Calendar of Events

Mabry-Hazen House is hosting an old-fashioned Fourth of July front porch celebration on Thursday, July 4th, 2019 from 5:30-10pm. Gather with us to celebrate Independence Day, the Declaration of Independence, and community. Enjoy great views, good food and beer, live music, and tours of the 1858 house in a leisurely atmosphere. Launched from Henley Street Bridge, the western side of Mabry's Hill offers an unparalleled panorama of the firework show.

Overlooking downtown Knoxville to the west and the Great Smoky Mountains to south, historic Mabry's Hill enjoys a spectacular view of the City of Knoxville's Festival on the Fourth fireworks. Bring your lawn chairs and blankets and spread out on our 7 acres of greenspace near downtown and right off I-40. Avoid the downtown traffic and take it easy with this laid-back celebration. It is the perfect time to come chill on the hill!

Take in the surrounding natural beauty and history while savoring food from Knox Wurst and beer from Elkmont Exchange. We'll also have several activities for kids and the young at heart including sack races, seed spitting contests, three-legged races, bocce, croquet, corn hole, cake walk and much more. Tours of the historic home will begin at 6pm.

Event will occur rain or shine.
Adult - $12
Children (ages 3-16) - $5
Children under 3- FREE

Mabry-Hazen House, 1711 Dandridge Avenue, Knoxville, TN, 37915. Information: 865-522-8661, www.mabryhazen.com

This annual observance of Independence Day is in cooperation with the Knoxville Chapter of The Sons of the American Revolution, The Daughters of the American Revolution, and the Children of the Revolution. Activities include a flag ceremony, reading of the Signers of the Declaration and a short speech. The event is Free Admission, but donations are always accepted.

James White's Fort, 205 E. Hill Ave, Knoxville, TN 37915. Information: 865-525-6514, www.jameswhitefort.org

The 32nd annual Farragut Independence Day Parade starts at 9:30 a.m. on Thursday, July 4, on Kingston Pike at Stadium Drive, moving west to Boring Road. Bands, floats, animals, antique cars and more will come together to make up this year's parade.

Kick off your Fourth of July celebration in Farragut! More info: www.visitfarragut.org/events

Thursday, July 4th, 2019
World's Fair Park
4 p.m. - 10 p.m.

The Festival on the 4th Festival on the 4th delivers a wide variety of family fun including entertainment, activities and treats at the City of Knoxville's 4th of July celebration at the World's Fair Park.

The free festival begins at 4 p.m. and ends at approximately 10 p.m. at the conclusion of the fireworks display. This event is RAIN OR SHINE.

Throughout the day festival goers will be treated to good music, good food, good fun and good times on the Festival and Performance lawns of the World's Fair Park.
From 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., The Festival Lawn will be filled with fun activities to please kids of all ages such as miniature golf with Holes to Go and Lego building with Bricks for Kids. Join us at 4 p.m. for some live music on the Festival Lawn.

Returning to Festival on the 4th this year is the Home Federal Bank Family Fun Stage. The Home Federal Family Fun Stage will feature live entertainment with new and exciting interactive fun for the whole family taking place inside the Amphitheater from 4 p.m.- 7:45 p.m. Schedule TBD

The musical finale will be performed, starting at 8 p.m., by the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra. They will present the 35th Annual FREE Pilot Flying J Independence Day Concert on the World's Fair Park's Performance Lawn. This is a FREE concert - no ticket required!

Fireworks start at 9:35 p.m.

FREE PARKING: World's Fair & Blackstock Parking Lots, 11th Street, Locust Street, Walnut Street, State Street & Market Square Garages - ADA Parking at Fort Kid Parking Lot

NO PETS - NO ALCOHOL

http://knoxvilletn.gov/government/city_departments_offices/special_events/festival_on_the_4th

While most Americans celebrate Independence Day with fireworks, the Museum of Appalachia marks the occasion with an old-fashioned “anvil shoot”. Every 4th of July, the Museum uses gunpowder to launch a 200-pound anvil hundreds of feet into the air! “When the gunpowder ignites and the anvil soars into the air, the earth will literally shake,” says Museum President, Elaine Meyer. “Even though you know what is about to happen, you can’t help but be in awe of the staggering blast of the anvil.”

Anvil shoots were once a common way for pioneers to commemorate holidays, elections, and other special occasions. While the tradition of anvil-shooting is nearly obsolete, the Museum has made it a nearly 30-year tradition, striving to keep this piece of history alive for a 21st century audience.

Anvil shoots are scheduled for 10:00 a.m., 11:00 a.m., 12:00 p.m., 1:00 p.m., and 3:00 p.m.

The anvil shoot is the centerpiece of an all-day celebration that includes a national bell-ringing ceremony, flag procession, old time music, picnic fare, demonstrations including blacksmithing, weaving, spinning, cedar rail splitting, sawmilling, dulcimer instruction, beekeeping, sassafras tea brewing, vegetable drying, vintage baseball and more.

The Museum is open from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., with special Independence Day activities from 9:00 a.m. until 3:00 p.m. Purchase discounted tickets online now. The event is free for Museum members. For more information about the Independence Day Anvil Shoot or becoming a Museum member, visit www.museumofappalachia.org or call 865-494-7680.

Closed July 4!

Pop in and cool off with surprise savings - spend $10 and save up to 50% off. Not to be used with any other discounts.

Goodwill Industries-Knoxville: 865-588-8567, www.gwiktn.org

Throughout the month of July and featuring TAG artisans' work.

508 N Cusick St, Maryville, TN 37804
Phone: (865) 982-0981

Townsend Artisan Guild: www.townsendartisanguild.org

"It’ll Tickle Yore Innards!”: A (Hillbilly) History of Mountain Dew

Special Members Preview: Thursday, June 27, 2019, from 4:00-6:00 p.m.

