Calendar of Events

Mystery and Mayhem Dinner Theater is teaming up with Volunteer Princess Cruises to present a memorable dining experience filled with mystery, deception and a delicious meal.
“Murder at the Café Noir” is an interactive murder mystery that will be performed while guests enjoy a three-course plated dinner and cruise the still waters of the Tennessee River. The Knoxville skyline creates the perfect scene for this show that is sure to keep the audience guessing.
This unforgettable evening will take place every Thursday night in April and May, beginning on April 4, 2013. The yacht departs from Volunteer Landing Marina at 7:00 pm. For only $59.95 per person, guests not only receive a fantastic meal on a two hour cruise, but they also experience a chilling show in a fun atmosphere that cannot be beat.
Reservations must be made in advance for the cruises and can be made by calling the yacht’s office at (865) 541-4556 or online at www.volunteerprincess.com.

April 4 to April 27, the CACE Galleries at the Shanks Center for the Arts will exhibit the work of Fairfield Glade resident, John Simms, who is recognized by the Portrait Society of America and the international Stroke of Genius as a painter of heirloom portraits. Simms’ paintings in acrylic, charcoal, oil, and watercolor range from still life compositions to portraits that depict the likeness and persona of his subject. Other creations by Simms represent unrecorded historical facts and portray positive values shared by all cultures.

The opening reception with refreshments is First Thursday, April 4 from 5 to 7 PM in the Warehouse Gallery located at 140 North Main Street in Crossville near the historic Depot and Taylor Hotel. During April, the Shanks Center is open Wednesday – Saturday from 10 AM to 4 PM. Parking is available behind the building at Taylor and Thurman Avenues.

The perfect “gals night out” play by the Emmy and Oscar winning creator of True Blood, Six Feet Under and American Beauty. The nosy, pot-smoking sister. The “ugly” middle school sidekick. The religious cousin. The lesbian future sister-in-law. The friend with the bad reputation. Five reluctant bridesmaids hide out in an upstairs bedroom, trying to avoid the over-the-top reception taking place in the backyard of a Knoxville, Tennessee estate. As the day goes on, these very different women realize they have more in common than they think!

Clarence Brown Theatre / Carousel Theatre, 1714 Andy Holt Ave on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. For information: 865-974-5161, www.clarencebrowntheatre.com. For tickets: 865-974-5161, 865-656-4444, www.knoxvilletickets.com

The Department of Fine Arts at Tennessee Wesleyan College and the Athens Community Theater announce their joint production of A Midsummer Night’s Dream by William Shakespeare on April 4-13, 2013 in the Sue E. Trotter Theater at The Arts Center in Athens, Tennessee.

Shakespeare set his play long ago in Athens, Greece. This town & gown production also takes place long ago – in Athens, Tennessee! The story unfolds in 1822, the year of Athens’ founding. The female lovers, their families, and their leader, Theseus, are the Cherokee who lived in this area for generations. The male lovers wooing the women are Mountain men who have come down from the hills. They have new neighbors, the Scotch-Irish American settlers who have come seeking new lands and a new life. The music of Felix Mendelssohn is featured throughout the production.

The play is directed by Dr. Eric Love, Assistant Professor of Theater and Speech. Musical direction is provided by Dr. Nathan Windt, Assistant Professor of Music. The cast of A Midsummer Night’s Dream is a mixture of student and community actors.

Show dates are April 4,5,6,11,12,13 at 7:30 and April 7 at 2:00. Tickets are $12 for adults, $8 for students and are available by phone at 423-745-8781, at www.athensartscouncil.org, and at The Arts Center, 320 North White Street in Athens, TN.

Internationally-known rug weaver Jason Collingwood of Suffolk, England will be the keynote speaker at Fiber Forum, April 4-7 at Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts in Gatlinburg Tennessee, hosted by the Piedmont Fiber Guild. Classes in weaving, spinning, felting and dyeing will be offered with food and lodging at the campus. For registration, download information at sefiberforum.org. Jan Smiley, chair of the event from Piedmont Fiber Guild, notes, “We are working hard to ensure that everyone has a great time, learns a lot, makes new friends, and leaves a little tired but happy after our invigorating weekend.” Featured speaker and instructor Jason Collingwood teaches at art schools in North America, Australia, and Europe each year and his exhibitions include shows in Amsterdam, Oxford, Connecticut and Oregon. Over the last 24 years, he has been commissioned to weave over 2000 rugs for private and corporate clients working with architects and designers. At Fiber Forum 2013 Collingwood will teach “4-End Block Weaves.” Other accomplished instructors at the conference include Karen Donde, Susan Leveille, Diane Totten, Walt Turpening, Kathrin Weber, Eileen Hallman, Vicki Bennett, Kate Larson, and Jane Prater. Complete class information and instructor profiles are available at sefiberforum.org.

Southeast Fiber Forum Association has over 400 individual members with 44 fiber guilds represented. Specialty dyed yarns, rovings and batts are available to pre-order for pick-up at the Conference. Vendors with yarns, books, tools and equipment for fiber artists and enthusiasts will be open to the public during the conference. All information on classes, registration, and lodging is on the SFFA website sefiberforum.org

Tennessee Mountain Writers Annual Conference - April 4-6, 2013
"Celebrating 25 Years" is the theme of the Tennessee Mountain Writers' 25th Annual Conference, scheduled for Thursday through Saturday, April 4-6, at the DoubleTree Hotel in Oak Ridge. Conference workshop presenters will include Abigail DeWitt, fiction; Judith Geary, editing/publishing; Judy Goldman, nonfiction; Connie Jordan Green, poetry; and George Ella Lyon, writing for young people. Special sessions will be conducted by Finn Bille on writing for storytelling, Ami McConnell on Christian publishing, Bobby Nash on graphic novels, and Sandra Plant on writing groups/networking and writing for newspapers. Keynote speaker at the awards banquet, the concluding event of the conference, will be novelist and memoirist Judy Goldman. Additional information and a conference registration form can be found on the Tennessee Mountain Writers' web site, www.tmwi.org.

