Calendar of Events

The hustle and bustle of the holiday season is upon us! Halloween has given way to Thanksgiving, and before you can say “Merry what?!” it’s time for ChristmaHanuSolsti-Kwaanzakas: A Holiday Sampler! Join the Knoxville Gay Men’s Chorus (KGMC) for this annual holiday treat Saturday, Dec. 13, at 8 p.m. on the U.S. Cellular Stage at the Bijou Theatre. As its tongue-tied title suggests, ChristmaHanuSolstiKwaanzakas features music that showcases a variety of holiday traditions with a few special surprises. Brilliantly reimagined carols and old favorites are sure to make you feel warm and toasty. KGMC welcomes the return of guest mezzo-soprano, Karen Nickell, who delighted audiences at last year’s KGMC Holiday Lights concert when she transformed from a worried Mrs. Claus into a beckoning North Pole vixen in about eight vampy measures. The show also features KGMC’s small ensemble, Choral Fixation, and their barbershop quartet, The Fine & Dandies.

Tickets for this one-night-only show are for general admission, $18 for adults, with a $15 discounted rate for seniors/students, and available at www.knoxgmc.org or www.knoxbijou.com. The concert is sponsored by Clayton Bank, Cupid’s Outlet, Metropolitan Community Church, Prestige Tuxedo, Tiger Reeds, and WUOT 91.9 FM.

Info: knoxgmc@gmail.com, (865) 622-1197, or www.knoxgmc.org

Marble Springs State Historic Site is proud to present Christmas Candlelight Tours.

Experience the historic site through the soft glow of candle light. The historic buildings will be decorated with fresh greenery. Music, open hearth cooking, baked goods & warm drinks will set your heart aglow with holiday spirit. Details are subject to change.
Suggested $2 donation for the Candlelight Tour.
Programming assistance for this event is provided by the Arts & Heritage Fund and Knox County. Marble Springs is funded under an agreement with the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation, Tennessee Historical Commission, and supplemented by additional funds raised by the Governor John Sevier Memorial Association.

All activities take place at the Marble Springs State Historic Site: 1220 West Governor John Sevier Highway, Knoxville, TN 37920.

Information found at 865-573-5508
Email: info@marblesprings.net
Website: www.marblesprings.net

We'll be doing some special ornament painting at the Blue Slip Winery. We'll provide paint and brushes for use for free to the public, just bring an ornament to paint. If you don't have one, we'll have some for sale at the event.

Wine & Canvas: Knoxville, TN, 865-356-9179, http://www.wineandcanvas.com/knoxville-tn.html

(Recommended for Ages 12 and up) Join naturalist Stephen Lyn Bales for a brunch at Cove Lake State Park, situated on edge of the Cumberland Plateau. The lake serves as a magnet for migrating birds, including hundreds of geese and other waterfowl. Ijams provides the brunch; please bring binoculars and a blanket or lawn chair. Ijams will also have a spotting scope set up. Meet at Ijams. Spaces are very limited, so register today. The fee for this unique experience is $15 for Ijams members and $20 for non-members. Please call (865) 577-4717, ext. 110 to register.

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Grounds and trails open during daylight hours. Call for Visitor Center hours. Information: 865-577-4717, www.ijams.org

Gardeners love to share their gardens and there seems to be no end to the gifts that can be created with the bounty. Herbs, flowers, leaves and even seeds can be turned into thoughtful gifts to give year round and they don’t take much effort at all! In this make-and-take workshop, we’ll be making quick and easy gifts that your friends and family will love to receive! The fee for this program is $7 for Ijams members and $10 for non-members. You will leave with completed gifts, ready to wrap! Please call (865) 577-4717, ext. 110 to register.

Ijams Nature Center, 2915 Island Home Ave, Knoxville, TN 37920. Hours: Grounds and trails open during daylight hours. Call for Visitor Center hours. Information: 865-577-4717, www.ijams.org

Featuring the joyful sounds of Carla Manley Brown and Ms. Bethany Brown,
a mother/daughter flute duo.

Tour this gorgeous architectural gem and discover why Knoxville is known worldwide as "The Marble City." Enjoy music, wine, punch, appetizers, holiday cookies, and other seasonal festivities. The marble halls will be decked, and the air will be filled with the joyful sounds of light classics, jazz and holiday favorites.

This is a FREE event, but as always, any donation is very much appreciated. This is a great opportunity to see the community-wide renaissance taking place in South Knoxville #SoKno.

South Knoxville resident April Burt--who's Three Parties in Three Days was featured in Southern Living--is serving as chairwoman of the holiday open house. She is following a peacock feather theme.

4450 Candora Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37920, 865-384-1273

Tennessee Christmas Show to include Country, Gospel & Elvis tributes at High Places Community Church at The Grove Theater in Oak Ridge, TN; Saturday, December 13, 2014 at 7:00 P.M. A portion of the proceeds will be donated to St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital and High Places Community Church. Adult admission is $15.00/ages 16-5 years is $10.00 and ages 5 and under free.

To purchase advance seats contact:
Missy Miller (865) 684-6082/tribute.entertainment@yahoo.com

The show will feature Terry Turner as Tom Jones and Conway Twitty. Ronnie Miller will perform as Johnny Cash as well as perform gospel music. In addition both Terry Turner and Ronnie Miller will perform a ’70 era stage style tribute to the King of Rock n Roll-“Elvis Presley.”

Location for the event is High Places Community Church – The Grove Theater, 123 Randolph Street, Oak Ridge, TN. The Grove Theater is the historical Grove movie theater.

