A! Magazine for the Arts Archive

A Passion for Opera

Surprising Phenomenon: Roughly as many Americans attend live opera performances as attend NFL football games. Annual admissions to opera productions in the U.S. are now estimated at 20 million, roughly the same attendance as NFL

In This Issue

• Passion for Opera: Fans Travel to See Performances "There's nothing like a live [opera] performance."
• Passion for Opera: Never Miss a Chance to Attend "If you can't bring Muhammed to the mountain, you bring the mountain to Muhammed."
• Passion for Opera: Music Bridges Gap Between Generations There are few special forces that can bridge the gaps between generations, and the audience attending Metropolitan Opera broadcast of Armida at Tinseltown Cinema's proves that music is one of them.
• Passion for Opera: Listen on WEHC-FM Bill Campbell, a former opera performer and Bristol native, has taken to the airwaves with a radio show all about opera.
• Photography Opens New World for Briana Morris Brianna Morris' exhibit of photographs is attracting attention at a downtown Bristol gallery.
• Book Review: Where Trouble Sleeps ....this is a short novel about a dog named Trouble and the humans who inhabit his world.

A! Extra

• Kingsport Ballet Renovates Downtown Facility Kingsport Ballet's new facility is not just the new location for the ballet company, it is also a new center for the arts in downtown Kingsport.
• New Arts Commission Members Appointed Gov. Phil Bredesen has appointed Chancellor Carol L. McCoy of Nashville to serve on the Tennessee Arts Commission, and has reappointed Donna Chase of Knoxville and Ed Gerace of Johnson City.
• Knoxville Art Museum receives Prestigious Grant Thanks to a Museums for America grant from the Federal Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS), the Knoxville Museum of Art will receive funding for educational and curatorial programming surrounding the ongoing KMA exhibition "Higher Ground: A Ce
• The Grades Are In! Advocates for the arts have a chance to vote smART on November 2, 2010, when one-third of the Senate will face voters. This election season provides the opportunity to send to Congress pro-arts lawmakers who realize the value of
• Historic Tennessee Stages includes Bristol's Paramount Center The historic Paramount Theatre (now called the Paramount Center for the Arts) in Bristol is included in a new book published by the Tennessee Arts Commission.
• VI Instructor Publishes Poetry A new book of poems has been released by Sam Rasnake, a Virginia Intermont College creative writing instructor who has published extensively.
• Deadlines for December 2010 Print Edition Not too early to plan December advertising and event coverage in A! Magazine.
• e-readers: The Wave of the Future Sullivan County Library patrons can now check out digital book readers with thousands of titles to choose from.
• Scrimshander Carves Out Niche for Himself So, just what is a scrimshander?
• 'Rhythm & Roots' Achieves Record Attendence
• The Game's Afoot at Barter Theatre If you've been hankering for a right jolly bit of theatrical sleuthing British style, you'd be hard put to it, indeed, to ferret out better fare than Sherlock Holmes and the Case of the Jersey Lily, now on the venerable old boards of the Barter T
• ETSU Faculty Reproduce Ancient Etruscan Kiln An ETSU group traveled to Italy to construct and fire a full-size reproduction of an ancient Etruscan kiln.
• Virginia Arts Leader Receives National Public Service Award A tireless arts advocate, Ellsworth lives in Wise, Va.
• Appalachian Arts Center Welcomes New Director Pattie Ann Hale is the new director of the Appalachian Arts Center.
• Jonesborough Launches Student Storytelling Arts Program Right in our own backyard, students are learning how to use story to change their community and their world.
• Review: The 'Moons' Are Out at Barter Theatre
• Abingdon Museum to Lay Off Staff The William King Museum is "doing some belt-tightening" in the form of layoffs, Executive Director Marcy Miller confirmed Thursday.
• Children's Fun Fest Book Wins International Awards Kingsport's annual Fun Fest recently received two Pinnacle awards at the International Festivals and Events Association 56th Annual Convention held in St. Louis, Mo.
• Artists Complete Murals in Downtown Bristol
• McCoury Band History Del McCoury is living proof of the impact of the 1927 Bristol Sessions, because one of its alumni helped open the door for his distinguished, five-decade career.
• "The Wreck of the Old 97" You have probably never heard of Henry Whitter, a musician who came to Bristol, Tenn., in 1927.
• Official Photographers of Rhythm & Roots Virginia Intermont College was recently named the official photographer for Bristol's Rhythm & Roots Reunion. All of the work the students generate is going to be used in future promotional material.
• Campfire Stories: 'The Haunted Tree' Dad told us that campfires were for stories, and, as I recall, he had plenty to tell. There were stories of bears, snakes and, of course, the fishes that got away. But of all the tales that my dad told that night, the one about the tree, for sure, was
• Rachel Barker in Opera Training Program Rachel Barker of Bristol was one of 28 singers selected from hundreds from around the world who auditioned for the program.
• Campfire Stories: 'House Up the Street' I never would have done it if my older brother hadn't dared me.
• E&H Faculty Member Directs Opera/Deaf Performance Opera, in its most basic form, can simply be defined as a theatrical presentation in which a dramatic performance is set to music. It is a stage that has rarely been inviting to deaf people, but that was the challenge that was placed at the feet of curre
• Winners of RRR Photo Contest College student Briana Morris's photo of a red pick on a guitar neck called "Pick Me!" won two awards at the Twin City Photo Club's third annual Rhythm & Roots Photo Competition.