Calendar of Events

The 2015 City People Home Tour offers prospective downtown residents an opportunity to see a wide variety of residential spaces and learn about urban living. Thirteen residents will open their lofts and condos throughout downtown to showcase historic architecture and creative interior designs and decor. Visitors will get a glimpse of the diverse and interesting living spaces which are available downtown.

Tickets, which costs $15 before April 24 and $20 afterwards, admit you on both Friday and Saturday. You can ride the city's free trolley to easily reach all the tour homes. The hours of the home tour are Friday, 5:30 to 8:00 p.m. and Saturday from 11:00 am to 4:00 pm. For more information about parking, where to catch the trolley and find a home tour check-in station, go to www.citypeoplehometour.org.

Save the date!

5th Annual Shine, Wine and Dine is May 1, 2015. Details TBA.

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

May 1 – Robinella ($10, $5)

Alive After Five is a unique live music series presented on twenty-eight Fridays per year in four seasonal series. The programs take place in the smoke-free, casually elegant setting of the Ann and Steve Bailey Hall in the Knoxville Museum of Art. There is a live band on stage, seating at tables, two cash bars, food from area restaurants, free freshly popped popcorn, free parking, and a licensed therapeutic masseuse available. Audience members can enjoy listening to music, dancing, and browsing the museum’s art galleries.

Admission to the Spring series premier of Alive After Five is $10 for general admission and $5 for museum members and college students with ID. Ages 17 and under are admitted free. Alive After Five is sponsored by Cherokee Distributing Company, Knoxville Mercury, and WDVX-89.9FM. For more information about the Alive After Five series, please contact Michael Gill, Alive After Five Coordinator, at (865) 934-2039.

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

An ongoing monthly event, every First Friday of the month beginning May 1 and running through October 2, 2015. Featuring artists and crafters, displaying and selling work in a booth and market-like setting. Behind the original Freezo, 3015 N. Central Street in Knoxville. Info: hhartistsmarket@gmail.com
https://www.facebook.com/hhartistsmarket

At the Knoxville Visitor Center. Celebrate your February First Friday with WDVX! Host Nelson Gullett sets the stage by inviting the best Americana acts to perform, chat, and get comfortable. On Friday, May 1, Nashville instrumental duo Steelism performs their intricately blended vintage and modern rock'n'roll on the Knoxville Visitor Center stage for First Friday Live. Tune in online, on the air, or in person at 7 pm!

WDVX, 301 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-544-1029, www.wdvx.com

We'll be having another wild-and-woolly night of madcap comedy – inspired by the roaring success of last September’s funfest. Our May feature will be Man About Town (1939), an uproarious musical comedy, boasting an all-star cast. The legendary Jack Benny holds court here, playing a Broadway producer who takes his New York troupe to London. Staging his show there, he goes about incurring the jealousy of sometimes-girlfriend Dorothy Lamour. Benny’s dubious endeavor results in his crashing British society – and there ensues riotous situations of mistaken identities. All of this nonsense is set to the tune of a sensational score, captivatingly performed by Dottie Lamour and the then up-and-coming Betty Grable. Also featured are Edward Arnold, Binnie Barnes and Phil Harris. And where Jack Benny goes, can sidekick Eddie “Rochester” Anderson be far behind? “Rochester” lights up Man About Town with his hilarious interplay with Jack – and he has a doozy of a musical number, to boot! Frothy, snappy and full of mirth, Man About Town will have you smiling from start to finish.

Man About Town will be preceded by two comedy gems from television’s golden age. As we had in September, we'll be presenting memorable episodes from The Phil Silvers Show and The Lucy Show. Things kick off with “Bilko’s Double Life,” a third-season entry in Silvers’ series – in which he starred in his legendary role of Sgt. Bilko. In “Bilko’s Double Life,” Phil’s money troubles start to close in on him and he makes a quick getaway to New York. While there, he is mistaken for a Gotham millionaire – a look-alike who coincidentally winds up on the sergeant’s home turf! Believe-you-me, the super-funny “Bilko’s Double Life” represents the best of the best of The Phil Silvers Show. A similar claim can be made for “Lucy, the Music Lover,” a first-season episode of the classic Lucy Show, starring that forever-fabulous comedy duo, Lucille Ball and Vivian Vance. “Lucy, the Music Lover” has our favorite redhead going overboard in her attempts to fool the doctor she's dating into believing she’s as big a classical music lover as he. But her sham backfires when he starts making beautiful music with Viv!

Our location: The spacious clubhouse of the Windover Apartments. The journey there will take you to Cheshire Drive (off Kingston Pike, near the Olive Garden); going down Cheshire, turn right at the Windover Apartments sign, then go to the third parking lot on your right, next to the pool. There, the building that houses the clubhouse and offices of the Windover will be just a few steps away! Info: CresthillCinema@aol.com

International Arts & Entertainment Center will be hosting a First Friday and Open House. In the center’s Gallery we will be presenting a Visual Exhibition of International Artist Hawa Ware Johnson.

