Steve Wildsmith

The Clayton Center for the Arts over on the Maryville College campus got a test run when it opened at the beginning of the year, but now officials are preparing for the facility’s first full season of performances.

Clayton Center Executive Director Robert Hutchens unveiled the 2010-11 season for the center this week, and it includes something for everyone — literally — including some big names in jazz and bluegrass. Here’s what’s headed to Maryville this year:

• Neil Berg’s “100 Years of Broadway” (8 p.m. Sept. 17 in the main theater): Five of Broadway’s leading performers as well as an all-star New York band come to town to perform the most beloved and memorable songs from a century of Broadway musical history, including recent as well as more traditional hits. Not only do they perform — they do so as the characters and scenes from which the songs come.
• Richter/Uzur (7:30 p.m. Oct. 26 in the Lambert Recital Hall): A duo fusing rock , folk and classical  to create a sound that is modern, traditional and unique.
• Sam Bush with Missy Raines and New Hip (8 p.m. Nov. 5 on the main stage): One of the season’s headliners, Bush has been called “The King of Telluride,” “The Founder of New Grass” and “The Heir to Bill Monroe.” He’s an award-winning master of banjo, fiddle, and mandolin and has shared the stage with such luminaries as Lyle Lovett and Garth Brooks. Raines is a seven-time winner of the International Bluegrass Music Association Bass Player of the Year Awards and will be performing with her band, New Hip.
• Robert deMaine and Andrew Armstrong (7:30 p.m. Nov. 16 in the Lambert Recital Hall): First chair cellist of the Detroit Symphony (deMaine) and internationally renowned pianist (Armstrong) perform an evening of intimate classical music
• American Spiritual Ensemble (8 p.m. Jan. 15, 2011, on the main stage): Part of the Martin Luther King Jr. celebration on campus, featuring the spellbinding singing of John Wesley Wright, who entertained at the center’s opening-night gala. He’s just one member of the ensemble, a group of professional soloists who combine their voices in a chorus of tribute to the soul-stirring spiritual.
• The Aluminum Show (8 p.m. Jan. 21 on the main stage): Like Pilobolus and The Blue Man Group, the Israeli troupe of “dancers”  has defined its own genre.  Clad in  imaginative, often bizarre, structures of recycled aluminum, the  performers execute a choreography of shapes and colors that surprise, intrigue and enchant
• Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana (7:30 p.m. Feb. 1 on the main stage): An evening of culture and art featuring dancers celebrating the national dance and songs  of Spain.
• “All Shook Up,” the musical (8 p.m. Feb. 11 on the main stage): Featuring the songbook of Elvis Presley, telling the story of a teenage rebel shaking up a small town.
• “The Comedy of Errors” (7:30 p.m. March 9 on the main stage): The Acting Company of New York City presents one of Shakespeare’s most farcical, accessible plays.
• The Passing Zone (7:30 p.m. March 19 on the main stage): Comedy-juggling team that’s been in the Guinness Book of World Records four times, they’ll juggle everything from human beings to chainsaws.
• “An Evening With Groucho Marx” (6:30 p.m. March 26 in the William Baxter Lee Grand Foyer): Actor Frank Ferrante transforms himself into the legendary screen and comedic legend for a night of dinner theater in the Clayton Center’s foyer.
• Chris Brubeck and Triple Play (8 p.m. April 8 on the main stage): The son of legendary jazz composer and pianist Dave Brubeck comes to town with Joel Brown and Madcat Ruth to perform their melange of blues, rock, folk and, of course, jazz.

And those shows are on top of what’s already been announced:

• “On Golden Pond,” presented by the Foothills Community Players, Sept. 10-12 and Sept. 16-19 on the main stage
• “Between Two Worlds: My Life and Captivity in Iran,” a talk by Roxana Saberi at 7:30 p.m. Sept. 15 on the main stage (admission is free)
• Wood and Strings Puppet Theatre at 9 a.m. and 12:30 p.m. Sept. 28 on the main stage;
• British rock band The Boxer Rebellion (fronted by Blount County native Nathan Nicholson) at 8 p.m. Oct. 12 on the main stage. Tickets are now on sale (via box office walk-up only for the time being) and are $12, $18 and $20; and
• Nations of Unity present “An Evening of Native American Entertainment,” 7 p.m. Oct. 30 on the main stage; $25/$12 children.

