Calendar of Events

Come see a new fine art exhibit - Impressions of Color from Paris, Italy, and the Loire Valley - premiering original oil paintings by Aleex Conner, local Impressionist. Friday, May 2, 5 pm - 9 pm, Plum Gallery, 5609 Kingston Pike, 584.6097. Aleex's work is in private collections throughout the U.S. and Europe, and her original oils have also been exhibited in Giverny, France (home of Monet's Gardens), Northern Italy, and Tuscany. One of her limited edition prints, "Suffrage on Market Square," is part of the historical exhibit of art and artifacts at the General Federation of Women's Clubs History and Resource Center in Washington, DC.

May 2 - Sons of Bluegrass. The Heritage Center welcomes the Sons of Bluegrass back to premier this year's "Spring Sunset Music Series." The Sons of Bluegrass have been performing bluegrass music for more than thirty years. The award winning Sons of Bluegrass are setting the standard for a new generation of Bluegrass professionals. Comprised entirely of high caliber Bluegrass Majors from the one of a kind four year B.A. in Bluegrass Music Program at East Tennessee State University. The Sons of Bluegrass provide high quality, high energy entertainment to festivals and venues throughout United States. Sons of Bluegrass have been featured in Bluegrass Today several times, and they are garnering recognition on a regional and national level at unprecedented speed.

May 9 - Acoustic Eidolon, featuring Joe Scott on double neck guitjo and Hannah Alkire on cello are from Colorado and have graced stages throughout the US, Europe, Australia and Canada. With ten CDs and a DVD to their credit, these masterful artists continue to captivate audiences throughout the world with their signature "new acoustic" sound and boundless possibilities in blending Celtic, Folk, World & Latin music influences, something that Dirty Linen Magazine praises as "a sumptuous musical feast." They are described by the Swallow Hill Music Association as "an evening of brilliant instrumentality".

All concerts begin at 7:00 pm and are presented in the Heritage Center's covered outdoor amphitheater with a scenic view of the mountains and sunset. Admission to the concerts is $5.00 and may be purchased at the door. Admission is free to all Sunset Music Series concerts for members of the Great Smoky Mountain Heritage Center. Annual memberships to the Heritage Center may be purchased at the concerts for $20 per individual or $35 per family. Food and non-alcoholic beverages are available at the concession stand.

Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center is 501 c3 Museum and Cultural Center. The Heritage Center is open Monday thru Saturday 10 am - 5 pm and on Sunday 12 noon to 5 pm starting in April. The Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center is a not for profit museum and is located between the traffic light and the national park entrance, on scenic Highway 73. Information: 865-448-0044, www.gsmheritagecenter.org

Photography exhibit: Gary Johnson and Karen Krogh
Art Exhibit at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church

Free and open to the public
Opening reception May 9 from 6 to 7:30 p.m.; artists’ talks at 6:30 p.m.
Exhibit runs May through June 2014

Where: Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church Gallery
2931 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37918

The featured exhibits at the library! The exhibits will be coordinated by his children, Allison Gallup and George Gallup, III. George Gallup, Jr., had a home in Blount County, TN. His father founded the Gallup Poll, and George, Jr., continued the business until he sold the company.

"George Gallup: Political Posters, History and Americana Collections” Political Pollster Exhibit, coordinated by his children, Allison Gallup and George Gallup, III, on the Art Wall across from the Bookmark Café and Art Panels at the Reading Rotunda area of the Main Gallery.
“George Gallup: Political Campaign Buttons” in two display cases in the Mid-Gallery area of the library across from the Bookmark Café.
“George Gallup: Political Campaign Bottles, a Ballot Box, Framed Autograph and pictures of George Gallup, Sr.” in one vertical case in the Entry Rotunda.
“Gallup Family Americana Collections” in three square pedestal cases in the Entry Rotunda.
“Gallup Family” in the Genealogy display case near the Reference Genealogy Desk.

