Calendar of Events

Merchant & Gould Concertmaster Series
William Shaub and Friends: Claire de Lune

VENUE
Knoxville Museum of Art

Wednesday, March 30, 2022, 7:00pm
Thursday, March 31, 2022 7:00pm

The Concertmaster Series, featuring the new KSO concertmaster William Shaub and various guest artists, will take place at the Knoxville Museum of Art, located at 1050 World’s Fair Park Drive. Intimate performances held on Wednesday and Thursday evenings in the KMA’s Ann and Steve Bailey Hall – seating is general admission.

WORKS INCLUDE:
CARLOS SIMON “Loop” for String Trio
CLAUDE DEBUSSY Claire de Lune
CLAUDE DEBUSSY Violin Sonata
ROBERT SCHUMANN Piano Quintet in E flat major

865-291-3310 or https://knoxvillesymphony.com

Live at Lucille’s brings the tradition of exciting and innovative PBS music programming right here to East Tennessee.

The Knoxville Jazz Orchestra will be presenting the Greg Tardy Tentet on Wednesday, March 30th, 2022, at East Tennessee PBS’ studio, located at 1611 East Magnolia Avenue at 8pm.

The concert will feature an all-star group including saxophonist Greg Tardy, trombonist Michael Dease, trumpeter Alex Norris, flutist Maria Castillo, clarinetist Tom Johnson, violinists Kimberly Simpkins and Bethany Hankins, pianist Taber Gable, bassist Sean Conly, and drummer Dave Potter. The program will feature original music written by Greg Tardy, inspired by the classic novel “The Pilgrim’s Progress” by John Bunyan.

Tickets for this event are sold out, but the recording will be broadcast on ETPBS later this year. Broadcast schedules can be found at http://www.easttennesseepbs.org.

Live at Lucille’s brings the tradition of exciting and innovative PBS music programming to East Tennessee. Featuring local, regional and national jazz artists performing in an intimate setting, these shows are taped in front of a live audience at East Tennessee PBS’ studios and later rebroadcast across the entire ETPBS viewing area.

Wed, March 30, 8:00 PM – 9:30 PM EDT
Knoxville Jazz Orchestra: 865-573-3226, www.knoxjazz.org

https://www.facebook.com/events/262716942627322/

Wednesdays, 5:30-7:30 PM
Recurring monthly, last Wednesday of every month, Stammtisch is a German conversation group!

What to Expect: Sprichst du Deutsch? Would you like to practice your German? Join us monthly at the Stammtisch - a friendly get-together to practice your German language skills over authentic beer and food. All levels from beginner to native speakers are welcome! No need to be fluent, just come and practice what you know. *Please locate group by "Stammtisch" Reserved Sign placed on a taproom table - Prost!
Hosted by: Susie Morgan

March 30th, 7:30 p.m.
McClung Museum Auditorium
https://www.eventbrite.com/o/mcclung-museum-2763324812

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Dr on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Information: 865-974-2144, http://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu

Songs and Stories from the Bird and the Book continues its ongoing series of concerts and conversations with another free show! Once again, the event will offer an opportunity to not only to share an intimate listening experience with the artists performing their songs in stripped down settings, but also to learn about the craft and creativity that goes into their music and performance.

7 p.m. on Wednesday, March 30 with singer/songwriter Claudia Nygaard

Claudia Nygaard’s songwriting has won her numerous awards; and radio chart success. The awards began in Los Angeles during the early years of her career, and they propelled her move to Nashville. In Music City she landed a job as a staff songwriter for Greenwood Music Publishing on Nashville’s Music Row. The position gave her the chance to polish her craft, and she went on to win both the prestigious Kerrville Folk Festival Songwriting Competition; and, with the title cut from her latest album Lucky Girl, the Tumbleweed Music Festival Songwriting Competition. The song rose to #3 on the Folk Alliance Radio song chart and the album to #5. It also received generous airplay on the Americana and roots music charts. The press raved about the recording, the songwriting, and her vocals, and Making A Scene magazine included Lucky Girl in their Top Albums of the Year list, as did several radio stations. Nygaard’s previous album Let The Storm Roll In achieved similar success grabbing the #1 spot on the Cashbox Roots/Country Chart; and five stars from Maverick magazine. Legendary folk music magazine Sing Out praised her voice and said her songs “rival the likes of Guy Clark or Ian Tyson”. Her freshman effort Somewhere Else To Go, released on the UK recording label Round Tower, charted in the top five on the European Americana charts. It was also one of the top twelve records of the year in 2001 for the UK magazine Country Music Roundup.

The Bird and the Book is one of Maryville’s newest venues for all kinds of entertainment. With a bar and food service, it’s the ideal place to gather with family and friends to enjoy an evening of informal entertainment. It’s located at 1509 E Broadway Ave, Maryville, TN, below Southland Books and Cafe.
Phone (865) 984-4847 or go to their website: https://southlandbooksandcafe.com/the-bird-and-the-book

Lee Zimmerman is the host for Songs and Stories from the Bird and the Book, which will take place the first Wednesday of every month from 7 p.m. - 8:30 p.m.

