Calendar of Events

Red Summer comes to the Bijou Theatre as part of Carpetbag Theatre's 50th Anniversary Celebration

WWI ended in 1919. Black men who served felt they deserved the full rights of citizenship and higher social status in return for their patriotic service. Meanwhile, lynch mobs murdered 78 African-Americans, ten of whom were veterans. East Tennessee was a place where a trade group proclaimed: "There are no Ku Klux Klan outrages here. We are a distinct and peculiar people." Red Summer, directed by Leilani Chan, is a drama based on events that occurred right here in Knoxville, TN during the racially charged Summer of 1919. It tells the story of a model African American community unable to escape the horrors of mob violence. "In the early hours of Saturday morning, August 30, 1919, a young white woman, Bertie Lindsay, was shot and killed in the bedroom of her home. Before dawn, a black man had been arrested and charged with the crime. Join the longest running Black Theater in the U.S. as they tell this incredibly important story.

• Thursday, September 12th, we'll have a catered reception and talkback with the cast immediately following the performance in the theater. Here's your chance to ask questions to directly to the actors and director!
• Friday, September 13th, we'll be hosting a meet and greet in the Bijou Theatre's gallery with light snacks and refreshments immediately following the performance. Come get to know the performers!
• Saturday, September 14th, we will be hosting a digital story showing just before the performance in the Bijou Theatre's gallery. Come learn what digital storytelling is all about and see a few stories of other locals similar to that of Red Summer!
• Sunday, September 15th, come celebrate the finale of our 50th Anniversary series at the Jackson Terminal immediately following the performance with snacks, libations, and Afro-Caribbean beats brought to you by Grand Hustle Records' own, DJ PrymeTime!

At the Bijou Theatre, 803 S. Gay Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Thu-Sat at 7:30 PM, Sun at 4 PM. Tickets $25, purchase tickets: http://www.carpetbagtheatre.org/events

A unique exhibition by HoLa Hora Latina member artists celebrating Hispanic Heritage Month - one exhibition, two venues!

Opening Fri Sep 6, 5-9 PM at the Emporium

Then, on display at the Knoxville Museum of Art from Sep 18 - Oct 15. 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

Information: 865-335-3358, www.holahoralatina.org

Bout a Mile Up the Holler" - First Friday at Rala with Ryan Blair:
September 6th 6-9PM (Will be on display the entire month)

Join us in welcoming Ryan Blair as our September First Friday artist. Blair's current work consist of paintings and mixed media pieces based on his observations and experiences of living in the south. Come meet the artist and view all of the rad art he's been makin' and creatin'!
Rala
112 W. Jackson Ave
Knoxville, TN 37902
PH: (865) 525-7888
Instagram: @ShopRala

September Featured Artists - First Friday Reception: September 6, 5:30 – 9 p.m.

Both painterly and emotionally charged, Debbis Sabo photographic artwork is reminiscent of how the impressionists recorded light. His fine art natural world abstracts and landscapes are often sought out by home decor and interior designers and has been included in solo and group art gallery exhibitions, commercial installations and private home collections throughout the United States and internationally. Says Dennis, “My September art exhibition covers our aqueous planet Earth from the marshes of Acadia National Park, Maine to the surf conditions in Tennessee and ends in Botswana, Africa. The art of photography is not taking a shot but transforming a composition into an emotional in-teraction with the viewer. My interest is in the natural details; how the environment on a particular day, in a par-ticular light, and at a particular moment in time correlates to my personal vision and interpretation of nature." www.dsabophoto.com

Johnny Glass began his glass career in Los Angeles, CA, where he was first introduced to glass at Santa Monica College. In 2008 he formed Glass by Glass LLC and began traveling the west coast art show markets. In 2012, Johnny decided to expand his market and finish his BFA; he returned to Knoxville, Tennessee, where he grew up, to open Glass by Glass’s east coast mobile Glassblowing studio. Johnny received a Bachelor of Fine Arts majoring in glass from Tennessee Technological University's, Appalachian Center for Crafts in 2016, Graduating Cum Laude. Glass by Glass studios is now a bi-coastal Mobile Glass Studio Extravaganza. Glass by Glass, has made it their mission to bring a new awareness and interest back to the art of glass. 2016 - 2017 were big years for Johnny and GbyG, performing thousands of live glass demos throughout the US. From craft fairs, public schools, music venues to museums, Glass by Glass Studios participated in over 30 plus live glass events in 6 states. In 2016 Johnny’s sculptures were selected to participate in the Tennessee crafts best of show, held at the Reese museum in Johnson City TN. In the Summer of 2017, Johnny ran the glass studio at Buck’s Rock summer camp in New Milford, NY continuing his love for teaching. Johnny Glass resides in New Orleans LA where he teaches glass sculpture at Tulane University while he is receiving his MFA. www.GlassbyGlass.com

Art Market Gallery, 422 S. Gay St, Knoxville, TN 37902. Hours: Tu-Sa 11-6, Su 1-6. Information: 865-525-5265, www.artmarketgallery.net

Awaken Coffee will host artist Michelle Barillaro for First Friday, Sept. 6th from 6-9pm.

