Nashville Scene 1-25-24 by FW Publishing

NEWS:

EXTREME WEATHER TESTS NASHVILLE SHELTER NETWORK >> PAGE 7

JANUARY 25–31, 2024 I VOLUME 42 I NUMBER 51 I NASHVILLESCENE.COM I FREE

FOOD & DRINK:

CURRY & TIKKA OFFERS CREATIVE TAKES ON TRADITIONAL INDIAN FARE >> PAGE 35

A look at the state of Nashville’s visual arts scene, along with previews of coming art, theater, dance, film and book events

CAROLINE ALLISON AT ZEITGEIST

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CONTENTS NEWS 7 Extreme Weather Tests Nashville Shelter Network Bitter cold and snow trigger emergency capacity. A church opens its doors in Madison. BY ELI MOTYCKA

7 Pith in the Wind This week on the Scene’s news and politics blog

8 Vanderbilt Women’s Basketball Eyes First March Madness in a Decade With gritty defense and a few stars, coach Shea Ralph has built a national contender BY ELI MOTYCKA

COVER PACKAGE: WINTER ARTS GUIDE 2024 11 The State of the Arts Metro Arts, the Arcade and an uncertain future are on the minds of Nashville’s artists

8 Vanderbilt women’s basketball • PHOTO COURTESY OF VANDERBILT ATHLETICS

BY LAURA HUTSON HUNTER

14 Gallery View

Nashville’s winter art season features local favorites and a blockbuster regional survey BY JOE NOLAN

16 Spiritual Bread With Paula Vogel’s Indecent, Nashville Rep explores timely themes and the power of theater BY AMY STUMPFL

18 Snow Bound The Scene’s list of this season’s literary highlights — from book clubs to author events and more

ART With Divine Lite, a new curatorial team transforms the Downtown Presbyterian Church into a temple of the avant-garde BY JOE NOLAN

BOOKS 42 Book of Eli TikTok star Eli Rallo presents a love survival guide in I Didn’t Know I Needed This

This season at the movies, from Origin and The Taste of Things at the Belcourt to Dune: Part Two at the megaplexes

BY HANNAH HERNER

BY D. PATRICK RODGERS

25 CRITICS’ PICKS

Adam Conover, The Gingerbread Kid, Elvis Costello, The Wizard of Oz and more

FOOD AND DRINK 35 Short and Sweet … and Sour, Salty and Spicy South Nashville’s Curry & Tikka offers creative takes on traditional Indian fare

The Scene’s live-review column checks out Nordista Freeze’s Space Prom at Brooklyn Bowl

41 Sacred Space

BY KIM BALDWIN

20 Coming Attractions

46 The Spin

BY STEPHEN TRAGESER

NEW YORK TIMES CROSSWORD AND THIS MODERN WORLD

MARKETPLACE

MUSIC 45 Another Look The Scene’s music writers recommend recent releases from The BlackSon, Bryan Ruby, Josie Toney and more BY RACHEL CHOLST, HANNAH CRON, EDD HURT, P.J. KINZER, ADDIE MOORE, DARYL

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SANDERS AND STEPHEN TRAGESER

46 In Honor

Jason and the Scorchers, Royal Court of China and more to celebrate and raise funds for Jeff Johnson, an unsung hero of Nashville rock BY DARYL SANDERS

ON THE COVER:

“Book of Hours” by Caroline Allison on view at Zeitgeist (zeitgeist-art.com)

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TO ADVERTISE: msmith@nashvillescene.com EDITOR: prodgers@nashvillescene.com

BY KAY WEST

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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FROM BILL FREEMAN

