Calendar of Events

WEDNESDAY and THURSDAY, 7-9 PM
Online Event
Tickets: https://clarencebrowntheatre.com/anti-racism-play-festival/

UT Department of Theater with support from UT Humanities Distinguished Lecture Series presents Anti-Racism Play Festival! Two short virtual plays to spark conversation about race in America. Join us for an opening address from playwright, Idris Goodwin, and stay for his post-show discussion.

October 28: Post-show discussion with Idris Goodwin
October 29: Post-show discussion with directors, Shinnerrie Jackson and Aleah Vassell

#MATTER
After a feud on social media, two former high school friends sit down to discuss matters of life and race as they share two very different perspectives from shared childhood memories.

BLACK FLAG
Two young women, one from Georgia and the other from Detroit, cannot wait to start their freshman year together. That is, until one of them decides to decorate their room with a little piece of “Southern Pride.” A story about allegiance, censorship and the price of honoring the past.

WEDNESDAY AT 12 PM EDT
Online Event

Join the Bookaholics Book Group as they will be reading WOMAN 99 by Greer McCalister on Wednesday, October 28th @ Noon (EST). Greer will be joining the book group conversation as well! Please RSVP to RSVP@unionavebooks.com to attend. Please include the the title of the book WOMAN 99 in the subject line. We will send the zoom link the day of the event.
WOMAN 99 is available to purchase here: https://unionavebooks.indielite.org/book/9781492693710

DESCRIPTION
"Woman 99 is a gorgeous ode to the power of female courage."--Kate Quinn, New York Times bestselling author of The Alice Network
A vivid historical thriller about a young woman whose quest to free her sister from an infamous insane asylum risks her sanity, her safety, and her life. When Charlotte Smith's wealthy parents commit her beloved sister Phoebe to the infamous Goldengrove Asylum, Charlotte knows there's more to the story than madness. She commits herself to the insane asylum, surrendering her real identity as a privileged young lady of San Francisco society to become a nameless inmate, Woman 99. The longer she stays, the more she realizes that many of the women of Goldengrove Asylum aren't insane, merely inconvenient--and her search for the truth threatens to dig up secrets that some very powerful people would do anything to keep. Inspired by the investigative journalism of Nellie Bly, and other true accounts of 19th century insane asylums. Rich in detail, deception, and revelation, Woman 99 is historical fiction that honors the fierce women of the past, born into a world that denied them power but underestimated their strength.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Raised in the Midwest, Greer Macallister is a novelist, poet and playwright who earned her MFA in creative writing from American University. Her debut novel THE MAGICIAN'S LIE was a USA Today bestseller, an Indie Next pick, and a Target Book Club selection. Her novels GIRL IN DISGUISE (“a rip-roaring, fast-paced treat to read” - Booklist) and WOMAN 99 (“a nail biter that makes you want to stand up and cheer” - Kate Quinn) were inspired by pioneering 19th-century private detective Kate Warne and fearless journalist Nellie Bly, respectively. Her next book, THE ARCTIC FURY, is forthcoming from Sourcebooks in December 2020. A regular contributor to Writer Unboxed and the Chicago Review of Books, she lives with her family in Washington, DC.

https://www.facebook.com/events/436975970605885

In an ordinary year, Knoxville Opera artists would be planning their annual Christmas concert for guests at Knox Area Rescue Ministries. While 2020 has been anything but ordinary, Knoxville Opera’s director, Brian Salesky, is not giving up on providing the gift of music to KARM’s guests. This Wednesday, October 28, at 10am, Salesky and soprano Adia Evans will entertain guests from an outdoor stairway, which is adjacent to KARM’s outdoor courtyard.

“The stairway provides a great opportunity to both perform and maintain social distancing,” said Salesky.

During COVID-19, Knoxville Opera has been creatively pursing safe ways and venues to continue providing music to the community. To date, members of the opera have performed more than 20 socially-distanced concerts and are constantly adding more on their event calendar. To reach them for comment, contact Esther Blevins at eblevins@knoxvilleopera.com or 865.524.0795 ext 251.