Barillaro works in acrylic, oil and cold wax. Her style is abstract with a multi-textural and often ethereal feel. Michelle says, “to me an abstract is so pleasing because it allows the viewer to conjure the meaning in the image and tell a story from their life experiences.”

Come join us for refreshments, beautiful art and of course great coffee!

Awaken Coffee is a live music venue, espresso bar, craft beer & wine bar and organic restaurant in the heart of downtown. Awaken Coffee, 125 W Jackson Ave, Knoxville, Tennessee 37902

Opening Fri Sep 6, 7-10 PM

Participating artists: Bethany Springer, Brianna Rigg, Christine Rebhuhn, Christy Singleton, Hannah Walsh, Kayla Green, Mika Agari, Skye Gilkerson, SLINKO and Stephanie Loggans.

Organized and curated by Stove Works, which endeavors to serve the Chattanooga community by providing local, national, and international artists a venue for the production of, exhibition of and education through contemporary works of art.

C for Courtside is an artist-run curatorial project space located just north of downtown Knoxville. Founded in the fall of 2017 with the intentions of facilitating multiple creative activities, the Directors (Eleanor Aldrich, Joshua Bienko, Eric Cagley, Lynne Ghenov, John Powers) will work to add to the exciting artistic development and momentum already at foot in the Southeast. In addition to exhibitions, C for Courtside will host artist lectures and guest speakers, live performances, pop-up shows, experimental theatre, justice seeking organizations in need of a place to meet, and other situationist aligned activities. Each endeavor will aim to extend the space of the gallery beyond its physical limitations, while fostering a community based in and on the exigencies of art-making. The launch and operation of the space has been made possible in part by the support of an Ann and Steve Bailey Opportunity Grant.

C for Courtside, 513 Cooper Street, Knoxville, TN 37917. Information: cforcourtside@gmail.com, www.cforcourtside.com

The 100th annual Tennessee Valley Fair is set to debut a variety of new and noteworthy attractions for East Tennesseans! From culinary arts to crafts, livestock shows to action sports, headline concerts and special events, there are thousands of ways to enjoy a little Homegrown Happiness at this year's Tennessee Valley Fair.

The Concert Series has a wide range of genres for all of East Tennessee to enjoy:

The Dirty Guv'nahs - Friday, September 6, 8pm
Battle of the Cover Bands - FREE ENTRY - Saturday, September 7, 8pm
Erick Baker with The Young Fables - Sunday, September 8, 8pm
Morgan Wallen - Monday, September 9, 8pm
Keith Sweat - Wednesday, September 11, 8pm
Riley Green - Thursday, September 12, 8pm
Bret Michaels - Friday, September 13, 8pm
Uptown Funk - Saturday, September 14, 8pm
KC And The Sunshine Band - Sunday, September 15, 8pm

To see a full list of attractions and activities, visit www.tnvalleyfair.org. Tennessee Valley Fair: 865-215-1471 or tickets@tnvalleyfair.org

Visitors to the Museum of East Tennessee History will have an opportunity to view special items associated with the “Freedom Engine,” a tribute gift from East Tennesseans to New York City following the events of September 11, 2001. East Tennesseans contributed more than $940,000 to purchase and equip a 95-foot tower ladder truck for Harlem-based Ladder Company 14, helping the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) replenish the largest vehicles in the city's firefighting fleet. The so-called "Freedom Engine," went into service during March 2002 and was dedicated on September 11th of that year.

FDNY typically retires their trucks from regular service after about 10 years. The Freedom Engine went into reserve status in 2013. Upon retirement, several artifacts associated with the truck, including a bucket door, captain's helmet, memorial plaque from the people of East Tennessee, and a presentation plaque containing a piece of World Trade Center metal, were returned to East Tennessee and donated to the East Tennessee Historical Society. These items will be on display through October 13, 2019, at the Museum of East Tennessee History, along with a video about the project. You may view the exhibit and artifacts online at the ETHS website at www.easttnhistory.org/exhibits/freedom-engine.

Each Sunday is Family Day and is free to the public.

