at a better time.” Dunn’s was the largest unexpected gift ever received by the 80-year-old museum, which is closely associated with the Rockefeller family.... Read more

Toward the end of his relatively short life, Vermonter John M. Bissell was largely homebound due to illness. To pass the hours, he watched countless movies at his Hyde Park home. The films proved therapeutic, and Bissell developed a deep respect for the art form that transported him from his suffering.... Read more

Sometimes an innovative project starts with Hey, I have a crazy idea... Using an email with that opening line, Northern Stage artistic director Brooke Ciardelli got Emmy Award-winning music editor Roy Prendergast to compose an original score for her theater company’s production of Hamlet, which opens this week in White River Junction.... Read more