Calendar of Events

Join us for a bountiful country supper at the historic Richland Mill near Blaine in the rolling hills of Grainger County. On June 13, 1796, William Stone was given permission by the first Grainger County Meeting to build a mill on Richland Creek. Occupied by both Confederate and Union forces during the Civil War, the mill remained in the Stone family until 1904. Later owners built the Miller's Cottage for a residence, and the mill continued operation until 1958. Marvin and Janie House purchased the mill in 1996 and faithfully restored it, with additions made to serve as their unique residence.

ONLY A FEW TICKETS LEFT! Please call 865-523-8008 (Mon - Fri, 10a - 4p) to place your order.

Preservation Network’s August session features Robert McGinnis, who has researched East Tennessee cemeteries for more than three decades. Robert will discuss how he became interested in cemetery research, his procedure for cataloguing the information, and important recent efforts led by the East Tennessee Preservation Alliance’s Cemetery Task Force. Robert McGinnis is unofficially known as the undisputed Knox County Cemetery Historian. He has transcribed more than 630,000 graves in Knox County, plus thousands of others in adjacent counties. Other researchers have transcribed cemetery graves, but no effort has been as thorough as Robert’s, whose entries often include marriage, will, obituary, and deed information. Robert has published several volumes of books with titles such as “Asleep in Jesus” and “Gone But Not Forgotten”, with data from graves in hundreds of cemeteries.

At the Time Warp Tea Room, 1209 N. Central, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: 865-523-8008, www.knoxheritage.org

Auditions are open to area dancers 10 and up who take ballet class at least 2 times per week. There is a $10.00 audition fee. Bring pointe shoes if proficient en pointe. Please arrive 15 min. before scheduled time to register.
11:00 am - 10 & 11 year olds
12:15 pm - 12 & 13 year olds
1:30 - 3:00 - 14 & up

Auditions are held at Van Metre School of Dance, 215 W. Broadway, Maryville. For more information call 865-982-8463; www.appalachianballet.com

(Singles only) Join Ijams naturalist Sabrina DeVault for a singles nature walk at Seven Islands Wildlife Refuge off I-40 in East Knox County. Great views of the French Broad River. Wear appropriate shoes, bring a snack and some water. Be prepared to enjoy the camaraderie. Meet at Seven Islands. Free to Ijams members, $5 for non-members.

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Grounds and trails open during daylight hours. Visitor Center: Monday: by appointment only for tour groups and school trips; Tuesday-Saturday: 9AM-5PM; Sunday: 1-5PM (March 1 - November 30). Information: 865-577-4717, www.ijams.org

Bring your family to Ijams and taste some of our edible landscape. It’s a chance to learn the basics of growingthings you can harvest at home. We’ll talk about container gardens, plant choices and easy techniques. We’ll visit the garden, get down and dirty, wash our hands and fix some lunch. To register for camps contact Jennifer Roder: 577-4717, ext. 130 or jroder@ijams.org

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Grounds and trails open during daylight hours. Visitor Center: Monday: by appointment only for tour groups and school trips; Tuesday-Saturday: 9AM-5PM; Sunday: 1-5PM (March 1 - November 30). Information: 865-577-4717, www.ijams.org

The Athens Area Council for the Arts is pleased to announce a musical fundraiser at The Arts Center in Athens. All proceeds will be used to help retire the debt on The Arts Center building. The Tim Hughes Quartet has been a featured group at various Arts Center fund raisers in the past, including the annual Arts Gala held in March and Jazzy Little Christmas. The Tim Hughes Quartet appeared at Riverbend 2010 in Chattanooga where they opened for jazz trumpeter, Arturo Sandoval. The quartet features both Tom Williams and Mark Merritt on keyboard, Robert Grier on bass, David Payne on drums, Jimmy Miller on tenor and soprano sax, and Tim Hughes on trumpet. Guest vocalists will also be featured with the group. The “friends” of the Tim Hughes Quartet will be two additional jazz groups, the Dexter Bell Trio and the Corduroy Jazz Trio. The Dexter Bell Trio consists of Dexter Bell on bass, Marcus “Butch” Dotson on keyboard, and Yashan Long on drums, with vocalist Nikki Ellis. The Corduroy Jazz Trio personnel are Andrew LaPrise on keyboard, Joshua Howard on bass, and Bowman Townsend on drums. Additionally, Vocalist Kelle Jolly and saxophonist Will Boyd will be participating in this year’s event.