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

A personal visit to invented places as seen by the mind’s eye

Reception: Friday, September 6, 6 PM – 8 PM.......food, drinks, & music

At Michael’s Fine Art and Framing, 1325 Dug Gap Road, Dalton, GA
706-278-8840

Sundays from 8-11 PM
Hosted by Brickyard Bar & BBQ and True Grit Comedy
4928 Homberg Dr., Knoxville, Tennessee 37919

Welcome back to Bearden, once again, for your local Sunday night Comedy open mic, hosted by David Habel. We'll be featuring some of the best comedians that Knoxville, East Tennessee, and beyond have to offer. Newcomers are encouraged and inclusivity is promoted. Come out, laugh, and take a break from life.

Sign-up: 8:00-8:30 - Mic goes Hot: 8:30

https://www.facebook.com/truegritcomedy

by Colin Escott and Floyd Mutrux, CBT Mainstage

There’ll be a whole lotta shakin’ going on at the Clarence Brown Theatre when the Tony Award winning musical “Million Dollar Quartet” takes the mainstage August 28, 2019 to September 22, 2019!

A Pay What You Can Preview performance, where patrons can name their own price, will be held Wednesday, August 28 with proceeds from these tickets benefitting The Joy of Music School. A pre-show reception for Clarence Brown Theatre Society members will take place prior to the Opening Night performance on August 30. A Behind the Scenes Sunday event focusing on what it takes to make the music happen on stage will take place following the September 1 matinee performance. An Actor Talk Back will take place Sunday, September 8 following the matinee performance. The Open Captioned performance is Sunday, September 15 at 2:00 pm. An additional “Broadway at the Keys” performance featuring Levi Kreis will take place September 23rd at 7:30 pm.

If you loved “Always, Patsy Cline,” “Honky Tonk Angels,” and “Lost Highway,” you don’t want to miss this Tony Award winning musical based on actual events! It’s December 4, 1956 in Memphis, Tennessee. Elvis Presley, Jerry Lee Lewis, Carl Perkins and Johnny Cash hold an impromptu jam session at Sam Phillips’ Sun Record Studios. “No doubt you will enjoy the music as you see familiar characters come to life, however you will not see impersonators but a cast of great musicians recreating the time, the music, and one day in American musical history. They are spirited, passionate and filled with youthful optimistic energy as they fight and find individual successes at the beginning of their careers,” said director Kate Buckley.

Free and convenient parking is available in the McClung Tower Garage on Volunteer Boulevard.
Clarence Brown 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

Whistler & Company includes nearly a dozen works by Whistler accompanied by more than 50 etchings by some of his most accomplished American and European contemporaries. Whistler’s gritty images of the River Thames, views of Venice, and Parisian scenes are among works featured in the exhibition. Other artists who participated in the etching revival include Francis Seymour Haden, James McBey, Edwin Edwards, David Young Cameron, Muirhead Bone, Mortimer Menpes, Charles Meryon, Maxime Lalanne, Joseph Pennell, and Frank Duveneck, among others.

Although best known for innovative paintings such as Arrangements in Gray and Black No. 1 (popularly known as “Whistler’s Mother”), Whistler was a talented printmaker. The exhibition Whistler & Company examines the artist’s influential role in the etching revival of the 19th and early 20th centuries. This revival took hold in France, England and the United States. Artists set out to reestablish etching—the art of incising lines with an etching needle into a thin copper plate which was then inked and pressed into paper with the help of a printing press to create impressions—as an art form that could stand on its own. Inspired by Rembrandt, and the old masters, practitioners created remarkable original and expressive compositions that gained popularity with refined collectors and the broader public.

The legacy of expatriate American artist, James Abbott McNeill Whistler (Lowell, Massachusetts 1834-1903 London) was far-reaching, and his sphere of influence included early 20th-century East Tennessee. The Nicholson Art League, for instance, Knoxville’s leading art group of the period, dedicated its entire December 1, 1911 program to Whistler. Led by noted impressionist Catherine Wiley, the gathering featured presentations including “Whistler’s Influence on American Art,” and Whistler, His Life and Work.”

All of the works in in the exhibition are drawn from the Reading Public Museum’s permanent collection of works on paper, which numbers more than 10,000. Whistler & Company: The Etching Revival is organized by the Reading Public Museum, Reading, Pennsylvania.

Knoxville Museum of Art, 1050 World's Fair Park Dr, Knoxville, TN 37916. Hours: Tuesday-Saturday, 10AM-5PM, Sunday, 1-5PM. Information: 865-525-6101, www.knoxart.org