The Sundress Academy for the Arts (SAFTA) is pleased to announce the guests for the March installment of our virtual reading series. This event will take place on March 30, 2022 from 7-8 PM, on Zoom. Participants can access the event at https://tiny.utk.edu/sundress with password “safta”.

jason b. crawford (They/Them) was born in Washington DC, raised in Lansing, MI. Their debut Full-Length Year of the Unicorn Kidz will be out in 2022 from Sundress Publications: Year of the Unicorn Kidz by jason b. crawford | Sundress Publications.

Marlanda Dekine’s debut full-length poetry collection, Thresh & Hold, is the winner of Hub City Press's 2021 New Southern Voices Poetry Prize and is forthcoming in March 2022. Dekine is a Watering Hole Fellow, Tin House Scholar, and Palm Beach Poetry Festival Langston Hughes Fellow. Thresh and Hold can be purchased at http://hubcity.org/threshandhold.

Gustavo Barahona-López is a writer and educator from Richmond, California. In his writing, Barahona-López draws from his experience growing up as the son of Mexican immigrants. His chapbook, Loss and Other Rivers That Devour was published in February 2022 by Nomadic Press. He was a finalist for the 2021 Quarterly West poetry prize. A member of the Writer's Grotto and a VONA alum, Barahona-López's work can be found or is forthcoming in Diode, Quarterly West, Iron Horse Literary Review, Puerto del Sol, The Acentos Review, Apogee Journal, Hayden’s Ferry Review, among other publications. Loss and Other Rivers That Devour can be purchased at https://www.nomadicpress.org/store/p/lossandotherriversthatdevour.

While this is a free event, donations can be made to the Sundress Academy for the Arts here: https://sundress-publications.square.site/product/donate-to-sundress/107?cs=true

Our community partner for March is SEEED (Socially Equal Energy Efficient Development) is a non-profit org located in East Knoxville that is focused on providing pathways out of poverty for young adults through career readiness training, environmental education, and community engagement. To learn more about SEEED, please visit their website at https://seeedknox.org/

Guest artist, UTK alumnus and music faculty member at Tusculum University, Dr. David Gonzalez, presents an exciting program of music for low brass.

March 30 at 8:00 p.m.
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. Venues: Sandra G. Powell Recital Hall in the Natalie L. Haslam Music Center, 1741 Volunteer Boulevard; James R. Cox Auditorium and Performance Hall 32, Alumni Memorial Building, 1408 Middle Drive. Information: 865-974-8935, https://music.utk.edu/events/

Saxophonist John Sampen and composer/engineer Mark Bunce have traveled all over the world, offering unique master classes and concert presentations for saxophone and the electronic medium. “In Two Worlds” represents their current multi-disciplinary presentation and is designed as an exciting “seamless” musical experience featuring projected visuals, interactive electronics and theatrical activities.

March 31 at 6:00 p.m.
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. Venues: Sandra G. Powell Recital Hall in the Natalie L. Haslam Music Center, 1741 Volunteer Boulevard; James R. Cox Auditorium and Performance Hall 32, Alumni Memorial Building, 1408 Middle Drive. Information: 865-974-8935, https://music.utk.edu/events/

Mar 30, 8:00 PM, Online Event - Celebrating the release of Christopher Griffin's You Grow, Gurl in partnership with Community Book Center, Cafe Noir, Cafe Con Libros, Kindred Stories, SOA Co. Discover the joys and self-nurturing benefits of plant parenthood, with this beautiful, illustrated guide from @plantkween. https://www.thebottomknox.com/events-1/you-grow-gurl

“We all love some new growth, dahling.”
Six years ago, Christopher Griffin was just beginning the plant parenthood journey with one small Marble Queen Pothos. Today, this Black Queer non-binary femme plant influencer known as Plant Kween tends to a family of more than 200 healthy green gurls in the Brooklyn apartment they call home. You Grow, Gurl! is Kween’s fun and fabulous guide to becoming a plant parent and keeping your green gurls growing and thriving.

Anyone can be a plant parent! It’s all about TLC—taking the time and energy to focus on a plant’s needs, and ultimately your own. Featuring 200 full-color photos and illustrations, practical instructions and tips—on everything from propagating to measuring humidity to repotting—activities, and stories, this fun and joyful guide shows how to green-up any space and have it serving those lush lewks.

Self-care takes many forms and tending to your plants’ needs helps you grow too. In addition to information and advice on plant care, Kween provides meditations, mindfulness activities, playlists, and more to help you practice self-care through plant-care. As Kween says, “We can learn a lot about how we treat ourselves, how we treat others, and how we navigate the world from these green lil creatures.”

Healing and growing your heart, body, and soul takes time, love, and focus. Taking care of plants teaches you to apply that same attention and love to yourself and helps you find new pathways to explore on your own botanical adventure to self-love.

