Calendar of Events

This month, nine local teams of architects, engineers, construction companies and other organizations will construct massive holiday-themed art sculptures made of canned food items – all to help fight hunger in the region.

For the third year, Messer Construction Co. is presenting the “Holiday Canstruction” art exhibition, which will benefit Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee. The sculptures will be on display Nov. 21-Dec. 3 at the Knoxville Convention Center. The exhibition is free and open to the public.

On Nov. 20, the teams will gather at the Knoxville Convention Center for an eight-hour build of their holiday-themed sculptures. Each Canstruction sculpture typically uses between 1,500 and 5,500 canned food items, with only one-quarter-inch plywood or Plexiglas between the rows of cans and one-quarter-inch cardboard tubing for support. The color of the sculptures is determined by the colors of the cans and labels.
After the exhibition, the sculptures will be dismantled and the canned foods donated to Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee. Last year’s event contributed 19,000 items to Second Harvest, and organizers expect the donation to surpass that mark this year.
The Holiday Canstruction art exhibition will be open to the public Nov. 21-Dec. 1 from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with expanded hours during East Tennessee Children’s Hospital’s Fantasy of Trees event, Nov. 25-29.
Knoxville Convention Center, 701 Henley St, Knoxville, TN 37902
For more information, visit http://www.holidaycanstruction.com

Saturday, November 21, 7:30 PM and Sunday, November 22, 2:00 PM

ORCBA’s annual performance of Tschaikovsky’s The Nutcracker features all your favorite characters come to life! Clara, Fritz, the Nutcracker Prince, and Sugar Plum Fairy all await to delight and enchant you. Tickets may be purchased online or at the door.

At Oak Ridge High School Performing Arts Center, 1450 Oak Ridge Turnpike, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Oak Ridge Civic Ballet Association: 865-898-4637, www.orcba.org

On Saturday, November 21 and Sunday, November 22, Keep Knoxville Beautiful will host its largest ever “Beautification Mob” to plant over 60,000 daffodil bulbs on three I-275 exits near downtown.

A Keep Knoxville Beautiful “Beautification Mob” is an event where KKB staff and volunteers plant flowers, bushes, and trees to beautify a public space or prominent place quickly. Keep Knoxville Beautiful has hosted several Beautification Mobs in the last few years, including installing 1,000 daffodil bulbs on the Woodland Avenue Exit in 2014. This Beautification Mob will beautify the Baxter Avenue Exit, the Woodland Avenue Exit, and the Heiskell Avenue Exit off I-275, and will be KKB’s largest ever.

Volunteers should check in at the parking lot of the Helen Ross McNabb Center at 201 West Springdale Ave from 9:00 AM and 5:00 PM on Saturday and from noon to 5:00 PM on Sunday. A shuttle will run to the exits all day, so volunteers can stay for an hour or for the day. Volunteers should wear sturdy shoes and clothes that can get dirty. Food and beverages will be provided by Bojangles, Food City, Krispy Kreme, Panera, and Earth Fare.

The project was made possible with grants from Lowe’s and from Waste Management.

To sign up, volunteers should visit www.keepknoxvillebeautiful.org to fill out the registration form. For more information, please contact Patience Melnik at patience@keepknoxvillebeautiful.org or 865-521-6957.

Gardening takes a team. Parents, grandparents, and children, come out to the UT Gardens to make memories and learn fun and new gardening ideas.
Looking for some great gift ideas? Learn how to create ornaments our of natural materials.
Saturday, November 21, 10:00-11:30AM.
Cost: $15/member family, $25/nonmember family.