HAWA WARE JOHNSON - I am a native of Liberia currently residing in Knoxville. My passion for art started from the time I started using a pencil, around elementary school but really started to freelance when I was around the age of 12. That was during a time when a civil war broke out in my country. I had to flee for my life with a backpack of little clothes, mostly food and a small tray of watercolor paint to start a new life as a refugee in the neighboring country. There, I was not in school and found myself with so much time on my hand. Art was the place of escape from that life that was becoming almost hopeless. Instead of thinking about how hungry I was, I would do some watercolor or ask my cousin to model for me to practice my drawing skills. Once in a while I’d get a small commission that helped to buy us food. After three years of living in La Cote d’Ivoire, my family and I were accepted to be resettled in the US. Knoxville was the location we would make as our new home. I attended Central High School where my art teacher really nurtured and encouraged the talent she saw in me. I went on to receive my bachelors in Media Art at the University of Tennessee Knoxville in 2000. After graduation, I moved to Wheaton Illinois and lived there for 3 years. I was able to do some freelance work and participate in a few art exhibits while also working for a non-profit refugee resettlement agency. Since returning to Knoxville, I continued to participate in a few exhibits in and outside of Knoxville and I’m working on some new pieces that are in conjunction with my new experiences in life. I am between Knoxville and Liberia. My work in Liberia includes work in art and the education field. My family and I started a gradual relocation to Liberia last year when we closed our small business, Palavah Hut.

International Arts & Entertainment Center, 748 N. Fourth Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37914. Information: 865-384-3181 or Ifaa2012@gmail.com

This year we have a requirement for the show: a cigar box. Artists will use it in any way they want to for the 2015 Membership Show.

A1LabArts @ the Center for Creative Minds, 23 Emory Place, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: www.a1labarts.org

Registration begins at 5:30 p.m.
UT Gardens Friendship Plaza, Knoxville, TN

Make plans to join us for a memorable evening including drinks, hors d'oeuvres, musical entertainment, dinner, and live and silent auctions to benefit the UT Gardens' academic and educational programs! http://utgardens.tennessee.edu/gala.html

UT Gardens, 252 Ellington Plant Sciences Bldg, 2431 Joe Johnson Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: (865) 974-8265,

Bruce McCamish is a Knoxville native, University of Tennessee graduate, and one of several fantastic local photographers who allow Visit Knoxville to use their photos in promotional materials showcasing our beautiful city. You've seen some of his incredible pictures on Visit Knoxville's Facebook page. This is your opportunity to see more of his work and purchase prints!

The gallery showing and sale will take place during First Friday festivities at the Downtown Knoxville Visitors Center. Live music by Steelism begins at 7pm on the WDVX stage, so make plans now to enjoy a Picture Perfect evening in downtown Knoxville!

Visit Knoxville, 301 South Gay Street Knoxville, TN 37902. http://www.visitknoxville.com/content/events-calendar#!/66778-first-friday-at-the-visitor-center

Arrowmont’s 5th Annual Art and Wine Auction - Tickets are now available by calling 865.436.5860, ext 28.

Ken Farmer, Antiques Roadshow appraiser is the auctioneer. Farmer is a specialist in furniture, folk art, decorative arts and musical instruments. He has been an appraiser on Antiques Roadshow since it debuted in 1996 and frequently lectures about antiques, collecting, and downsizing. In addition to appearing on Antiques Roadshow weekly, Farmer is the owner of Quinn & Farmer Auctions in Virginia. The Auction, now in its fifth year, features a wide array of items including fine art, wines, event packages and experiences donated by area businesses, individuals and artists.

For a sneak peek at the 2015 live auction items, go online to www.arrowmont.org; a link to the Auction catalog is on the home page. Proceeds of the Auction support Arrowmont’s educational programs for artists, community members and K-12 students. Arrowmont is celebrating its 70th year as a school of arts and crafts and its first full year of ownership of the Gatlinburg campus.

Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts enriches lives by developing aesthetic appreciation and fostering self-expression with hands-on experiences in a variety of media, classes, conferences and seminars. On the leading edge of arts education, Arrowmont utilizes contemporary and fine arts techniques and methodologies to build upon a foundation of traditional arts and crafts. Sevier Countians and thousands more Tennesseans have been changed forever by their experiences at Arrowmont.

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

The exhibition titled Pink Budget Spring Seminar features the work of local artist and musician Will Fist. The performance will begin at 7pm and continue until 11pm. Swirling pontification every 35 minutes with Stuntwood realization provided intermittently.

Striped Light Hands on Press, 107 Bearden Place, Knoxville, TN 37917 (Most know of the space as the old Lonnie's Auto Trim!) www.stripedlight.com

Creative output imprint: fine art, recorded material, cultural experiences, also home of Hands on Press: an educational letterpress production facility that designs and facilitates a range of classes, workshops and unique activities.