“All of us at KARM are grateful to members of the Knoxville Opera who have been so faithful over the years to bless our guests with the gift of music,” said Danita McCartney, KARM’s Executive Vice President. Since 1960, KARM has been serving our area’s homeless, hungry and hurting…working to restore lives in Jesus’ name.

Dia daoibh, a chairde! Hello friends! This Second Saturday, we will not be presenting as we normally would. However, we are glad to inform you this has been moved to Wednesday, October 28th for a Samhain-themed presentation!

Wednesday, October 28, 2020 at 7 PM EDT – 8 PM EDT

Online with Facebook Live
Virtual presentation by KIS volunteer and membership committee chair on Hallowe’en in America and the Celtic festival of Samhain.

https://www.facebook.com/KnoxvilleIrishSociety

Copyright © 2020 Knoxville Irish Society, All rights reserved.
This is our monthly newsletter with updates on events, goings-on, and opportunities for the Irish-inclined in Knoxville.

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Knoxville Irish Society
234 Morrell Road, #191
Knoxville, TN 37919

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In an effort to increase voter participation as well as minimize exposure to COVID-19, the City of Knoxville is participating in the VoteEarlyTN Initiative. VoteEarlyTN is a nonpartisan public information initiative designed to educate and excite people about early voting to reduce election day chaos. Each day of the period of early voting will have a different focus and emphasis. On Wednesday, October 28, we encourage members of our arts community to show up to our "A Day with the Arts" day. Please share this date as we attempt to break early voting records in a safe and healthy manner. Questions: Charles F. Lomax Jr., Community Empowerment Director, City of Knoxville: clomax@knoxvilletn.gov

Tamara J. Madison, Julie Marie Wade, and Robin Gow
Wednesday, October 28th
7-8 PM EST via Zoom
The Sundress Academy for the Arts is proud to present “A Virtual Reading Series”
Access the event at https://tiny.utk.edu/sundress. The password is safta.

Featuring

Tamara J. Madison is a writer, poet, instructor, and editor. Her critical and creative works have been published in various journals and anthologies. Madison earned a BA from Purdue University and MFA from New England College. She also studied at the University of Strasbourg (France). She is a professor of English and Creative Writing at Valencia College, Orlando, Florida and contributing editor for aaduna, an online adventure with words and images. Madison is the author of Kentucky Curdled (poetry and essay) and Collard County, (fiction). Her most recent poetry collection is Threed, This Road Not Damascus, published by Trio House Press.

Julie Marie Wade teaches in the creative writing program at Florida International University in Miami. She has published 12 collections of poetry and prose, most recently the book-length lyric essay, Just an Ordinary Woman Breathing (The Ohio State University Press, 2020) and the hybrid-forms chapbook, P*R*I*D*E (VCFA/Hunger Mountain, 2020). A winner of the Marie Alexander Poetry Series and the Lambda Literary Award for Lesbian Memoir, Wade makes her home in Dania Beach with her spouse Angie Griffin and their two cats.

Robin Gow is a trans poet and young adult author from rural Pennsylvania. They are the author of Our Lady of Perpetual Degeneracy (Tolsun Books) and the chapbook Honeysuckle (Finishing Line Press). Their first young adult novel, A Million Quiet Revolutions is forthcoming in 2022 with FSG. Gow's poetry has recently been published in POETRY, New Delta Review, and Washington Square Review. Gow received their MFA from Adelphi University where they were also an adjunct instructor. Gow is a managing editor at The Nasiona and MAYDAY magazine.

The Sundress Reading Series is free and open to the public! For more information, find Sundress Academy for the Arts on our website, Facebook, or Twitter.
Sundress Academy for the Arts: 865-560-6106, www.sundresspublications.com/safta

A selection of the artist's favorites!

https://www.facebook.com/jessicanewmanoriginalart/

109 N. Central Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. http://www.urbanbarknoxville.com/

In Liberated from Storage II, viewers are able to see a painting by Belgian artist James Ensor, a 17th century Flemish tapestry based on a painting by Peter Paul Rubens, paintings by Joseph Delaney, illustrations by American commercial illustrator Walter Haskell Hinton, Mexican copper paintings, and modern and contemporary prints by Kathe Kollwitz, Andy Warhol, Robert Rauschenberg, Keith Haring, Alberto Giacometti, Georges Braque, Salvador Dali, Roy Lichtenstein, Claes Oldenburg, and Chuck Close.

