Calendar of Events

Aquila Theatre brings legendary sleuth, Sherlock Holmes to life in this witty, fast paced production.

Clayton Center for the Arts: 502 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804. Information/tickets: 865-981-8590, www.ClaytonArtsCenter.com

This performance promises to be a special, one-of-a-kind experience with Brooke Waggoner and her band of keyboards, drums, guitars, and fx machines. Beautiful paintings by encaustic visual artist Phaedra Taylor, curated by Waggoner for the album's 12 songs, will be on display during the event. The evening is designed to bring people together in a kindred spirit of appreciation for culture, art, active listening, and conversation. This multi sensory approach is meant to enrich and foster the shared experience among a community. Doors: 7pm, Show: 8pm.

Advance Tickets $10 (http://www.thecentralcollective.com/new-products/advance-ticket-for-brooke-waggoner) or $12 at Door.

At The Central Collective, 923 N Central St, Knoxville, Tennessee 37917. www.thecentralcollective.com

Hip-hop spoken word artist and six-time nationally ranked slam poet Black Atticus will teach the “Write or Die” workshop with slam-poetry techniques at Central United Methodist Church's Fellowship Hall at 201 E. Third Ave. Sponsored by the Knoxville Writers' Guild, cost is $35 for KWG members and $40 for nonmembers. The building is handicapped accessible.

Atticus will walk attendees through the thought process and techniques he’s used when coaching other poetry slam teams. These will involve his newest book and CD, "Park City Pedestrian". “I’m excited to help aspiring poets enhance their basic understanding of one's audience, as well as use of one's voice,” Atticus said. "My workshop is based around one sole principal: we can't begin to heal from our troubles or approach our problems if we can't even talk about them. Before we get to that stage, we have to be able to at least write about it first."

To register for the workshop, visit http://knoxvillewritersguild.org/events/write-or-die-slam-poetry-workshop or send your check to KWG Workshops, P.O. Box 10326, Knoxville, TN, 37939-0326. For more information about Atticus, visit his website: http://blackatticus.wix.com/officialhomepage#!biography

Family Fun Day: Celebrating African American History
Join us for free a free Family Fun Day featuring activities, crafts, tours, and more. We’ll celebrate African American History Month by learning more about African-American history. All materials will be provided. The program is free and open to the public. Reservations are not necessary.

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

With live bluegrass and country band, catered by Big Fatty's

A dinner and dance of a very relaxed, let-your-hair-down, have-a-blast nature! If you have never heard of this event, you may be too young to have read the funny papers strip known as "L'il Abner," all about the "hillbillies" who lived in "Dog Patch." Sadie Hawkins Day comes only once every four years in February when we have one extra day. According to the Sadie Hawkins original idea, it is a time when the ladies are encouraged to ask someone to the dance. However, anyone can attend and just have a great time! Guests are encouraged to put on your most country/hillbilly attire. Aurora Bull's husband Earl Bull will be bringin' the music for dancin' along with his country and blue grass playin' friends! Yee Haw!

$35 per person; $210 for table of 6 - email or call: fcartcenter@knology.net; (865)357-2787
At the Fountain City Art Center, 213 Hotel Ave, Knoxville, TN 37918.

Families will enjoy hearing Clayton Center Advisory Board members read several books by the late Libba Moore Gray in the lobby at the Clayton Center for the Arts in Maryville. Hot chocolate and cookies will be served while listening to Is There Room on the Feather Bed, Miss Tizzy, Small Green Snake, and other selections. Amy Vaughn, director of the Appalachian Ballet Company, will also share how the books, written by her mother, have been made into a series of ballets that will be performed at the Clayton Center, the weekend of March 4th and 5th. Tickets are on sale now for these performances. Educator Liz Britt and Blake Smith, General Manager of the Clayton Center for the Arts, will also be on hand to read. This event is open to the public and free to those attending.

Clayton Center for the Arts: 502 East Lamar Alexander Parkway, Maryville, TN 37804. Info: amym2ballet@aol.com or 865-982-8463

"To Kill A Mockingbird," the unforgettable Pulitzer Prize-winning novel, comes to life on the KCT stage with its unique mix of warm nostalgia and frank realism. The lives of young "Scout" Finch and her big brother Jim are about to change forever, when their father Atticus, a lawyer, is appointed to defend a black man accused of attacking a white teenage girl. Meanwhile, the children become fascinated by their reclusive neighbor "Boo" Radley. All their worlds collide in the sleepy town of Maycomb, Alabama, as its citizens confront their fears and prejudices.

Dennis E. Perkins directs the play, and Wheeler Moon assists. Jaden Lily Branson is the stage manager.

Performances are Thursdays and Fridays at 7 PM; Saturdays at 1 PM and 5 PM; Sundays at 3 PM.

Knoxville Children's Theatre, 109 E. Churchwell Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: 865-208-3677, www.childrenstheatreknoxville.com.

Jubilee Community Arts presents its signature celebration of traditional mountain music featuring Tennessee artists recognized as accomplished masters of old styles of fiddle, banjo, ukelele, string bands, sacred music and early country and historical ballads, culminating in the annual Epworth Old Harp Singing.

Featured performers and schedule are listed at http://jubileearts.org/JubileeFestival2015.html. This year's event performances by the Lost Fiddle String Band, Kelle Jolly, Tennessee Stifflegs, John Alvis & Friends, Knox County Jug Stompers, Y'uns, Camp Hollow String Band, Possum Crossing, Roy Harper, Mike & Marcia Bryant, the Bearded and the Mumbillies.

Evening concerts begin 7 pm Friday and Saturday, Old Harp Singing at 2 pm Sunday. Tickets: Friday or Saturday evening: $12 (discounts apply to advance purchase, JCA members, students, seniors 65+). Sunday singing no charge. At Jubilee Community Arts, 1538 Laurel Ave, Knoxville, TN 37916. For information/tickets: 865-522-5851, www.jubileearts.org.