WHO WE ARE

NATIONAL ASSOCIATION OF REALTORS FORECASTS ROBUST GROWTH IN 2024, WITH NASHVILLE AMONG TOP MARKETS HAVING SPENT MOST of my business career in real estate, I see the recent insights provided by the National Association of Realtors regarding the 2024 housing market forecast as carrying significant weight. In a Dec. 13 news brief, NAR’s chief economist Lawrence Yun paints a promising picture for our city. As recently reported by the Scene, NAR places Nashville seventh among the top markets with the most pent-up housing demand. This positions us alongside cities such as Austin, Texas; Dallas-Fort Worth; and Washington, D.C., enhancing Nashville’s appeal and creating an environment conducive to current and potential homebuyers. Yun states, “Metro markets in Southern states will likely outperform others due to faster job increases, while markets in the Midwest will experience gains from being in the most affordable region.” And according to development firm CA South, “In Middle Tennessee alone, the tech industry is now valued at more than $8 billion and is a big reason why Nashville is growing so fast.” According to U.S. Census Bureau data, roughly 98 people moved to Nashville per day in 2022 alone. So Yun may very well be on target with his predictions when it comes to the growth in the housing market — at least here in Middle Tennessee. As reported by The Tennessean: “Nashville commands the top spot as the nation’s allaround best market to invest in for the third consecutive year, according to a leading real estate industry report released in November by Urban Land Institute and [PricewaterhouseCoopers]. The report, ‘Emerging Trends in Real Estate 2024,’ highlights the diversity and strength of the Nashville region’s business environment. Nashville is the first city to be named a top market for three years in a row in the report’s 45-year history … The ranking reflects stability across Middle Tennessee’s industry sectors, and in downtown Nashville’s continued ability to lure massive crowds. Suburban growth is also a strong point continuing to fuel high population and job growth.” Add this to the fact that Yun’s forecast predicts around 4.71 million existing homes will be sold nationally in 2024, and it shows that our city, despite the pandemic years, is still being fortified. Given the steady national median home prices, which are expected to experience only a 0.9 percent increase, some could find compelling reasons to explore real estate opportunities in Nashville or to simply contemplate purchasing a home here if they are considering a relocation. For current homeowners in the Nashville community who really aren’t investors per se, these predictions still provide good news: The anticipated stability in median home prices signifies a favorable environment. It offers assurance that real estate investments — like our homes — are poised to hold their value, if not

BILL FREEMAN experience incremental growth. Some who are considering selling may also feel more confident about their decision, as the market appears conducive to attracting potential buyers. If we want to add a cherry to the top of this sundae, we can do so by looking at the broader economic context: Yun forecasts U.S. gross domestic product growth of 1.5 percent, steering clear of a recession. Obviously avoiding a recession is what we all want! Further, if you’ve been watching the Dow (DJIA), you’ll note that Jan. 19 saw a 52-week high. Stock market performance can affect real estate. As Ibuyer.com notes, “The stock market and real estate are more closely intertwined than most people realize. … You will want to have a close eye on the stock market if you plan on buying or selling any property.” An increased value of stock assets provides investors more funds to seek out other assets such as real estate. To that end, Yun foresees “1.48 million housing starts in 2024, including 1.04 million single-family and 440,000 multifamily.” That means we’ll potentially see continued construction activity and an overall expansion in the real estate industry. “In addition,” says Yun, “housing inventory is expected to rise by around 30 percent as more sellers begin to list after delaying selling over the past two years. The selected top 10 U.S. markets will experience faster recovery in home sales.” NAR’s predictions for 2024 indicate a favorable environment for real estate investors in Nashville and Middle Tennessee. The expected surge in home sales, stability in home prices and positive economic indicators are all good for our city and its growth. That goes for those who live here as well as those who want to live here. As predictions go, I hope Yun is on target. At worst, due to the numerous positives detailed, it’s likely we’ll see some definitive impact in the real estate industry. For sure, we’ll continue to enjoy Nashville’s growth and allure as others realize what we as residents have always known: There’s no place better to make a home than Nashville.

Bill Freeman Bill Freeman is the owner of FW Publishing, the publishing company that produces the Nashville Scene, Nfocus, the Nashville Post, and The News.