The exhibition closes Wednesday, November 24.

To view any portions of the Ewing Gallery collection, please visit, and bookmark https://ewinggallery.omeka.net/.

Ewing Gallery, 1715 Volunteer Blvd on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-3200, www.ewing-gallery.utk.edu

We’ve added more tour dates in November and December, and a few October dates are still available. We’ve also added a Family Tour, which is great for kids and adults alike, but has added elements to spark awe in children and includes activity and coloring sheets for them to take home to remember their visit and what they will learn. Join us for a behind the scenes tour and learn details about the history, performances, and complete renovation of the Official State Theatre of Tennessee. You’ll go to areas not usually open to the public, and walk away with a better understanding and appreciation for this architectural and cultural gem.

Once a tour reaches capacity, it will no longer appear in the list of available dates.
https://www.tennesseetheatre.com/visit/tour-the-tennessee/

Deluxe Tours are offered on Saturdays at 11AM and 1PM.
Tuesday, December 1 at 11am
Saturday, December 5 at 11am
Saturday, December 5 at 1pm
Tuesday, December 8 at 11am
Saturday, December 12 at 11am
Saturday, December 12 at 1pm
Tuesday, December 15 at 11am
Saturday, December 19 at 11am
Saturday, December 19 at 1pm
Monday, December 28 at 1pm
Tuesday, December 29 at 1pm
Wednesday, December 30 at 1pm

Family Tours are offered select weekdays at 11AM, especially during school breaks.
Monday, December 28 at 1pm
Tuesday, December 29 at 1pm
Wednesday, December 30 at 1pm

Tennessee Theatre, 604 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. For information: 865-684-1200

We've watched a few great new releases slip by us in recent months, so we jumped at the opportunity to include Brandon Cronenberg's Possessor in this year's horror film fest, and have decided to take the plunge back into business in order to share the acclaimed thriller with Knoxville audiences at large, starting Friday October 23.

As you may be able to guess, this wasn't an easy decision. We put a lot of work and hope into June's trial re-opening, only to have our plans dashed by skyrocketing COVID diagnoses. Things are, of course, not much better now. But the show must eventually go on, so we're going to take things week by week (usually with just one showing per day) and go from there! We hope that some of you will come out, but as always we respect and support individual health decisions that may keep you away. We want you safe.

The bulk of next weekend will be dedicated to Knoxville Horror Film Fest programming, but we will be offering general public screenings of Possessor at 9pm on Friday (10/23) and 7pm on Saturday (10/24). We plan to hold Possessor over through Halloween weekend, dates/showtimes TBA.

For anyone interested in local film productions, we'll also be offering a general public screening of this year's Knoxville Horror Film Fest "Tennessee Terrors" regional film block at 7pm on Friday. This hourlong program features the short films Crones Haulin' Bones, Secret Shed, The Lion's Den, Timekeeper, The Nice House, The Getaway, The Gift and That Kind of Friend.

Safety note: Facemasks are required at Central Cinema when not actively eating or drinking, and our capacity remains limited to 35% to facilitate proper distancing.

We also continue to offer and encourage private rentals, including discounted rates for films in current release at Central Cinema.

Central Cinema, 1205 N Central St, Knoxville, TN 37917
http://centralcinema865.com/

2020 Artsclamation Fine Art Sale To Be Held Virtually
A
Knoxville Artsclamation!, the annual fine art sale that supports behavioral health care services at Peninsula, is going virtual! This important fundraiser, which also serves to increase awareness of mental health issues in East Tennessee, has raised almost $1 million since its beginning in 2002 to support critical programs and care for patients and families served by Peninsula, a division of Parkwest Medical Center.