All programs require preregistration. Contact Derrick Stowell, garden educator, at dstowell@utk.edu or 865 974-7151 or visit utgardens.wildapricot.org/UTGardensEvents.
UT Gardens, Chapman Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-7151, http://utgardens.tennessee.edu

It may be getting cold outside, but don't let that stop you from getting fresh greens and herbs. Learn how to grow micro greens and herbs in containers, then plant some to grow at home.
Saturday, November 21, 1:00-3:00PM.
Cost:$25/member, $35/nonmember.
All programs require preregistration. Contact Derrick Stowell, garden educator, at dstowell@utk.edu or 865 974-7151 or visit utgardens.wildapricot.org/UTGardensEvents.
UT Gardens, Chapman Drive, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-7151, http://utgardens.tennessee.edu

Celebrating the first ladies of Knoxville Opera! The Prima Donna Ball with Mary Costa, Special Guest of Honor. The Knoxville Opera Guild requests the pleasure of your company for an evening of fine dining, entertainment, dancing, and auctions.

Cocktails, Reception, & Silent Auction 6:00 p.m.
Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 WORLD’S FAIR PARK, KNOXVILLE, TN 37916

More information: 865-524-0795, http://www.knoxvilleopera.com

Everyone is invited! Come and celebrate harvest, home, and the holidays with live music throughout the day, kids’ crafts, tasty treats from the open hearth, basket weaving demonstrations, guest speakers, and more! Celebrate holiday traditions of the past and begin new traditions that bind the hearts of family and friends. Admission is FREE for the entire family!

MEMBERS: There will be a member’s area open throughout the day to show you our appreciation. Please make sure to stop by while you’re here!

Great Smoky Mountains Heritage Center, 3/4 mile east of traffic light at the Highway 321 and 73 intersection towards the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, Townsend, TN. Hours: Monday-Saturday, 10AM-5PM. Information: 865-448-0044, www.gsmheritagecenter.org

Will Hoge & Sundy Best are coming together at the Bijou this fall for a night of good ole folk, rock, and R&B infused honky-tonk!

Bijou Theatre, 803 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information/tickets: 865-522-0832, www.knoxbijou.com, www.ticketmaster.com

Workshops, lectures, master classes, and performances
Sandra G. Powell Recital Hall, Natalie L. Haslam Music Center

UT School of Music: Unless otherwise noted, concerts are FREE and open to the public.
The Alumni Memorial Building is located at 1408 Middle Drive on the UT campus. The Natalie Haslam Music Center is located at 1741 Volunteer Blvd on the UT campus. *For individual or small group performances, please check the web site or call the day of the event for updates or cancellations: 865-974-5678, www.music.utk.edu/events

The Retropolitan Craft Fair is a hand selected indie-craft marketplace featuring the South East’s finest talents in contemporary craft and design while also incorporating upcycled goods with a funky, vintage inspired, and fabulously quirky vibe. Our fair brings creators out of their studios from the harsh winter for the first weekend event of spring to celebrate all things artsy, crafted, and most importantly retropolitan. Each vendor is chosen exclusively after a juried event. They are then curated based on one-of-a-kind products, creativity, and retropolitan swagger.

At The Southern Railway Station at 306 West Depot Avenue. https://www.facebook.com/retrocraftfair

Join us for free a free Family Fun Day featuring activities, crafts, tours, and more. We’ll explore our special exhibit, Embodying Enlightenment: Buddhist Art of the Himalayas. All materials will be provided. The program is free and open to the public. Reservations are not necessary. http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu/events/family-fun-day-embodying-enlightenment-2/

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Dr on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Hours: Monday-Saturday, 9AM-5PM, Sunday, 1-5PM. Information: 865-974-2144, http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu

Unity of the Community - Building community through the HEART OF YOGA
This day is dedicated to wellness - mind, body and spirit. Join this one of a kind community Yoga event. Light refreshments will be served. Yoga classes offered all day with special guest instructors from The Glowing Body, Breezeway Yoga and Balanced You Studios, Barre Belle Yoga & Fitness, and many of your Y favorites! The Mindful Center will be here giving a demo class. Chair Massages will be available. Free child watch. Free Parking in the Locust Street Garage.
· Free and open to the community
· Join the Y and joining fee waived at this event
· Yoga Studios setup in the gym with info
*Bring your Mat*

Come and go as you please - at Lindsay Young Downtown Y, 605 W. Clinch, Knoxville, TN
Info: www.ymcaknoxville.org or 865-622-9025