The exhibition highlights the drink’s history, from the origins of the term “mountain dew” and the development of the marketable hillbilly image that influenced media and culture, to becoming the third most popular soft drink brand.

The exhibition includes more than 200 artifacts highlighting the drinks history, moonshining, and the hillbilly image. The exhibition begins with video footage of early moonshine busts and a visit to a moonshine still in Cocke County in 1938. A variety of liquor jugs, dating from as early as the 1890s are on display with other moonshine paraphernalia. There is an assortment of artifact reflecting the early color writers and their effects on the hillbilly image, as well as artifacts from Knoxville’s 1910 Appalachian Exposition. One case contains a variety of “hillbilly” memorabilia, including Beverly Hillbillies dolls, comic books, Lil’ Abner items, and a pair of Hee Haw overalls.

The exhibition features a 1900 carbonation machine from the Roddy Coca-Cola Bottling Company in Knoxville and a sizeable display of rare and highly collectable bottles, including a few dating to Knoxville in 1927, a progression of Mountain Dew bottles over the years, and a variety of other vintage soft drinks from around the region. Of special interest are the “Barney and Ally” bottles, which were the first Mountain Dew bottles ever produced. In 1951 and 1952, the Hartman Beverage Company produced 7 oz. green and clear bottles. The applied color label’s bare the name of the creators of Mountain Dew. In the early 1950s, green bottles were reserved for “colorless” flavors, while clear bottles were used for drinks where the color would reflect the actual flavor. Mountain Dew was originally bottled as a set of flavored drinks and not as a specific flavor like today. Also displayed are a variety of items relating to the Hartmann family.

East Tennessee Historical Society, 601 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Museum hours: M-F 9-4, Sa 10-4, Su 1-5. Information: 865-215-8824, www.easttnhistory.org

By Neil Simon
Directed by Keri McClain

45 Seconds from Broadway is Neil Simon’s “Valentine to New York.”

Set in the Polish Tea Room (a coffee shop / restaurant based on the real life Edison Cafe in New York City), characters wander in and out, sitting down, chatting with each other, building friendships, and giving glimpses into their lives in the “Big Apple.”

Bernie and Zelda run the place and make it what it is – a home away from home for everyone who enters. They also help young, starving artists by giving them food, advice, and employment. Established actors and native New Yorkers also frequent the coffee shop, bringing character, humor, and wisdom with them.

45 Seconds from Broadway is play about normal, everyday people, their tragedies and triumphs, and the small coffee shop / restaurant in which they sit, relax, and spend time among friends.

Theatre Knoxville Downtown, 800 S. Central Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information & tickets: 865-544-1999, www.theatreknoxville.com

CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION by Annie Baker

When four lost New Englanders who enroll in Marty’s six-week-long community-center drama class begin to experiment with harmless games, hearts are quietly torn apart, and tiny wars of epic proportions are waged and won. A beautifully crafted diorama, a petri dish in which we see, with hilarious detail and clarity, the antic sadness of a motley quintet.

“CIRCLE MIRROR TRANSFORMATION is the kind of unheralded gem that sends people into the streets babbling and bright-eyed with the desire to spread the word. “—NY Times.

Flying Anvil Theatre, 1300 Rocky Hill Road, Knoxville. Information: 865-357-1309, www.flyinganviltheatre.com

Art Exhibit at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church
Free and open to the public

When: Reception Friday, June 21, 6:00 to 7:30 pm. Artists’ talks at 6:30 pm.
Gallery hours: 10 AM – 5 pm, Monday through Thursday; 10 AM – 1 pm, Sunday
2931 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37918

The Knoxville Watercolor Society began in 1963, when a group of Knoxville artists was invited by the late Kermit (Buck) Ewing, Head of the University of Tennessee Art Department, to participate in an exhibition of watercolor paintings at the University's McClung Museum. During the opening reception, Mr. Ewing noted that the Knoxville area did not have an organization for artists who share a common interest in painting in aqueous media. He suggested that those artists exhibiting in the McClung show could be the nucleus for such an association. From that suggestion, the Knoxville Watercolor Society began, with Laura Bagwell serving as the first president.

The purpose of the organization is to educate the members as well as the community about watercolor as a significant art form. New artists are invited to apply for membership, determined by a jury process, and can find complete details on the Knoxville Watercolor Society website: www.knxvillewatercolorsociety.com

Knoxville Watercolor Society members also exhibit with the Tennessee Watercolor Society, other state watercolor organizations, the Southern Watercolor Society, Watercolor USA, and the American Watercolor Society. They consistently win regional, state, and national awards.

Annually, the KWS also provides a scholarship for a University of Tennessee student who is majoring in watercolor painting, donates to the UT Ewing Gallery, and maintains membership in the Arts and Cultural Alliance of Greater Knoxville. The organization has also provided grants to the Arts Council of Greater Knoxville, the Knoxville Museum of Art, the Tennessee Resource Center, and the Tennessee Art Association High School Scholarship program.

Debut: Recent Acquisitions features important acquisitions from the past four years in the McClung Museum’s eclectic arts and culture collection. Many of the objects have never been on display.

From ancient Peruvian ceramics and new additions to our extensive map collection, to Cherokee carving and modern and contemporary works on paper, they reflect the enormous diversity of the McClung’s holdings, and the generosity of donors who helped to add important objects to our collections.

The objects also illustrate the work of museum staff to fill cultural gaps needed to support the McClung’s educational mission. These treasures underscore the museum’s continued relevancy as a site for inspiration and pondering our world and its wonder.

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