Calendar of Events

March 23 will mark the opening night of another world premiere by regional playwright Lisa Soland. This time she also sits in the director’s chair, directing Pellissippi State students alongside other local actors in her new series of one-acts called The Ladder Plays, in which the playwright explores the ups and downs of being human.

Lisa Soland’s world premiere of The Ladder Plays is a collection of short comedies and dramas that all take place on or around ladders. Included are stories of eloping, a suicide off the letter “H” in the Hollywood sign, and even a one-act called “Spatial Disorientation” – about the last moments in the lives of John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn, and her sister Lauren as they wait to take off in inclement weather to fly to Martha’s Vineyard.

The Ladder Plays opens at the Clayton Performing Arts Center at Hardin Valley on the campus of Pellissippi State College, March 23 and plays Friday and Saturdays at 8 pm through March 31, with a Sunday performance on April 1 at 2 pm. Call 865-694-6684 for more information or visit the website at www.pstcc.edu/theatre/news. Tickets are available at the Pellissippi State Theatre Box office, in the lobby of the Clayton Performing Arts Center.

Join Alice's madcap adventures in Wonderland as she chases the White Rabbit, races the Dodo Bird, gets tied up with the Tweedles, raps with a bubble-blowing Caterpillar, and beats the Queen of Hearts at her own game! Fun is plentiful, including three Cheshire Cats and dozens of other wonderfully wacky characters.

Disney's ALICE IN WONDERLAND JR. is a fast-paced stage adaptation featuring updated dialogue and new arrangements of such classic Disney songs as "I'm Late," "The Un-birthday Song" and "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah."

Tickets are $12 for general admission seating. $8 for kids age 12 and under. The show is presented in the 250-seat Harold and Jean Lambert Recital Hall. Primary Players is a non-profit kids theatre company established in 2005. Alice In Wonderland Jr. is Directed by John Cherry. Suitable for ALL ages. This production features 40 children ages 8 - 18.
• Fri, March 23, 2012 at 7:00pm
• Sat, March 24, 2012 at 3:00pm
• Sat, March 24, 2012 at 7:00pm

Clayton Center for the Arts: 502 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804. Information: 865-981-8590, www.ClaytonArtsCenter.com

Join the Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum staff for a walk through the KBGA grounds paying particular attention to tasks that could be done to your trees this time of year. Identification and common pests and problems will also be discussed. We will cover over a mile of ground and venture off the beaten path so dress appropriately. The walk will meet at the kiosk next to the main parking area. Arboretum walks are free but donations are always welcome. Call Dana @ 865-862-8717 with questions.

Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum, 2743 Wimpole Ave, Knoxville, TN 37914. Hours: Gardens open daily from dawn to dusk. Information: 865-862-8717, www.knoxgarden.org

March Arboretum Walk: Spring Maintenance
Friday, March 23rd at 1:00pm

Join the Knoxville Botanical Garden and Arboretum staff for a walk through the KBGA grounds paying particular attention to tasks that could be done to your trees this time of year. Identification of common pests and problems will also be discussed. We will cover over a mile of ground and venture off the beaten path so dress appropriately. The walk will meet at the kiosk next to the main parking area. Arboretum walks are free but donations are always welcome. These events are also held rain or shine, so pack your rain boots just in case! Call Dana @ 865-862-8717 with questions.

Michael Martin Productions presents a Night Full of Blues on Friday, March 23rd from the Square Room.

Featuring:
Mack Arnold & A Plate Full O Blues
Blond Blues

Proceeds benefit the Rescue Missions of Knoxville and Asheville. Tickets and more information are online at www.thesquareroom.com.

Open Monday - Saturday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738. Information: 865-436-5860, www.arrowmont.org

This musical follows the woodland adventures of two amphibious friends, a worrywart toad and a perky frog, with their assorted colorful hopping, crawling and flying companions, over the course of a year. This is a great show for kids. RSCC Theatre, Harriman, General Admission $10, Students $7.

March 22-24, 29-31 at 7 pm
www.roanestate.edu/theatre

Matinee performance March 25 & April 1 at 2 pm

Thursday 3/22
Toy Soldiers, Justin Stens and the Get Real Gang

Friday 3/23
Drunken Prayer

Saturday 3/24
Jack of Hearts, Amy Hart

Monday 3/26
Dave Gleason

Tuesday 3/27
Ganasita

Wednesday 3/28
Mary Gauthier, Bart and the End Times, Spasm Band

Thursday 3/29
Kelley McRae, Laura Thurston

Friday 3/30
Pontiac BlueNow You See Them

Saturday 3/31
Sandy Ray and the Cold Shoulders

In March former KSO Assistant Conductor Daniel Meyer will return to Knoxville to conduct the orchestra. The concert will open with Kernis’ Musica Celestis. Mary Persin will join the orchestra to perform Handel’s Viola Concerto in B minor. The concert will conclude with Holst’s The Planets with the women of the Knoxville Chamber Chorale.

Performed at the Historic Tennessee Theatre, 604 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. For information and tickets: 865-291-3310, www.knoxvillesymphony.com

Oak Ridge Art Center, 201 Badger Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Tuesday-Friday, 9AM-5PM; Saturday-Monday, 1-4PM. Information: 865-482-1441, www.oakridgeartcenter.org

The Knoxville Museum of Art presents Several Silences March 16-May 20, 2012.
Several Silences presents installations, videos, sculptures, and drawings by a diverse selection of contemporary artists from around the world who approach the theme of silence in distinctly individual ways. This group exhibition explores various kinds of silence—meditative, ambient, memorial, etc.—and calls attention to the rarity of the absence of sound in our growing “culture of distraction.”

There will be an opening reception Thursday, March 15 from 5:30-7:30pm at the KMA. Free and open to the public. Cash bar.

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World's Fair Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37916. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10AM-5PM; Sunday, 1-5PM. Information: 865-525-6101,

A Creative Continuum - Arrowmont Artists-in-Residence Anniversary Exhibition
Reception: Thursday, May 17, 2012
Open Monday - Saturday 8:30 am to 5:00 pm

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738. Information: 865-436-5860, www.arrowmont.org