Traditionally held as an in-person two-day event in late October, Artsclamation! 2020 will host a secure, online store at Artsclamation.bigcommerce.com from Oct. 23 to Nov. 30 where shoppers can view and purchase art from the convenience of their smart phone, tablet or computer. More than 2,000 original works in oil, watercolor, acrylic, as well as jewelry, glasswork and sculpture are available from 46 professional artists and Peninsula client artists Other items for sale include calendars, posters and prints featuring participating artists’ work.

Additionally, in its online format, the fine art sale is extended through to Nov. 30, which will allow more time for patrons to browse and select special gifts for the holiday shopping season. Event staff will coordinate pickup of artwork from the event’s climate-controlled warehouse and delivery to patrons, ensuring the artwork arrives in pristine condition. No-contact delivery options are also available.

“This decision to go virtual was made out of an abundance of caution to protect the health and safety of our artists, donors and community during this challenging time,” said Patrick Birmingham, Covenant Health’s vice president of philanthropy and government relations. “We have designed a plan that still allows art patrons to experience the uniqueness of Artsclamation!, while remaining safe from close indoor contact.”

FEATURED ARTIST SARAH POLLOCK
Sarah Pollock uses oil paints to create landscapes and cityscapes that reflect her journey throughout the country. She is a former color stylist for Walt Disney Feature Animation and now works as a professional artist in East Tennessee. Sarah paints in oils, often working outdoors, to capture the many beautiful landscapes around her home. Pollock’s featured piece for Artsclamation! 2020 is titled “Autumn Blaze” and portrays the Middle Prong of the Little River in the Great Smoky Mountains at the turn of fall. All proceeds from the sale of this featured piece will go directly to Peninsula.

SUPPORTING MENTAL HEALTH
One in four people in East Tennessee suffer from a mental health illness. However, there is a significant gap in funding for programs to serve these individuals compared to other diseases and diagnoses. Artsclamation! is Peninsula’s only fundraiser and helps to fill some of the gaps left in those funding sources. Proceeds in past years have funded garden courtyards for adult patients, vans for transporting clients in outpatient programs, play areas for hospitalized children, therapeutic games and activity supplies.

Elizabeth Clary, BSN, RN, MHA, vice president of behavioral health for Peninsula, noted how the community’s support of this year’s virtual art sale will help Peninsula meet a public health need, which because of the impact of COVID-19, has become even more critical.

“Peninsula relies heavily on proceeds from Artsclamation!,” she says. “We are good stewards of every dollar that is spent to provide care and treatment for those that need us. Funds from this event assist Peninsula with therapeutic spaces and activities for our patients that would otherwise not be an option.”

ABOUT PENINSULA
Peninsula has helped thousands of people recover from disorders and dependencies to lead healthy, productive lives. Peninsula provides inpatient and outpatient services for children, adolescents and adults in Knox and nearby counties, including individual and group therapy, specialized programs and peer support groups. Behavioral care is also provided at Parkwest Medical Center for senior adults with co-existing psychiatric and medical conditions. Peninsula is the region’s most comprehensive provider of mental health services; its outpatient centers serve more than 15,000 people annually, while the inpatient hospital treats more than 5,000 patients per year.www.peninsulabehavioralhealth.org/artsclamation.

South Garden

Homegrown is a site-specific outdoor installation by designers Katie MacDonald and Kyle Schumann that examines potential applications for Tennessee’s invasive plant species as productive building materials. The project will take the form of an inhabitable pavilion constructed from a panelized assembly of biomaterial aggregate. The resulting structure is biodegradable. The pavilion’s structure makes use of generative structural design known as topological structural optimization, allowing the surface to be alternately thin and dense or thick and porous based on structural needs of the overall assembly. The exterior is flat and angular, reflecting the aesthetic of conventional standardized paneling while the interior is curving and forms sculpted furniture. MacDonald and Schumann held the 2019-2020 Tennessee Architecture Fellowship at the University of Tennessee and cofounders of the design practice After Architecture.

https://knoxart.org/exhibitions/homegrown/
Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World's Fair Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37916. Hours: Tu-Sa 10-5, Su 1-5. Information: 865-525-6101, www.knoxart.org