Hors d’oeuvres and cash bar will be available. Tickets are $15 per person and may be purchased online, at The Arts Center, 320 North White Street, or by phone at 423-745-8781; www.athensartscouncil.org

Howa and Armaa Johnson owners and operators of the new Liberian food cafe “Palavah Hut” located on 1931 Magnolia Ave., in Knoxville, TN. are delighted to welcome you and present this unique event! Learn about Liberian culture and cuisine, Head Wrapping, Face Painting, Sample Liberian dishes, (including vegetarian friendly foods), Cultural Paintings; Crafts; Books, etc. Musical Performances featuring: Kelly Jolley; other local and international artists & MORE! “The Johnsons are members of the Gola Tribe of Liberia and have lived and worked in the US since childhood. This young couple not only bring great ethnic food to the city they also bring the freshness of their youth and positive and welcoming attitudes AND they are both accomplished artists! Howa is a very natural and well developed visual artist and Armaa is a nationally renowned freelance filmmaker and specialist in documentaries.
For more information please call: (865) -237-0014 or visit us at: FacebooK/Palavah.Hut

Details TBA

Located at 800 Tyson Street, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: 865-599-5284, www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com, info@childrenstheatreknoxville.com.

Booder Barnes is the featured artist this month at Union Avenue Books. There will be a reception on Friday, August 5, at the bookstore 5-9pm. His work will be on display through the end of the month.

517 Union Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37902. 865-951-2180

Bliss Home will feature Ryan Blair for August’s First Friday. A reception will be held at Bliss Home, 29 Market Square, from 6 to 9 p.m. on Friday, August 5. Blair not only devotes his time to painting on his own, but also teaching. “When not in the studio, he teaches art full time to 650 local elementary students.” His inspiration comes from the imagery of Tennessee. Living in the foothills of East Tennessee provides some of the best shapes and colors to mirror in his work. He pulls from adventures such as exploring the local mountain sides, streams or paddling his canoe.

24 Market Square, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: anne@shopinbliss.com, 865-216-1237, www.shopinbliss.com, www.ryanblairart.com

First Friday, August 5, 6:00-9:00 PM featuring local artist, Kelle Jolly
Images will be available for viewing all month.

Through social media, I invited friends to share stories of being "uprooted". These images and stories were full of emotions, like hurt and despair. But feelings of relief and gratefulness were also clear. I listened to these stories and allowed my mind to wrap itself around the feeling. And soon, the images grew from hands into shapes and forms of mesh and fabric. I decided to use wire mesh and plastic mesh because the loose ends resemble the wild roots of uprooted trees. Semi-transparent, wire mesh is the perfect canvas for weaving images. It gave me the option of adding to the surface by painting directly on it or adding materials by hand-sewing through it. A music composition was created with the stories that were left by voice mail. The recordings of the stories encourage the viewer to continually explore the feeling of being uprooted.

Kelle Jolly is an artist, actress, designer, educator and musician. She has created all of her life. "My earliest memories are of cutting up my baby clothes, to make doll clothes.", she says. Kelle enjoys using her hands to manipulate fabric, especially. In 2011, she was awarded the EMERGING ARTIST AWARD by the Dogwood Arts Festival for her line of wearable art "SUSHI DRESSES". Finding ways to combine her talents of designing, sewing and performing keep her motivated. Kelle says, "I want my memories to documented through the art I create."

URBhana, 115 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-951-5454, www.urbhana.com

By Williams, Sears and Howard - Directed by Vania Smrkovski
The much anticipated third installment in the Tuna trilogy takes the audience through another satirical ride into the hearts and minds of the polyester-clad citizens of Texas' third smallest town. Along with Tuna's perennial favorites, some new Tuna denizens burst into the 4th of July Tuna High School Class Reunion. This sets the stage for a show full of fireworks and fun from the land where the Lion's Club is too liberal and Patsy Cline never dies.It's been several years since we left Bertha and Arles dancing at the end of A Tuna Christmas ... Did the romance blossom? Has Didi Snavley received any "cosmic" communications from R.R.'s UFO? Did Stanley make his fortune in the Albuquerque taxidermy business? These and other burning questions will be asked and answered in the side-splitting spoof of life in rural America.

Theatre Knoxville Downtown, 319 N. Gay St, Knoxville, TN 37917. Performances are Thursday, Friday, and Saturday at 8:00 PM and Sunday at 3:00 PM. Tickets are $10 plus fees for Thursday & Sunday; $15 plus fees for Friday & Saturday. For information: 865-544-1999, www.theatreknoxville.com. For tickets: 865-523-7521, www.KnoxTIX.com