Calendar of Events

Tuesday, February 13, 8:00pm – 10:00pm
Bijou Theatre

Vocalist Veronica Swift has taken the jazz world by storm in recent years, touring with Wynton Marsalis and Chris Botti and releasing one acclaimed recording after another. She has been called “a jazz lioness” (Jazz Times) with a “miraculous voice and an innate gift for entertaining a crowd” (Wall Street Journal). Sure to be the perfect treat for your special someone.

Information: 865-573-3226, email@knoxjazz.org, https://www.knoxjazz.org/calendar/2023/2/14/jazz-is-for-lovers

Tuesday, February 13 at 6:00 p.m. at Maple Hall, 414 S. Gay Street

Our next Maple Hall gathering will explore the nationally scandalous breach-of-promise lawsuit involving "Miss Evelyn" Mabry and her erstwhile beau. Our guest presenter will be Patrick Hollis, historian and executive director of the Mabry-Hazen House. We can hardly describe it better than he does:

In February of 1934, Evelyn Hazen sued Ralph Scharringhaus, her former fiancé of fifteen years, for breach of promise to marry and seduction. Her heartbalm suit became the talk of the town as the former lovers aired all the dirty details of their sordid love affair. The scandal even caught the eyes of a national audience as major news outlets printed it for prying eyes. In the midst of the worst years of the Great Depression, the tea spilled between the two Southern socialites proved a welcome distraction, yet it also became a larger clash between men and women and over traditional or contemporary values. At the trial’s conclusion, Evelyn stood victorious in the courtroom, but in the court of public opinion, her victory was less clear. Reputation tarnished, family, friends, and even family, Knoxville “good” society considered her a social pariah for her “unlady-like” activities. Ninety years later, the story of Evelyn Hazen and her ill-fated love affair still captures our attention, yet her experiences seem more relevant today than ever.

Join us to learn more about Evelyn’s experiences during the trial, her “ardent woo-er, but laggard groom,” and the social repercussions for a woman challenging the behavioral norms of the era.

Knoxville History Project: 865-300-4559, www.Knoxvillehistoryproject.org

Tuesday, February 13, 2024 7:00 PM

The Maryville College student choral ensembles, including Off Kilter, Lads and Lassies, will perform selections tied into the upcoming Spring Choir Tour theme, “Songs of Hope”. You’ll hear a range of selections–from spirituals to traditional folk tunes to contemporary pieces, there is sure to be something for everyone to enjoy! The Concert will be held at the Harold and Jean Lambert Recital Hall at the Clayton Center for the Arts. Tickets $10.00

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

Join us for a free lecture with Larry Shutts, art conservationist and co-owner of Savant & Shutts Art Conservation, on Tuesday, February 13 at 5:30 pm. Shutts will discuss his career and reveal some of the science and artistry behind conserving fine works of art. Before the lecture, see the tangible impact of conservation by exploring the McClung's latest temporary exhibition, Coming Into View, which features some paintings conserved in Shutts' workshop.

https://calendar.utk.edu/event/a_discussion_with_larry_shutts_art_conservationist

McClung Museum of Natural History and Culture, 1327 Circle Park Dr on the UT campus, Knoxville, TN 37996. Hours: Tu-Sa 9-5. Information: 865-974-2144, https://mcclungmuseum.utk.edu/

THIS TIME ON A TUESDAY! DOORS at 6:30
Come shine at Central Cinema and read some of your work on our open mic! We will be getting started a little earlier just in case of a movie show time at 9pm.

Tickets: https://bpt.me/6235167
Central Cinema, 1205 N Central St, Knoxville, TN 37917

February 13– Aaron Astor, Historian & Author, “The Election of 1860″

The Knoxville Civil War Roundtable is a organization dedicated to remembering and studying the Civil War in East Tennessee. Meetings are held a Buddy's Banquet Hall (5806 Kingston Pike). A dinner buffet is served at 7 p.m. Cost is $15.00 for members and $17.00 for nonmembers. Reservations must be made or cancelled not later than 11 a.m. on the day before the meeting. Call (865) 671-9001 to make or cancel reservations.