The Town of Farragut Arts Council presents Barbara Gray as the featured artist for March and April. Her work is featured in specially designed cases on the second floor of the rotunda in the Farragut Town Hall.

A graduate of the Memphis Academy of Arts, Gray's exhibit highlights drawings and paintings that feature people and abstract elements that are subjects in much of her work and contain expressive light and energy, distortion and sometimes humor.

The Farragut Town Hall is open Monday through Friday from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and is located at 11408 Municipal Center Drive directly across from the Farragut Branch Post Office.

Slated for April 2-19, the Annual Student Art Show at Pellissippi State Community College showcases the best works of students at all levels of art studies. The juried exhibit gives students not only the opportunity to share their works with the community but also the chance to be awarded prizes for their creations.

This year’s exhibit offers a diverse selection of art, including drawings, paintings, watercolors, sculptures, ceramics, and blacksmithing pieces, as well as 2-D and 3-D designs.

The Annual Student Art Show is free, and the community is encouraged to attend. The event is in the gallery of the Bagwell Center for Media and Art at Pellissippi State’s Hardin Valley Campus. Regular exhibit hours are Monday-Friday, 10 a.m.-6:30 p.m.

An opening reception and award ceremony, also free and open to the public, takes place in the gallery on April 2, 3-5 p.m.

For additional information about the exhibit or The Arts at Pellissippi State, call (865) 694-6400 or visit www.pstcc.edu/arts.

MFA Thesis Exhibitions

April 1 - 5: Jessica Brooke Anderson, Ashton Ludden, and Clifton Riley
Friday April 5, 5pm-8pm

April 8 - 12: Natalie Harrison, Alex McClurg, Hannah Short
Friday April 12, 6-9pm

April 15 - 19: Alicia Faciane, Brandon Donahue, Gretchen Bundy, Kelly Porter
Reception Friday April 19, 6pm

Gallery Hours: Monday through Friday 11:30AM-5:00PM, closed Saturday and Sunday.

Ewing Gallery of Art & Architecture, University of Tennessee, Knoxville
1715 Volunteer Blvd., Knoxville, TN 37996-2410
ph: 865.974.3200

The Knoxville Museum of Art presents Tradition Redefined: The Larry and Brenda Thompson Collection of African-American Art March 22 through June 16, 2013.

Larry and Brenda Thompson have amassed a remarkable collection of art by African Americans from around the nation. The strength of the Thompson’s collecting process lies in their considered attention to artists who have typically not been recognized in the traditional narratives of African American art.

In addition to acknowledged “masters,” the Thompsons have collected works by artists who have been labeled “emerging,” “unknown,” “outsider,” “eccentric,” “vernacular,” “regional” and more. The result is a collection that redefines the landscape of American art, offering a more in-depth, inclusive understanding of African American artists and their aesthetic and social concerns.

Knoxville Museum of Art is located in downtown Knoxville at 1050 World’s Fair Park and is open to the public Tuesday through Saturday 10 am–5 pm, and Sunday 1 pm-5 pm. Admission and parking are free.

Directed by Dennis E. Perkins. In rural Virginia, Jesse is struggling with finding his place in the world. He draws and dreams of becoming something special. Leslie, the new girl from the city and the ultimate outsider, opens a world of imagination, art and literature for him. Together they create Terabithia, a fantasy kingdom where they are safe from those who don’t understand them. Their friendship grows as Jesse’s world expands. When tragedy strikes, the strength which Jesse gained in Terabithia takes him forward on his own and lets him share the magic of his dreams.

Friday 3/22 at 7 PM
Saturday 3/23 at 1 PM
Saturday 3/23 at 5 PM
Sunday 3/24 at 3 PM
Thursday 3/28 at 7 PM
Friday 3/29 at 7 PM
Saturday 3/30 at 1 PM
Saturday 3/30 at 5 PM
Thursday 4/4 at 7 PM
Friday 4/5 at 7 PM
Saturday 4/6 at 1 PM
Saturday 4/6 at 5 PM
Sunday 4/7 at 3 PM

Knoxville Children's Theatre, 800 Tyson Street, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: 865-599-5284, www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com. Reservations: tickets@childrenstheatreknoxville.com

As their time at Arrowmont School of Arts & Crafts draws to a close, artists Heather Ashworth, Jason Burnett, Erin Castellan, Ashley Gilreath and David Katz share a collection of new work developed during their 11-month stay on campus.

The Annual Artists-in-Residence Exhibition opens with a gallery reception on Saturday, March 9, from 6 to 9 p.m. in Blain Galleries. The exhibition will be on display from March 9 through May 4, and both the reception and exhibition are free and open to the public. This year’s Residents will exhibit works that include functional wood furniture, whimsical pottery, ceramic installations, embroidered paintings, metalsmithing and enameling.

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts
556 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738
865.436.5860