EDITOR-IN-CHIEF D. Patrick Rodgers MANAGING EDITOR Alejandro Ramirez SENIOR EDITOR Dana Kopp Franklin ARTS EDITOR Laura Hutson Hunter MUSIC AND LISTINGS EDITOR Stephen Trageser DIGITAL EDITOR Kim Baldwin ASSOCIATE EDITOR Cole Villena CONTRIBUTING EDITORS Erica Ciccarone, Jack Silverman STAFF WRITERS Kelsey Beyeler, Logan Butts, Stephen Elliott, Hannah Herner, Hamilton Matthew Masters, Eli Motycka, Nicolle Praino, William Williams CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Sadaf Ahsan, Ken Arnold, Radley Balko, Ashley Brantley, Maria Browning, Steve Cavendish, Chris Chamberlain, Rachel Cholst, Lance Conzett, Hannah Cron, Connor Daryani, Steve Erickson, Adam Gold, Kashif Andrew Graham, Seth Graves, Kim Green, Amanda Haggard, Steven Hale, Edd Hurt, Jennifer Justus, P.J. Kinzer, Janet Kurtz, Christine Kreyling, J.R. Lind, Craig D. Lindsey, Sean L. Maloney, Margaret Littman, Brittney McKenna, Marissa R. Moss, Noel Murray, Joe Nolan, Betsy Phillips, John Pitcher, Margaret Renkl, Daryl Sanders, Jason Shawhan, Nadine Smith, Ashley Spurgeon, Amy Stumpfl, Kay West, Andrea Williams, Nicole Williams, Ron Wynn, Charlie Zaillian EDITORIAL INTERN Sol Ayala ART DIRECTOR Elizabeth Jones PHOTOGRAPHERS Angelina Castillo, Eric England, Matt Masters GRAPHIC DESIGNERS Sandi Harrison, Mary Louise Meadors, Tracey Starck GRAPHIC DESIGN INTERN Haley Durham PRODUCTION COORDINATOR Christie Passarello FESTIVAL DIRECTOR Olivia Britton MARKETING AND PROMOTIONS MANAGER Robin Fomusa PUBLISHER Mike Smith ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Michael Jezewski SENIOR ADVERTISING SOLUTIONS MANAGERS EATING: Carla Mathis, Heather Cantrell Mullins, Jennifer Trsinar, Keith Wright Homemade pasta from ADVERTISING SOLUTIONS MANAGERS Coco’s Italian Teresa Birdsong, Maddy Fraiche, Kailey Idziak, Allie Muirhead, Niki Tyree, Alissa Wetzel Market SALES OPERATIONS MANAGER Chelon Hill Hasty EXCITED ABOUT: Seeing Flatland ADVERTISING SOLUTIONS ASSOCIATES Audry Houle, Cavalry at the Ryman Jack Stejskal SPECIAL PROJECTS COORDINATOR Susan Torregrossa PRESIDENT Mike Smith CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER Todd Patton CORPORATE CREATIVE DIRECTOR Elizabeth Jones IT DIRECTOR John Schaeffer CIRCULATION AND DISTRIBUTION DIRECTOR Gary Minnis FW PUBLISHING LLC Owner Bill Freeman

For advertising information please contact: Mike Smith, msmith@nashvillescene.com or 615-844-9238 VOICE Media Group: National Advertising 1-888-278-9866 vmgadvertising.com ©2023, Nashville Scene. 210 12th Ave. S., Ste. 100, Nashville, TN 37203. Phone: 615-244-7989. The Nashville Scene is published weekly by FW Publishing LLC. The publication is free, one per reader. Removal of more than one paper from any distribution point constitutes theft, and violators are subject to prosecution. Back issues are available at our office. Email: All email addresses consist of the employee’s first initial and last name (no space between) followed by @nashvillescene.com; to reach contributing writers, email editor@nashvillescene.com. Editorial Policy: The Nashville Scene covers news, art and entertainment. In our pages appear divergent views from across the community. Those views do not necessarily represent those of the publishers. Subscriptions: Subscriptions are available at $150 per year for 52 issues. Subscriptions will be posted every Thursday and delivered by third-class mail in usually five to seven days. Please note: Due to the nature of third-class mail and postal regulations, any issue(s) could be delayed by as much as two or three weeks. There will be no refunds issued. Please allow four to six weeks for processing new subscriptions and address changes. Send your check or Visa/MC/AmEx number with expiration date to the above address.

In memory of Jim Ridley, editor 2009-2016

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

NEWS PITH IN THE WIND

EXTREME WEATHER TESTS NASHVILLE SHELTER NETWORK Bitter cold and snow trigger emergency capacity. A church opens its doors in Madison.

PHOTO: HAMILTON MATTHEW MASTERS

NASHVILLESCENE.COM/NEWS/PITHINTHEWIND

Such exceptionally severe weather turned Metro’s overflow shelter on Brick Church Pike (formerly MNPS’ Baxter Alternative Learning Center) into an essential stopgap. Moving around the city without a car takes time and sometimes money; long journeys in the bitter cold carry physical risk. Metro’s 2023 Point-in-Time Count identified 2,129 people living in shelters, cars or outside. That number (up 11 percent from 2022) is considered a significant undercount by many in the city’s homelessness network. Metro tells the Scene that the 2024 Point-in-Time count will take place on Thursday, Jan. 25. Freezing temperatures activated the city’s overflow shelter on Jan. 14, bringing in 298 people, the lowest total of the week. On Thursday night, Metro opened an additional overflow site, pushing totals to their highest of the week at 422. The overflow shelter quickly became a refuge for hundreds of Nashvillians. Such demand pushed the city to not just offer a high-capacity shelter, but actually operate one. “I saw it would be 2 degrees and thought I’d try to go to the city’s overflow shelter,” says Jen Alexander, a writer for The Contributor who is currently unhoused. “It was like a military installation. There were strict rules, and it got worse and worse — in these shelter situations where someone rules over someone else, sometimes people get horrible. I just thought, ‘Please, do better by us.’” Lengthy security checks caused crowds to form outside the doors, remembers Alexander. Individuals were required to stay in assigned rooms, she says, which changed regularly. Bathrooms lacked toilet paper, soap and hot water. “I watched them physically drag two people out of there — they told them never to come