A guest speaker, normally an author, educator, or historian of national prominence in his or her field, speaks for approximately one hour, on some aspect of the American Civil War. This address is followed by a brief question and discussion period. Cost (for those not dining) is $3.00 for members and $5.00 for nonmembers.

The normal schedule of events at each meeting is as follows:
7:00 p.m. - Buffet Dinner
7:45 p.m. - Roundtable Business
8:00 p.m. - Speaker + Questions/Discussion
9:15 p.m. - Adjournment

https://kcwrtorg.wordpress.com/

Copper, wood and even salvaged plastic waste come together in a new art exhibition exploring the natural world at Pellissippi State Community College. The Ashton Ludden Exhibit is on display at the Bagwell Center for Media and Arts Gallery until March 1. Gallery hours are 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, and the gallery, located on the college’s Hardin Valley Campus, is free and open to the public.

“My work considers our relationship with wildlife as the natural world becomes estranged through human’s perpetual desire for rapid expansion,” said Ludden, the founder, co-owner, director and active artist of Relay Ridge Collaborative Artist Space in north Knoxville. “My work evokes a renewal of attentiveness toward our direct and indirect impacts on the wild and aims to rejuvenate a passion for conserving wild spaces.”

Ludden uses processes such as hand-engraving, printmaking, murals, ceramics and weaving in her works on display. The labor-intensive process forces her to slow down, meditate and focus as she creates, she said. Through her work, she works to find “ways to connect us to distant species and environmental concerns across the world, transforming our hopeful – yet seemingly futile – attempts in saving the natural world into something just as beautiful.” Outside of her studio practice, Ludden, who earned a Master of Fine Arts in printmaking from the University of Tennessee, teaches printmaking at Knoxville’s Community School of the Arts, Governor’s School for the Arts, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts and Relay Ridge, and is currently teaching screenprinting at the University of Tennessee. You can learn more about her at www.ashtonludden.com or find her on Instagram @ashton_ludden.

For a list of Pellissippi State’s upcoming exhibitions in the Bagwell Gallery this spring, visit www.pstcc.edu/arts.
Pellissippi State | 10915 Hardin Valley Road, Knoxville, TN 37933

Knoxville Watercolor Society Exhibition
Art Exhibit at Tennessee Valley Unitarian Universalist Church
Free and open to the public
When: Reception Friday, February 16, 2024, 6:00 to 7:30 p.m. Artists’ talks at 6:30 p.m.

Gallery hours: 9:30-4:30 Monday through Thursday and 9:00-1:00 Sunday
2931 Kingston Pike, Knoxville, TN 37918

Knoxville Watercolor Society: Passionate About Art
For more than 60 years, the Knoxville Watercolor Society (KWS) has provided area watercolor artists, students and supporters with the only local art organization dedicated to the practice, advancement, and promotion of watercolor as a serious art form. KWS enjoys a long-standing reputation for the artistic excellence, expertise, passion, and mutual support of its members. Membership in KWS is open to all Knoxville area residents 18+, including experienced water-media artists, aspiring or developing water-media artists, art teachers, art students, patrons of the arts, representatives of arts organizations, and vendors. For more information, go to https://knoxvillewatercolorsociety.weebly.com/ or https://www.facebook.com/knoxville.watercolor.society/

THE CEMETERY CLUB
by Ivan Menchell

Three Jewish widows regularly meet once a month for tea before going to visit their husbands’ graves. But when one of the women begins to date again, tensions arise as the other two struggle to let go of the past and move on. With moments of laughter and tears, The Cemetery Club is a touching exploration of friendship that explores the joys and challenges of growing older and finding new love after loss.