As far as ticket sales go — 12 of the events are being offered in subscription series of different sizes through Sept. 19.  Patrons who buy a series of five to seven performances will receive a 10 percent discount; those wanting 8 to 11 performances get a 15 percent discount; and those who purchase tickets for all 12 get a 25 percent discount. Regarding single-ticket sales — excluding the Groucho Marx dinner theater show, the average ticket price is $16.09 for adult economy tickets (average price for students and seniors — $12.50).

To reserve seats for any of the shows, call the Clayton Center box office at (865) 981-8590, visit the center online or go by the box office between 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. Monday through Friday. Tickets go on sale Thursday, Aug. 19.

Did you catch Tuesday night’s episode of the Fox musical comedy “Glee”? It was all about bad reputations — how to earn one, how to keep one and whether it’s better to have a “bad” one than a good one, at least in high school. As an example, faculty adviser Will Schuester — played by actor Matthew Morrison — encouraged his club members to dig up songs with a bad reputation and give them the “Glee” treatment. As an example, he pulled out “Ice Ice Baby,” the mega-hit by none other than the guy who’s coming to the Clayton Center for the Arts on the Maryville College campus this weekend.

After some grousing by the kids, Mr. Schuester breaks into his rendition of the song, complete with the dance moves made famous by Mr. Ice (born Robert Van Winkle), and by the end of the segment, they’re all into it. (Well, except wheelchair-bound Artie, who sits on the sidelines and sings along.) “I declare this song paroled,” Schuester announces when it’s all said and done. (Here’s the iTunes link to purchase the cast’s version of the song.)

No doubt fans in attendance at the Clayton Center on Saturday night will get that song, although for years Vanilla Ice has taken untold amounts of grief over it. It went from an insanely popular hit single to the butt of jokes on late-night and throughout popular culture, and the guy who made it bore the brunt of them. However, things are looking up for Ice — as he tells us in this Friday’s edition of The Daily Times Weekend entertainment section — so those who continue to deride his name and his music can … well, suck it. (My words, not his.)

“I don’t hear much anymore from the critics,” he told me during a phone interview last weekend. “Most of the haters are sitting on their couch, watching me get another platinum single on ‘X Factor’ (the British TV show, where a mash-up of “Ice Ice Baby” and Queen’s “Under Pressure,” performed by the duo John and Edward with Vanilla Ice guest-singing).

“I embrace all the haters from back in the day, because they had to move on and get mortgages and (stuff) and deal with the economy, but I’m still here, doing what I love to do. I want to thank them, because all of that made me be stronger and helped me see who I really am. It helped me get rid of the ego I didn’t need. I love it all and laugh at it all, and these days the critics don’t faze me.”

After the semester ends over on the Maryville College campus, that doesn’t mean the newly opened Clayton Center for the Arts will be shuttered for the summer. In addition to the Acoustic Concert Series that’ll be held in conjunction with Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Kamps, the venue’s website shows that a “Friday Night Music Series” will begin next month. No word yet on ticket prices; but the shows will take place at 8 p.m. in the facility’s Lambert Recital Hall. Here’s what’s on the calendar so far:

• May 21: classical guitarist Ben Bolt
• May 28: Will Tate and 6ix Mile Express (mucho-talented; saw the group perform at the Grand Opening Gala)
• June 4: jazz by Barry Roseman and Friends
• June 11: jazz by the Bill Swann Trio

In addition, Clayton Center Marketing Director John Cherry told me recently, the venue will roll out its 2010-2011 lineup of entertainment in the next few weeks. Stay tuned.

As journalists, we make it a rule not to get involved in the things that we cover.

Unless we write an opinion column, we’re dissuaded from taking part in politics. We’re observers … chroniclers … scribes. We cover the news, not make it.