“Come to the Cabaret” The Akima Club Benefit Cabaret, that is.
U. S. Cellular Stage at The Bijou Theater, 803 S Gay St, Knoxville, TN 37902.
Friday, February 26, 2016 7:00pm and Saturday, February 27, 2016 at 2:00pm and
 7:00pm.
Dinner and Dancing Following the Friday and Saturday Evening Performances at the
Knoxville Marriott, 501 E. Hill Avenue, Knoxville, TN 37915.
Black Tie Optional
Cash Bar

Ticket Prices:
$150 each for Friday and Saturday evening show, dinner and dancing or
$50 Show Only. 
$30 each Saturday matinee
www.akimaclub.org

Presented every other year, Cabaret is Akima Club’s major fundraiser. From this event alone we fund grants to many local agencies. Grants are only given for specific projects and are not awarded for salaries and/or operating expenses. These grant funds can only be used to directly aid the clients served by the agencies.

Akima Club also contributes to the community by donating member service hours. We work to support Mobile Meals, FISH Hospitality Pantry, Helen Ross McNabb Center, Ronald McDonald House, Sunshine Industries, Random Acts of Flowers, Sertoma Center, Akima Outreach, and many more. Our yearly service totals more than 6500 hours.

The Tennessee Children’s Dance Ensemble (TCDE) will open its 35th season with multiple performances at the Knoxville Civic Auditorium. This year’s Season Opener Concert will feature dances by Abby Williams, Courtney Kohlhepp and Karlie Budge, as well as a new work by Amy Wilson. “Whether you love modern dance, classical ballet, jazz or you just need to see something that will lift your spirits and make you feel good about your world, this is the place to be” says Ensemble Director Irena Linn.

TCDE is a professional modern dance company comprised of children ranging in age from 8-18 years of age. When you see them perform you won’t believe they are children! The Ensemble has served TN for 30 plus years as dancing ambassadors of goodwill, serving under every Governor since 1981, and exemplifies the highest artistic standards of excellence. TCDE dancers are role models for other children who are motivated and inspired as they experience the joy of movement. The dances performed at the Season Opener Concert will also be going on tour as a part of TCDE’s “Children Helping Children” initiative, which introduces modern dance to children in the most remote areas of our state where there is little opportunity for access to the arts and where most children have never even seen a dance performance, much less experienced dance.

Performances are as follows:

School/Senior Citizen Performances - Friday, February 26th – 9:15am and 11:00am - Children $6.00, Adults $10.00

Public Performances - Friday Evening, February 26th – 8:00pm
Saturday Afternoon, February 27th – 2:30pm
Saturday Evening, February 27th – 8:00pm
Adults $26.00, $15.00 children and students (including college with student ID)

Tennessee Children’s Dance Ensemble: 865-584-9636, www.tcdedance.org

Presented every other year, Cabaret is Akima Club's major fundraiser. Our next Cabaret will be held February 26 & 27, 2016 at The US Cellular Stage at the Bijou. From this event alone we fund grants to many local agencies. Grants are only given for specific projects and are not awarded for salaries and/or operating expenses. These grant funds can only be used to directly aid the clients served by the agencies. Akima Club also contributes to the community by donating member service hours. We work to support Mobile Meals, FISH Hospitality Pantry, Helen Ross McNabb Center, Ronald McDonald House, Sunshine Industries, Random Acts of Flowers, Sertoma Center, Akima Outreach, and many more. Our yearly service totals more than 6500 hours. Please consider supporting Akima's grant program by supporting Akima Cabaret 2016 with a sponsorship. Advance tickets to the cabaret can only be purchased from Akima Club members. To purchase in advance, please contact Abigail Jumper at abigailwestjumper@gmail.com. On the day of the show, tickets will also be available at the Bijou box office one hour prior to the performance. For more information, please contact the Cabaret Chairman at cabaret@akimaclub.org

Feb 26 at 7 PM, Feb 27 at 2 PM and 7 PM

$50.00 plus applicable service fees. Bijou Theatre, 803 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information/tickets: 865-522-0832, www.knoxbijou.com, www.ticketmaster.com

by Earnest J. Gaines; adapted by Romulus Linney. At the Carousel Theatre. “The story’s wrenching power lies not in its outrage but in the almost inexplicable grace the characters must muster as their only resistance to being treated like lesser beings.” The New Yorker

It’s 1948 in a small plantation community in the heart of Cajun country. A young man, jailed for a murder he did not commit, will soon lose his life and has lost his self-respect. A young teacher, with most of his life ahead of him, has lost respect for the situation in which he lives. Both men teach each other the lessons they need to face their very different futures with dignity and strength. The CBT is pleased to be partnering with the Knox County Public Library on a series of ancillary events associated with this production.

Pay What You Wish Night - Wednesday, February 24, 7:30 p.m.
Tickets may be purchased Feb. 24 at the CBT Box Office from 12 to 7 p.m. Cash in full dollar amounts is accepted and limited tickets are available on a first come, first served basis.

Post-Performance Salon Discussions - Tuesday, March 1 and 8, following the 7:30 p.m. performance
Audience-driven, providing patrons and community members the opportunity to discuss their thoughts, experiences, and issues raised after attending the performance.

Sunday Symposium with Dr. Michelle D. Commander - Sunday, March 13, following the 2 p.m. performance
Dr. Michelle Commander will lead a post-performance discussion on the play and its themes. Dr. Commander received her Ph.D. in American Studies and Ethnicity from the University of Southern California. She teaches courses and conducts research on twentieth and twenty-first century African American literature, cultural studies, diasporic literatures, and Black social movements.

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