--
Christopher Griffin (they/she/he pronouns) was born and raised in West Philadelphia, and is currently based in Brooklyn, New York, where they work in education and care for over 200 green gurls in their lil Brooklyn oasis of an apartment. Being an educator at heart, Christopher started their Instagram account (@plantkween) in 2016 as a way to share the many lessons, lush adventures, and simple joys that come with being a plant parent. Their social media presence has been rooted in a journey of self-care, joy sharing, and community building all through the wonders of those green little creatures we call plants. As a Black queer nonbinary femme, Christopher enjoys exploring creative and accessible ways to use plants as a vehicle to incite further conversations centering on Black joy and resilience, LGBTQ+ advocacy, and the need to increase the visibility, representation, and empowerment of QTPOC (Queer and Trans People of Color) in the lush world of horticulture. Their aspirations are to continue to serve lush lewks and new growth realness right along-side their green gurls, have fun with it all, and bring folks along for the wild botanical ride.

The Bottom, 2340 E Magnolia Ave, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: thebottomknox@gmail.com, 865-444-5915 or www.thebottomknox.com/

Celebration of the pieces at a reception on Sunday, April 3 from 2 to 4 PM.

The show is intended to answer the question: “What do you love?” We have asked our members to lend us up to six of their favorite pieces to share with the community to show a range of what speaks to and moves each of the individuals. In essence, it will be curated by the larger group, rather than a single person and, therefore, we are hoping it will be both diverse and dynamic.

There are all sorts of reasons people collect art. In most cases, artwork is displayed in our homes or work spaces, but in others it may not be. Most people buy art because they love the imagery and want to live with it to create a feeling or mood in their living space. The work may echo feelings, emotions, or memories they cherish. They may offer a range of emotions from comforting and soothing to exciting or invigorating. Work may also titillate the imagination, beckon stories, or challenge viewers to define or describe their subject matter. These may inspire ever changing reactions or a sense of renewal and inspire different feelings as one looks at the work over the long term. Some of us own pieces that have familial ties or generational importance. These items may involve references to one’s heritage or aspects from the culture or cultures from which they hail. Still others invest in artwork, hoping it will rise in value and that they will see a large return on that investment. While I concede this happens, I believe these individuals are in the minority. What we choose to love and live with says a lot about each of us—who we are and how we live. For this reason, we are asking our member collectors to select what they would like to show. We want your/their choices to make sure we do not slant the exhibition through a single individual’s filter.

One collector has offered to show a series of 13 Dali works that Dali created as illustrations for Lewis Carrol’s Alice in Wonderland. The set is delightfully colorful and depicts the chapters of the book. These should be as enchanting to view as the book was to read! We are looking forward to sharing in the joy these pieces will bring to everyone who sees them. Other items that will be exhibited include a piece or pieces that were purchased while traveling. For one of the owners, her work takes them back to that experience, the newness and freedom the trip inspired. In addition it was a new type of work that has inspired her own thinking and creations since. It is those anticipated experiences that prompt us to offer this exhibition. To share these works our members are opening their experiences to others and allowing our viewers to make that journey with them. That communication should be as interesting or thought – provoking as the works themselves.

Oak Ridge Art Center, 201 Badger Avenue, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Hours: Tu-F 9-5, Sa-M 1-4. Information: 865-482-1441, www.oakridgeartcenter.org

By Qui Nguyen, Directed by Casey Sams
Carousel Theatre

After the death of her teenage sister Tilly, Agnes discovers an untouched “Dungeons and Dragons” campaign in Tilly’s room. In an effort to connect with her sister one last time, Agnes enters the imaginary “Dungeons and Dragons” world she once mocked. She uncovers levels of her sister that she didn’t know existed in an action-packed adventure filled with homicidal fairies, nasty ogres, and ‘90s pop culture.

The Pay What You Can Preview performance, where patrons can name their own price, will be held Wednesday, March 23rd. Half of the proceeds from PWYW tickets will benefit Girls Inc. of Tennessee Valley. Behind the Scenes Sunday will take place following the Sunday, March 27 matinee. A Designer Talk Back will take place Sunday, April 3rd following the matinee. And, an Actor Talk Back will take place following the April 10th 2:00 pm matinee. The Open Captioned performance also is Sunday, April 10th at 2:00 pm.

Free and convenient parking is available in the Upper Parking of McClung Tower Garage (G2) on Volunteer Boulevard. This show addresses themes of bullying and homophobia and contains depictions of violence, mild sexual content, and mild profanity. Those with auditory and visual sensitivities should be aware loud noises, theatrical haze and flashing lights occur at times in this production.

https://clarencebrowntheatre.com/plays/she-kills-monsters/

Spring Wildflower Pilgrimage Artist-of-the-Year: Alex Foster
March 21 – May 1, 2022

GEOFFREY A. WOLPERT GALLERY
Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, 556 Parkway, Gatlinburg, TN 37738. Information: 865-436-5860, https://www.arrowmont.org/visit/galleries/exhibition-schedule/