Which made it extremely bizarre when country star Jo Dee Messina called out The Daily Times during Friday night’s performance at the new Clayton Center for the Arts on the Maryville College campus.

It started after her second song, “I’m Alright,” when she opened up the floor for questions from the audience. Clad in tastefully ripped jeans and a faux leather jacket that played up her flame-haired biker-babe image, she was relaxed and good-natured. Her band played most of the show sitting on the easy chair and sofa that were part of the stage decor, all added as part of her intimate “Music Room Series” of shows.

Then, she noticed Daily Times photographer Daryl Sullivan in the corner, taking pictures. She asked him which publication he was working for, and when she repeated his answer — “The Daily Times” — the crowd cheered. (Gotta say, it’s nice to get recognition from the audience.) Messina, however, arched one eyebrow.

“Let me tell you something about The Daily Times,” she said. “You all think it’s a small paper. A hometown paper. But it’s not. It’s a lot more than that.”

She went on to describe how she did an interview with yours truly for the March 19 edition of Weekend — an interview in which she discussed her frustrations with her label, Curb Records, and her inability to put out an album for the past several years because of it.

Curb executives, she said, apparently read The Daily Times. As does Great American Country. As does AOL. Because all of them picked up the story that ran in Weekend, and Messina found herself in some hot water over her comments.

Now, she never complained that it was a bad article, or that she was misquoted — in fact, she called it “beautiful” and admitted that she doesn’t like to bite her tongue. But the label asked her to release a statement either clarifying or recanting some of her remarks … which she has yet to do, she proudly pointed out.

At that point, she moved on to other questions. And I couldn’t resist. I raised my hand. And identified myself when she called on me.

It took a second for my name — and publication — to sink in. Then she did a double-take.

“Oh s–t! You’re the guy who wrote the article!” She giggled and turned toward the band, obviously a little taken aback. But she rebounded quickly, jokingly declaring, “I’m not answering any more of your questions!” She went on to say, “Let me tell you — you’re a big deal. People are reading your stuff.”

A couple of songs later, she remarked that she was a little nervous, knowing I was in the audience and that I might write something negative if I wasn’t impressed.

Relax, Ms. Messina. I was very impressed. Your voice is beautiful, your showmanship is masterful and your stage presence is dynamic. I hate I had to leave early, but I’ll share with you a snippet of my notes:

“Incredible voice! Any label that would shut her down is run by asshats.”

This weekend, a lot of media attention will be focused on Knoxville, where the groundbreaking Big Ears Festival will be taking place. Hats off to Ashley Capps and his company, AC Entertainment, for putting together a truly spectacular festival of underground, avant garde, off-the-radar pop and unheard-of classical genius; we’ll have a few artist profiles of our own in this coming Friday’s Weekend entertainment section.

A little closer to home, however, there’s still big things happening. Starting Friday night, the newly built Clayton Center for the Arts will kick off its grand opening weekend with a concert by country artist Jo Dee Messina; tickets are still available and range from $36-$46. We put together a nice little Clayton Center package, including an interview with Jo Dee, a look at last-minute preparations for the grand opening gala on Saturday night and a timeline of the center’s construction, in last Friday’s Weekend. But that’s just the beginning of Clayton Center goodness taking place over the next several months. A few concerts have been announced already, a few are late additions to the lineup, and a few are outright surprises. Here’s a roundup of what’s coming to the Maryville College campus as the center’s season gets into full swing:

• Identical twins Richard and John Contiguglia will continue the grand opening weekend with a concert of piano duets at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 28, in the center’s Recital Hall; tickets are $26 for adults/$11 students.
• The BANFF Mountain Film Festival takes place at 7 p.m. Monday, March 29, in the Main Hall; tickets are $10 advance/$12 at the door.
• Mezzo-soprano Delores Ziegler and tenor John Wesley Wright will perform a joint vocal recital at 8 p.m. Monday, March 29, in the Recital Hall; $15.
• Alcoa Middle School and High School will perform choral concerts, respectively, at 6 and 8 p.m. April 8; tickets are $6 adults/$4 students.
• The United Way “April Foolies” fundraiser is at 7 p.m. April 10 in the Main Hall; $10.
• FREE: Maryville College Community Concert Band spring concert at 4 p.m. April 18.
• FREE: Maryville College Jazz Band concert, 7:30 p.m. April 22.
• Appalachian Ballet Co.: “Peter Pan and Other Works” at 7:30 p.m. April 24 and 2 p.m. April 25; $16.
• Orchestra at Maryville College, Maryville College Community Chorus and Maryville College Concert Choir: spring concert at 7:30 p.m. April 26; tickets TBA.
• FREE: Spring concert for the Youth and Children’s Chorales, 7:30 p.m. April 27.
• Dr. Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys with Cherryholmes, 7:30 p.m. April 29; $24.50, $29.50 and $36
• Maryville College Department of Theatre: “Our Town” at 8 p.m. April 29-May 1, 2 p.m. May 2. $7.
• Ball in the House (five-man R&B/pop vocal band) at 7:30 p.m. April 30; $20.
• FREE: Alcoa Middle School Band (at 6 p.m.) and High School Band (at 8 p.m.) concerts on May 4.
• Dance Ensemble Performance, 7 p.m. May 6 and 7. Tickets TBA
• Women of Courage Celebration featuring Amanda Ingram, 7 p.m. May 7. $50.
• Vanilla Ice with The Jaystorm Project and DJ Eric B., 7:30 p.m. May 8. Tickets (on sale Friday, March 26) Are $19, $26 and 39 in advance.
• FREE: Maryville High School Orchestra concert, 7:30 p.m. May 10
• FREE: Maryville Middle School Orchestra concert, 7:30 p.m. May 13
• Wood & Strings Puppet Theatre, 7 p.m. May 14; $12/$5 students
• Van Metre School of Dance, 7:30 p.m. May 29; tickets TBA
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Johnny Bellar, Adam Granger, Joe Collins and Cindy Gray at 7 p.m. June 14; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Adam Masters, Mary Flower, Rusty Holloway, Jeff Jenkins and Robert Shafer at 7 p.m. June 15; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Barbara Lamb, Keith Yoder, Jim Pankey and Ivan Rosenberg at 7 p.m. June 16; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Russ Barenberg, Casey Henry, Pat Kirtley and Marcy Marxer at 7 p.m. June 17; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Pete Huttlinger, Steve Kaufman and Friends, Kamp Kompanions at 7 p.m. June 18; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Tyler Grant, Andrew Collins, Mike Clemmer, Richard Starkey and Kathy Barwick at 7 p.m. June 21; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Gary Davis, Mitch Corbin, Tim May, Rolly Brown and Radim Zenkl at 7 p.m. June 22; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Carlo Aonzo, Kathy Chiavola, Chris and Sally Jones, Ned Luberecki and Keith Yoder at 7 p.m. June 23; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Alan Munde, Roland White, Emory Lester, Mark Cosgrove, Murphy Henry and Casey Henry at 7 p.m. June 24; $15
• Steve Kaufman’s Acoustic Concert Series: Beppe Gambetta, Sharon Gilchrist, Steve Kaufman and Friends, Kamp Kompanions at 7 p.m. June 25; $15

Beyond that, the fall season is currently being booked, and while official announcements have yet to be made, there are a few hints out there online. Bluegrass goddess Missy Raines lists on her website an Oct. 7, 2010 date at the Clayton Center with fellow bluegrass maestro Sam Bush.

The “Grand Opening Gala” for the newly constructed Clayton Center for the Arts on the Maryville College campus is little more than three weeks away, and the lineup for the evening’s festivities looks stellar.