A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas will be presented by The WordPlayers, in collaboration with The Arts at Pellissippi, at Clayton Performing Arts Center, Pellissippi State Community College.

A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas is a one-act play with music, based on the beloved series of "Little House on the Prairie" books by Laura Ingalls Wilder. Playwright, Laurie Brooks, imagines events that occurred when the Ingalls family had to leave Walnut Grove to run a hotel in Iowa. It is a story about hope, perseverance, and family. (Length 1 hour, Recommended for ages 8+)

A Laura Ingalls Wilder Christmas will be presented by The WordPlayers, in collaboration with The Arts at Pellissippi, at Clayton Performing Arts Center, Pellissippi State Community College, 10915 Hardin Valley Road, Knoxville, TN. Public performances are Dec. 12 at 7:30 pm & Dec. 13 at 2:30 & 7:30 pm. Tickets are $5-$12 and may be purchased online at www.wordplayers.org, at the door, or by calling 865.539.7529.

For more information about The WordPlayers, please call 865.539.2490, Email: wordplayers@comcast.net or visit: www.wordplayers.org

For more information about these and other events in the 2014-2015 Arts at Pellissippi State series, visit www.pstcc.edu/arts or call (865) 694-6400. To request accommodations for a disability, contact the executive director of Human Resources at (865) 694-6607 or humanresources@pstcc.edu.

Metamorphosis: Angel-Phoenix Figures
Art By Theophilus
The Literacy Imperative Arts Reception:
December 11, 2014 4PM to 8PM
Exhibit: December 11, 2014 to January 31, 2015
Burlington Library, 4614 Asheville Hwy, Knoxville, TN 37914
(865) 525-5431

Grade-school students from the Stanford Eisenberg Knoxville Jewish Day School are building a canned food sculpture, featuring the school’s name and ram mascot, for a “STEAM Out Hunger”. The project is inspired by Knoxville’s Holiday Canstruction® event hosted by Messer Construction. ConAgra and Bush Beans donated the 1,440 canned-food building blocks for the sculpture. The Besmann Family Fund for Social Justice and Spiritual Enrichment of the Knoxville Jewish Community Family of Funds also provided support.

American Museum of Science & Energy, 300 S. Tulane Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Monday-Saturday 9AM-5PM, Sunday 1-5PM. Information: 865-576-3200, www.amse.org

At the Museum of Appalachia, log cabins and barns nestle at the base of a hill. Smoke rises lazily from chimneys, signaling warmth from within on a chilly December day. Beginning on December 6th, the Museum will celebrate Christmas in Old Appalachia, a festive winter celebration that captures the beauty and simplicity of an old-fashioned Christmas. Inside the cabins, simple cedar Christmas trees are draped with paper chains, popcorn strings, sweet gum, and sycamore balls. In the Dan’l Boone Cabin, a dormant sapling wears cotton “snow” and scraps of cloth for bows. Pine clippings, magnolia leaves and holly berries line the mantels above the fireplaces. The Little Tater Valley School House is adorned with hand-made ornaments made by local students. Tattered or well-worn quilts are laid under the trees; topped with carved wooden animals, tin horns, rag dolls, wagons, and spinning tops—all of which were presents found early on Christmas morning. Children often opened their Christmas packages to find practical gifts, such as new shoes or books, purchased from a mail order catalog; and relished in the joy of receiving something as simple as an orange or a peppermint stick.

For December 6th-7th the Museum has planned a variety of charming holiday festivities to kick off its Christmas season. Such fun activities include: craftsmen demonstrating traditional arts, warm fires surrounded by traditional porch musicians playing seasonal music, local authors signing their books, and a delicious home-cooked dinner at the Museum’s restaurant. Continuing through December 24th, special holiday exhibits include the children’s display in the Hall of Fame, with toys and furniture made by loving parents and grandparents, and Granny Irwin’s traditional Christmas Crazy Quilt—brought out only on special or festive occasions.

Browse the regional, ‘American made’, hand-crafted gifts and books in the Shop at the Museum for a special Christmas gift. Enjoy hot, southern country-style lunches, served daily from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. in the Museum restaurant. Home-made cakes, pies, cookies, and other holiday treats are available all day, or can be made special to order for Christmas gatherings.

December hours are 8:30 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. daily (8:30 a.m.-3pm on Christmas Eve and closed Christmas Day). The Museum, a Smithsonian Affiliate and a not-for-profit organization, is located 16 miles North of Knoxville, one mile East of I-75, Exit 122. Information: 865-494-7680, www.museumofappalachia.org

This vintage steam engine train takes guests on a 90-minute excursion through some of Knoxville’s most historic and beautiful countryside.

Our Christmas Lantern Express trains feature holiday decorations, holiday refreshments, story time with celebrity readers and a visit with Santa.

DECEMBER
Saturday, December 6 at 9:45 am (sold out), 1 pm, & 4:15 pm (sold out)
Sunday, December 7 at 1 pm & 4:15 pm
Saturday, December 13 at 9:45 am, 1 pm (sold out), & 4:15 pm (sold out)
Sunday, December 14 at 1 pm & 4:15 pm
Saturday, December 20 at 9:45 am, 1 pm, & 4:15 pm
Sunday, December 21 at 1 pm & 4:15 pm

FARES
Adults: $26.50
Senior (55+): $25.50
Child (3-12): $15:50
Toddler (1-2): $7.50
Infant (under 1): Free

400 Neyland Drive, Knoxville, TN 37902, 865-524-9411, http://www.threeriversrambler.com