Steve Wildsmith

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.”

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.

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.

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