The night before, country star Jo Dee Messina will perform; we’ll have an interview with her in the March 19 edition of The Daily Times Weekend entertainment section. The next night — Saturday, March 27 — is the grand opening. It begins at 7:30 p.m., and tickets are $25. Here’s what’s in store:

“The Gala is an evening of entertainment highlighting East Tennessee artists and performers from a wide variety of genres,” according to a recent press release. “David Keith will emcee the event which will feature performances by Sen. Lamar Alexander on the “Alexander” Steinway piano, the Maryville College Concert Choir, the Orchestra at Maryville College, Appalachian Ballet Company, Delores Ziegler, John Wesley Wright, Will Tate & 6ix Mile Express, Pistol Creek Catch of the Day, David Dwyer, Bruce McKinnon, Dr. Robert Bonham, Jennifer Olander, John Cherry and many other Blount County and East Tennessee personalities.

To purchase tickets for this event, visit the Clayton Center Box Office from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, call 981-8590, or visit the venue’s website and and click on the Grand Opening Gala icon on the main page.

Friday is the big day — tickets go on sale for upcoming events at the almost-completed Clayton Center for the Arts, construction of which is wrapping up on the Maryville College campus.

Earlier this week, readers of The Daily Times got a glimpse of the new Steinway pianos in the recital hall; starting Friday, they can begin planning their social calendars around several of the events taking place at the center in the coming months. Those events include:

• Maryville High School Orchestra Valentine’s Day concert with special guest Mark Wagner: 2 p.m. Sunday, Feb. 14. Tickets are $11 adults in advance/$14 at the door and $6 students.
• Jo Dee Messina: 8 p.m. Friday, March 26. Tickets are $36, $46 and $56.
• Grand opening gala: 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 27. Tickets are $20.
• Contigula Brothers recital (benefit for the Adams Foundation, in the center’s Recital Hall): 2 p.m. Sunday, March 28. Tickets are $26 adults/$11 students.
• BANFF Film Festival: 2 p.m. Monday, March 29. Tickets are $10 advance/$12 day of screening.
• Delores Ziegler/John Wesley Wright vocal recital (in the Recital Hall): 8 p.m. Monday, March 29. Tickets are $15.
• Dr. Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys with Cherryholmes: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, April 29. Tickets are $24.50, $29.50 and $36.
• Ball in the House (five-man R&B vocal group): 7:30 p.m. Friday, April 30. Tickets are $20/$16 students/$11 Maryville College students
• “Our Town,” a production of the Maryville College Department of Theatre (in the center’s FLEX Theatre): Thursday, April 29 thru Sunday, May 2. $7/$5 Maryville College students
• Wood and Strings Puppet Theatre (in the FLEX Theatre): 7:30 p.m. Friday, May 14. $12 adults/$5 MC students

In addition, the Clayton Center for the Arts will serve as a local Tickets Unlimited outlet, allowing visitors to the box office to purchase tickets for most Tickets Unlimited events in the East Tennessee area. For more information, visit the center’s website, call the box office at 981-8590 or visit in person at 502 E. Lamar Alexander Parkway in Maryville. The box office opens for business at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 5.

Speaking of the Clayton Center for the Arts, here’s something extremely cool in the works: Singer-songwriter Mark Wagner will join the Maryville High School Orchestra on stage at the new facility for its annual Valentine’s Day concert.

We last wrote about Wagner, a Blount County native, back in October, when he returned to town for a CD release show for “Sun’s Gonna Rise,” his most recent album. As it turns out, Bill Robinson, director of the orchestra, got his hands on a copy of the record and loved it. (Wagner is a 2003 MHS graduate.) As a result, he’s invited Wagner and Ben Shive, producer of “Sun’s Gonna Rise,” to town for the Feb. 14 performance, which will feature seven songs off the album as performed by Wagner, Shive and the combined power of the orchestra.

The concert begins at 2 p.m.; tickets are $6 students/$11 adults in advance and $14 for all tickets the day of the performance. Check out the Clayton Center online for updates, and here’s a free .mp3 for your download pleasure:

“Something to Believe In,” by Mark Wagner: Right-click here (choose “Save Target As” or “Save Link As”)
Buy “Sun’s Gonna Rise,” the new album by Mark Wagner: Click here
Mark Wagner online: Click here

In case you missed it, we’re breaking down the conversations we had in last Friday’s edition of Weekend with various movers and shakers in the local entertainment scene to give you an idea of how entertainment in 2010 is shaping up. Today: The Clayton Center for the Arts, the brand new building on the Maryville College campus, and an interview with Marketing Director John Cherry.