PG -13 AUDIENCES

Oak Ridge Playhouse, 227 Broadway, Oak Ridge, TN 37830. Information and tickets: 865-482-9999, https://www.orplayhouse.com/

Fat Ham was recently on Broadway, and will be directed by Mychael G. Chinn
Cast: Jaquai Wade Pearson as Tedra, Marshall Weir Mabry, IV as Juicy, Kenneth Herring as Rev/Pap, Neveah Daniel as
Opal, LoRen Seagrave as Tio, Matthew Draughter as Larry, and Brandiss Seward as Rabby.
Design Team: Sophie Smrcka (Scenic/Props), Scott Baron (Lighting), Amoirie Perteet (Sound/Props), and KC Colemon
(Costumes)

Preview: Thursday, February 8th at 7:30pm (Students come FREE with code FATHAM24)
Opening: Friday, February 9th at 7:30pm (Ticket includes food and beverages at the afterparty)
Run: February 8-25 at the Old City Performing Arts Center (111 State Street)
Tickets: https://www.simpletix.com/e/fat-ham-by-james-ijames-tickets-139740

Fat Ham Synopsis
In this delectably comic, Pulitzer Prize-winning reinvention of Shakespeare’s Hamlet, an uproarious family
barbecue instigates a compelling examination of love and loss, pain and joy.

About Mychael G. Chinn (Director)
Mychael is so excited to be making his directing debut at River + Rail! He is a television development executive, most recently at MTV Studios, where he was the point executive on deals with A List talent such as Angela Bassett & Courtney B. Vance, John Leguizamo, and Regina Hall, to name a few. Previously, Mychael was an executive at Lifetime Television, where he helped shepherd over 50 movies to air, including the most successful made for television movie of 2020, The Clark Sisters: The First Ladies of Gospel. He also has worked at prestigious arts organizations such as the Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater, The New Museum and The Movement Theatre Company. Mychael currently resides in Los Angeles, CA.

About Jaquai Wade Pearson (Tedra)
Jaquai Wade Pearson splits her time between Knoxville, LA, and Dallas, and returns to River & Rail Theatre Company after appearing as Camae in The Mountaintop in February 2023. She is the stepdaughter of Thomas “Tank” Edward Strickland, and a graduate of SMU’s Meadows School of the Arts.

River & Rail Theatre, 111 State Street, Knoxville, TN 37902. Information: 865-407-0727, www.riverandrailtheatre.com

Work by eight of the region's most prominent Black artists are on display through March 9th. Opening reception is this Saturday, February 3, 1:00 - 4:00. Many of the artists will be in attendance and light Hors D'oeuvres and refreshments will be served. Please join us for this wonderful show!

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

February – March 2024

Sonia Jackson Summers received her Bachelors in College Scholars: Illustration and Writing from The University of Tennessee in 2008. During her time at the University of Tennessee, Sonia cartooned for “The Daily Beacon.”

In 2011, Sonia married and relocated to her husband’s hometown of Birmingham, Alabama, and during that time Sonia was commissioned to participate in Vulcan Park and Museum’s public art project called “Vulcans on Parade.” Sonia’s painted Vulcan statues stand on display in two downtown Birmingham businesses. Sonia has work in the permanent collection of The Joy Gallery in Homewood, Alabama and rotating art at the Blue Phrog Gallery in Montevallo, Alabama.

Since moving back to Knoxville with her husband and kids in 2019, Sonia has broadened her scope to include painting en plein air (live on-site landscape painting), as well as competitive sidewalk chalk art/“Madonnari” festivals and sidewalk chalk art commissions, in addition to her fine art, illustration, and murals. Sonia has a deep appreciation for Impressionism, focusing on bridging the relationship between observation and interpretation, impressionistic capabilities of skill and realistic reaction in rendering. Sonia enjoys public art such as murals and sidewalk chalk for their ability to make art accessible to everyone.

In 2023 Sonia accepted the Fine Arts Teaching position at Chesterton Academy, a new classical high school in Knoxville. She also teaches recreational art classes at Painting with a Twist in Farragut.

Sonia’s art can be seen in sidewalk chalk/madonnari festivals, such as the Dogwood Arts Chalk Walk, through exhibitions with both the Arts and Culture Alliance and Dogwood Arts, and she currently has a mural featured by Dogwood Arts in Strong Alley in downtown Knoxville.

https://knoxbijou.org/community-outreach-2/art-gallery/