back,” recalls Alexander, who compared the shelter to the Stanford prison experiment multiple times in our conversation. “I just thought, ‘This is horrible, and it was just going to get worse.’ They searched all your belongings each night. They said my nail clippers were a weapon, and took them.” Harriet Wallace, spokesperson for Metro’s Office of Homeless Services, tells the Scene that the shelter dispenses soap and toilet paper in individual allotments. Wallace says everything went “exceptionally well” in the face of extreme cold and sudden high demand for shelter. After a few nights at Metro’s overflow shelter, Alexander left for City Road Chapel United Methodist Church in Madison. Lead pastor Jay Voorhees had set up an impromptu shelter alongside The Beat, an outreach and advocacy nonprofit founded by Darrin Bradbury to address homelessness in Madison. “Within the first day of the snowstorm, it became clear there were folks who weren’t going to other emergency shelter options — the mission, RITI or the city’s shelter — for one reason or another,” Voorhees tells the Scene Monday, as City Road has just finished its last night as a shelter. “Folks come and go. A few were asked to leave because of behavior, but everything went relatively smoothly. I don’t think we ever had to turn anyone away, although we were close to capacity.” He estimates they served about 40 people total, with around 25 staying each night. “We really don’t have enough capacity to handle the emergency shelter needs,” says Voorhees. “That’s not to take away from anyone or any existing organizations. There are just limits to what we can do. While we wish we could stay open, we just can’t. We did what we could.” ▼

House Democrats on Monday called for the resignation of state education commissioner Lizzette Reynolds, saying she is not qualified for the position under state law. Since officially starting in July, Reynolds has helped shepherd a controversial public school accountability system and is expected to help Gov. Bill Lee expand the private school voucher system statewide. Rep. John Ray Clemmons (D-Nashville) said Reynolds does not appear to have experience as a school administrator and is therefore unqualified to do her job. The governor’s press secretary tells the Scene Reynolds is qualified and is currently enrolled in an education program through UT Martin.

PHOTO VIA CASE AUCTIONS

TEMPERATURES PLUNGED Saturday, Jan. 13, and snow fell heavy Sunday night. Nashville got above freezing just once over the following week — a sunny Thursday afternoon — before plunging back to single digits over the weekend. Metro canceled school for two days, then the whole week. As of publication, school is canceled through Monday, Jan. 22. Sledders packed the fairways at Shelby and McCabe. Prolonged cold and ice tested the city’s shelter network, a broad coalition of institutions and people trying to help the growing population of people living outside. “I’m looking for my friend Ed,” Claire Hennigan told the Scene outside Metro’s Extreme Cold Weather Overflow Shelter, where I had been turned away at the door after identifying myself as a reporter. Hennigan had a temporary housing option for Ed, but sometimes he could be hard to find. “I’m sorry they didn’t let you in. Sometimes it just depends who’s working security or at the door.” Hennigan is an outreach worker at Open Table Nashville, an interfaith nonprofit working to alleviate homelessness in Nashville with direct service, advocacy and education. At its best, Nashville’s network of volunteers, nonprofits, houses of faith and city services work together to mitigate the immediate dangers of living outside and bring as many people as possible into stable housing. Last week’s weather also canceled four different Continuum of Care Homelessness Planning Council meetings. About midway through the winter, this group was already wrestling with differences in direction and methods specifically around the city’s plans to address encamped communities. Just before snow hit, cold weather plans were unfinished but on track, represented by one ominous agenda item: “Locate and address shelter capacity and challenges.” Integrating the city’s Extreme Cold Weather Overflow Shelter has been this winter’s priority (and challenge). The site, dubbed a “near-term solution” by Mayor Freddie O’Connell, is intended as a last resort for existing spaces that hit capacity. It’s the catchall for spaces like Room In The Inn and the Nashville Rescue Mission. Both come with restrictions and limits. The Nashville Rescue Mission focuses on housing women and families, sometimes for months at a time. Men get spots at Room In The Inn, which sends small groups to religious spaces for dinner and a bed each night. Sheltering from the cold at a West End church, a few of its beneficiaries praise RITI’s professionalism and sense of welcome. Despite the uncertainty of RITI’s lottery system, they say many of their friends have been able to get a bed every night through the cold stretch.