Blount County Public Library, 508 N. Cusick Street, Maryville, TN. Information: 865-982-0981, www.blountlibrary.org

In conjunction with the new feature exhibition, Woven of Wood: East Tennessee Baskets, 1880-1940, the East Tennessee Historical Society will be holding a series of “Casual Basket Sundays” and special demonstrations by members of the Foothills Craft Guild. Guests are invited to bring their baskets, share stories, and meet with basket experts. Programs include:
April 25-27, Friday and Saturday - 10:00 am-4:00 pm, Sunday - 1:00-5:00 pm
Basket Making Demonstrations
There will be basket making demonstrations from members of the Foothills Crafts Guild on the porch and front lobby of the East Tennessee History Center. Featured artists include Karen Kenst, Sue Mowen, Judy and Virgil Davis, Bill Alexander, and Jim Gentry.

April 27, 2:00-4:00, A United States show and tell gathering
Collectors will show their favorite or unusual baskets made roughly from 1880-1940, regardless of where in the United States they were made. Examples are likely to be seen from Pennsylvania, Virginia, North and South Carolina, Kentucky, Missouri, and Middle Tennessee, as well as Native American. Each collector will tell something about his basket, either why it is a favorite or something of its history. There will also be basket demonstrations by featured basket maker Billy Sims and Sue Mowen and Bill Alexander from the Foothills Craft Guild.

May 11, beginning at 2:00, Mother’s Day Gallery Tours
Interactive gallery tours of the East Tennessee Historical Society’s feature exhibit Woven of Wood lead by guest curator Carole Carpenter Wahler. Museum visitors will learn about baskets and their features and are welcome to join in at any time.

May 18, 2:00-4:00, Casual Basket Sunday- A world wide show and tell gathering
Collectors will show baskets made anywhere in the world, at any time, and of any materials. Examples are likely to be seen from Australia, Africa, Philippines, England, and China, as well as baskets made in Tennessee from the middle of the 20th century to the present. Each collector will tell something about his basket, either why it is a favorite or something of its history. A gallery tour of Woven of Wood will take place immediately following the show and tell gathering.

“Casual Basket Sundays” are free and open to the public and will take place at the East Tennessee History Center, 601 S. Gay Street. For more information please call Michele MacDonald, (865)215-8829 or visit www.eastTNhistory.org.

he Farragut Business Alliance has once again partnered with the Town of Farragut and Dogwood Arts Festival to host the 4th Annual Farragut Art in the Park, presented by TDS. It is a plein air event, with two days of painting or photography on location, followed by a gallery reception and sale. Art for Kids! will be back again this year as well and new youth competition categories have been added.

The paint-out/shooting dates are Saturday and Sunday, April 26-27, 2014. The Gallery Reception and Sale is Friday, May 9th. The events will occur rain or shine.

Farragut Art in the Park culminates with a Gallery Reception & Art Sale at 7pm on Friday, May 9. Due to a generous partnership with The Pinnacle at Turkey Creek, it will be held in a new location this year, at 11483 Parkside Drive (in the space next to Men’s Warehouse). Hors d'oeuvres and desserts are complimentary and wine will be available for $3 per glass. The Knoxville Bella Corda, an Allied Music Instructors youth acoustic guitar ensemble, will provide entertainment. Finally, Best of Show, First Place and Second Place paintings and photographs (judged separately) will be awarded cash prizes. Presenting Sponsor’s Choice will also be named.

All events are free and open to the public.

Farragut Business Alliance, P.O. Box 23583, Farragut, TN 37933

This Tony Award winner evokes the delightful humor and infectious energy of honky tonk dives, rent parties and stride piano players in 1930's Harlem. The rollicking, winging music of the inimitable "Fats" Waller gets the joint a-jumpin as the cast struts, strums and sings songs made famous in a career that ranged from uptown clubs to downtown Tin Pan Alley to Hollywood and concert stages in the U.S., Canada and Europe.
April 25-May 11, 2014, Mainstage.

Purchase tickets online 24 hours a day: www.orplayhouse.com.
Purchase by phone or at box office: 865 482 9999, 12:00-5:30PM Mon.-Sat. during performance weeks.