Perhaps no other venue, organization or entertainment possibility holds more promise for Blount County in the new year than the Clayton Center for the Arts, set to open its doors this month after a long period of construction.

According to Marketing Director John Cherry, organizers and Maryville College officials plan to use the first few months of 2010 to showcase the facility’s grandeur, elegance and possibilities.

“I think in our first three or four months, the people of East Tennessee will see a very good sample of what they can expect in a full year season,” Cherry said. “We knew early on that the Clayton Center would not be able to be the single venue for a specific art form. There’s the Ryman (Auditorium, in Nashville) for country music and obviously famous museums for art. What we were looking to be was a place where no matter what your favorite art genre is, you can find a sample of it over the course of a season at the Arts Center.

“That’s why we have a children’s production and a high school orchestra production scheduled for February, and for our grand opening a choir performance, a big name in country music and the big gala with dance, music and theater. That’s why we have a piano concert scheduled for a Sunday and a film festival on a Monday. When you add all three art galleries that will have works on display when they open in late February or March, we hope to be a little bit to everyone, no matter what your favorite art form is.”

In planning one of the venue’s first public debuts, Cherry said, planners sought to book a name would resonate with local residents — and pay tribute to the region’s Appalachian legacy. Securing bluegrass legend Dr. Ralph Stanley and the Clinch Mountain Boys for an April perfformance is a point of pride, he added.

“One of the first things we knew we had to get in the first couple of months was a bluegrass show,” Cherry said. “Appalachian music is unique to our area, and we have a tremendous number of bluegrass performers in Blount County and Tennessee. To get a good bluegrass show in the early months was one of our priorities.

“We also want to scratch the itch of all the art forms that we possibly can. That’s why we’re bringing in a puppet theater in May, an a cappella pop group after Ralph Stanley and a big name like (country star) Jo Dee Messina (performing March 26). But when I came on board in October, our executive director (Robert Hutchens) told us that we had to get something bluegrass.”

The $47.3 million fine arts complex consits of two separate buildings connected by an outdoor plaza. The main facility boasts a grand foyer with 40-foot ceilings, the 1,200-seat performance hall, a smaller theater for in-the-round shows and rehearsal and practice rooms. The secondary building holds community and student art galleries, classrooms and administrative offices. It will, Cherry said, be the centerpiece of the campus.

“We’re hoping, obviously, that the opening of this center will help Maryville College,” he said. “The Fine Arts Department — this is their home. They lost two buildings when construction began, the Fine Arts Building and Wilson Chapel, and now that they’re moving in, they all will be represented in this building on a daily basis. For perspective students to have these performance spaces belong to their curriculum is just phenomenal.

“There are very few colleges the size of Maryville College with 1,100 students that have this kind of facility for their arts departments. Sharing it with Jo Dee Messina, (vocal-pop group) Ball in the House and (the children’s musical) ‘Chasing George Washington’ is going to be a great opportunity for Maryville College arts students.”

Ticket prices for the new facility’s upcoming concerts have not been set, but organizers hope to keep many of them — especially for the Ralph Stanley performance — affordable to families on a modest budget. The center’s new website will go online Jan. 15, Cherry said, and individual ticket prices will be announced then.

“For concerts like Dr. Stanley and Jo Dee Messina, we’ll typically have three prices — seating in the orchestra pit, which can be raised, will be one price; the main part of the house will be another price; and then the corners of the house will be a third price,” Cherry said. “Much of it will depend on what it takes to bring the show to the stage, and of course the desires of the artists that some tickets be priced at a certain level. But we want people to see these performances without breaking their budgets.”

As for the rest of 2010, Cherry added, center organizers await plans for the 2010-11 academic year, which runs from September to May, before finalizing additional performance dates.