Presented in conjunction with Richard Jolley’s permanent glass installation Cycle of Life, this exhibition surveys the work of modern and contemporary artists who approach glass using innovative methods and techniques. Among the featured artists are Oben Abright, Graham Caldwell, Daniel Clayman, Andrew Erdos, Luke Jerram, Rashid Johnson, Dominick Labino, Karen LaMonte, Libensky & Brychtova, Beth Lipman, Harvey Littleton, Ivan Navarro, Mark Peiser, Lino Tagliapietra, Bertil Vallien, Christopher Wilmarth, and Fred Wilson.

There will be a public closing party Thursday, July 17 at the KMA, from 5:30 to 7:30pm. The presenting sponsor for this exhibition is The Frank and Virginia Rogers Foundation with additional sponsorship from The Art Alliance for Contemporary Glass. KMA media sponsors include Digital Media Graphix, Kurt Zinser Design, and WBIR. The exhibition is organized by the KMA.

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, www.knoxart.org

The Town of Farragut Arts Council presents Mary Agnes Schaefer as the featured artist for April and May. Located at the Farragut Town Hall, her exhibit - "Fabric Friends" - features handmade fabric dolls.

A charter and current member of the Farragut Arts Council, Schaefer spent many hours as a child playing with paper dolls as well as making handmade dolls out of drawing paper. Later in life, she started making paper dolls for her granddaughters and nieces. Each doll includes a wardrobe, toy and carrying case. The goal of her fabric dolls is to inspire children to use their imagination. Schaefer's "Fabric Friends" are available for sale at the Concord Gallery and the Annabelle Emporium in Loudon.

Each month, the work of an artist or group of artists is featured in specially designed cases on the second floor of the rotunda in the Farragut Town Hall. For more information about this exhibit or to access a Featured Artist of the Month application, please contact Lauren Cox at lauren.cox@townoffarragut.org or 966-7057 or visit www.townoffarragut.org/artsandculture.

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.

Directed by Bill Jenkins

Winner of the 2005 Tony Award for Best Musical and voted Outstanding Musical of 973 AD, the New York Times called “Spamalot” “resplendently silly.” A musical comedy "lovingly ripped off” from the 1975 film “Monty Python and the Holy Grail,” this Broadway smash features flying cows, killer rabbits, taunting Frenchmen and show-stopping musical numbers! This production is recommended for high school and up.

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

Join Bill Landry of "The Heartland Series" for a guided trip around Cades Cove. Bill will share stories, tales and adventures during each tour.

$50 per person, advance reservations required, with a limit of 18 guests per tour.
Call 865 448 8838 for reservations Mon.-Fri., 10:00AM - 5:00PM.
Bill Landry Cades Cove tour dates:
Saturdays, April 12, May 24, May 31, June 7, June 21, July 5, July 12, July 19, July 26,
August 2, August 16, August 23, September 6.

Tours depart at 9:30 am from the Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center in Townsend.
Tour is approximately 4 hours.
Light snacks and a cold beverage is included in the ticket price.
Bill Landry Cades Cove tours will run rain or shine.

Poets for Preservation is a forthcoming spring poetry series presented by Knox Heritage and eight local poets in April and May of 2014. Native Knoxville poets, most residing in the area for 30 years, will perform engaging works about history, home, and new beginnings in celebration of the opening of Historic Westwood at 3425 Kingston Pike. Poets will read in pairs on Saturdays at 3 p.m. in April and May as listed below. Refreshments will be served, and guests are welcome to look around the newly restored mansion after the readings.

April 12, 3 p.m.
Linda Parsons Marion and Laura Still

April 19, 3 p.m.
Marilyn Kallet and Keith Norris

May 10, 3pm
Donna Doyle and Rose Raney

May 24, 3 p.m.
Darren Jackson and Arthur Smith

Historic Westwood at 3425 Kingston Pike, Knoxville
865-523-8008, www.knoxheritage.org