“The college organizations and departments will establish their performance dates during the month of January, so on Feb. 1, we’ll start to work in earnest on filling the rest of the performance calendar,” he said. “We have several genres we want to get in there, and we’ve identified a short list of what we’d like to go after — things like another bluegrass show or a Broadway style of performance. We’re hoping to announce the major elements of the 2010-11 season during the grand opening weekend.”

Holy smokes! The new Clayton Center for the Arts, wrapping up construction over on the Maryville College campus, is wasting no time in bringing some big names to li’l ol’ Blount County. Just received this press release:

Clayton Center Announces Spring 2010 Entertainment Lineup

The Clayton Center for the Arts is proud to announce the first events scheduled for the newest entertainment venue in East Tennessee.  There are six premier events on the calendar in March, April and May presented by the Clayton Center.

A Grand Opening weekend in March features the Premier Gala, Saturday, Mar. 27.  The Gala highlights East Tennessee talent from a wide array of artistic forms.  The evening promises dancers, musicians and singers.  Also available for the public will be art displays in the three galleries featured at the Center.

Other events presented by the Clayton Center during the Grand Opening weekend are:

• Jo Dee Messina in concert, Friday, Mar. 26.  Jo Dee Messina is an award-winning, multi-platinum recording artist who has given her heart and soul to find success.  She’s had nine #1 singles, has been honored by The Country Music Association, The Academy of Country Music and The Grammy Awards and was the first female country artist to score three multiple-week #1 songs from the same album.
• Adams Foundation Piano Series concert, Sunday, Mar. 28.  Richard and John Contiguglia.  The identical twins, Richard and John Contiguglia, are among the most acclaimed and versatile piano duos in the world today.  The Adams Foundation Piano Series features America’s foremost piano performers in venues throughout the nation.

Additional events included as part of the Grand Opening weekend include: Maryville College Choir Concert, Thursday, Mar. 25; Banff Film Festival, Monday, Mar. 29.

Three additional Clayton Center Presents events are on the calendar for the remainder of Spring 2010.

• Dr. Ralph Stanley and Clinch Mountain Boys with Cherryholmes, Thursday, April 29.  Bluegrass royalty and three-time Grammy Award winner, Dr. Ralph Stanley and his Clinch Mountain Boys have teamed up with the first family of bluegrass, Cherryholmes, to showcase the very best of this musical tradition’s past, present and future.
• Ball in the House, Friday, April 30.  Ball in the House is a tour de force of vocal sound that must be heard and seen to be believed.  This five-man, pop/R & B “mouth band” hails from Boston, Massachusetts, where they live when not touring on the road.
• Wood and Strings Puppet Theatre, Friday, May 14.  Wood and Strings Theatre uses the captivating and comprehensive nature of art to engage the imagination, create experiences full of meaning and provide tools to build positive solutions for life’s challenges.  A puppet-making workshop will also be held in conjunction with this presentation.

Tickets for all the above events will go on sale Feb. 5.

Other highlights of the first few months of operation for the Clayton Center for the Arts will feature arts and entertainment from many genres, and some of the events will feature community and Maryville College artists:

• Maryville High School Orchestra Valentine’s Day concert, Sunday, Feb. 14.
• “Chasing George Washington,” a children’s theatre musical brought to Maryville, Tenn. from the Kennedy Center Theatre for Young Audiences, Wednesday, Feb. 24.  Two performances of this musical will entertain more than 1,600 school children from Blount and Knox Counties.
• Alcoa High School Choir concert, Thursday, April 8.
• April Foolies fundraiser and talent show, April 10.
• “Peter Pan and Other Works,” presented by Appalachian Ballet Company, April 24 and 25.
• “Our Town” presented by Maryville College Theatre Department, April 29 through May 2.

Maryville and Alcoa secondary school band, choir and orchestra performances and many more exciting events.

Future patrons of the Clayton Center will be able to receive email updates on scheduling and ticket availability by sending an email to info@claytonartscenter.com and asking to be added to the email list.  To learn more about the Clayton Center for the Arts, visit www.ClaytonArtsCenter.com.

-30-

Media contact: John Cherry, 865-981-8263, john.cherry@Claytonartscenter.com.