PHOTO: ERIC ENGLAND

BY ELI MOTYCKA

A rare sculpture by famed Black Nashville artist William Edmondson is up for auction, writes contributor Betsy Phillips, who wonders if more of the artist’s works exist among family heirlooms all over town. “Considering the fact that Edmondson made art depicting people like his family, friends and neighbors and sold it to them, this is likely not the only piece in town sitting unrecognized,” she writes. Phillips also notes: “I wish there were reproduction Edmondson sculptures in Edmondson Park on Charlotte Avenue, but huge. … Kids could climb on them and sit on top of them. Make them a spectacle and a thing you would want to go get your picture taken with.”

Mayor Freddie O’Connell signed 44 executive orders Friday, most of which continued existing policy from predecessors Megan Barry, David Briley and John Cooper. The batch addressed far-ranging topics like secondary employment for police officers and officially designating Juneteenth as a city holiday. In a press release, O’Connell chose to highlight two in particular: an updated Green and Complete Streets policy and the establishment of the Nashville Health and Well-Being Leadership Council.

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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SPORTS

VANDERBILT WOMEN’S BASKETBALL EYES FIRSTWithMARCH MADNESS IN A DECADE gritty defense and a few stars, coach Shea Ralph has built a national contender

COACH SHEA RALPH THERE’S A LOT you can’t control in basketball. Like how an errant shot glances off the rim. Or how the refs will award possession late in the fourth quarter when the ball comes in hard and maybe touches Vanderbilt University super-senior Jordyn Cambridge’s fingertips, but maybe doesn’t, before sailing out of bounds. But you can control practice. Between drills, players pair up and hit free throws. On the court, the Vandy women’s basketball team is loud, communicating about defensive matchups and calling for the ball. Coach Shea Ralph kneels at half-court watching her team run set plays. Everything is black-and-gold besides the sneakers — squeaking flashes of pink, coral and bright green. Teams sit behind the baseline in Memorial Gym. It’s a small change from a typical court orientation and puts coaches opposite each other, isolated from their bench like fencers down the sideline. This is where Ralph sets up during games, sometimes kneeling, sometimes standing. Now in her third season at Vanderbilt, Ralph has her sights set on a strong return to the NCAA tournament. The 64-team bracket is a shot at a championship and college basketball’s stamp of legitimacy. From 1986 to 2014, Vanderbilt missed the tournament just twice. Since 2014, the team has struggled to return to national prominence. Along with her staff — which includes her husband Tom Garrick, a former NBA guard — Ralph has combined strong recruiting with a clear, defensive-focused team identity. “I got a call — we didn’t even really need to have a conversation,” says Ralph, who won one championship as a player and six as an assistant coach at the University of Connecticut, one of the nation’s powerhouse programs. “It

PHOTOS COURTESY OF VANDERBILT ATHLETICS

BY ELI MOTYCKA

IYANA MOORE (LEFT) took 10 minutes with [athletic director Candice Storey Lee] to let me know that this was the right place.” At Jan. 9’s afternoon session, the team is 15-1 and undefeated in the SEC. Ralph preaches sleep and schoolwork, telling her athletes to take care of their own business before boarding the bus for Kentucky. Ralph disappears upstairs to talk with a recruit, then meets a small media scrum of mostly student journalists. Joey Dwyer and Alaina Morris, Lipscomb students covering basketball for VandySports.com, say clicks for the women’s team are quickly outpacing their coverage of the VU men’s team, which has just five wins this season as of press time. The next day, Vanderbilt women’s basketball dismantled Kentucky, aided by a dominant 37-point game from junior Iyana Moore. After a close loss to Missouri the following Sunday, the team took down Auburn by 3, highlighted by a double-double from rookie superstar Khamil Pierre. Today, Vanderbilt is sitting fourth in the SEC behind national No. 1 South Carolina, reigning national champions LSU and perennial powerhouse Tennessee, who dealt Vandy their third loss on Sunday. In mid-January, the team briefly cracked the top 25 in a coaches’ poll. Sixth-year point guard Cambridge, recruited out of Ensworth in 2018, is having a banner year. She’s scoring, especially from 3, and shining with her assists (typically double-digits) and an SEC-leading 4.1 average steals per game. Cambridge plans to retire after this season with her undergraduate degree and two master’s degrees rather than push for the WNBA. Since starting at Vandy she’s been through two coaching staffs, two ACL tears, a torn Achilles and, hopefully, a winning final season. “As a team, of course, I want to do things

that we haven’t done before,” says Cambridge. “All the individual stuff, like the steals record that I’m coming up on, that’s exciting too, but I don’t really focus too much on that. The big thing is making it to the tournament. Then making a run in the tournament. That’s something that I’ve been waiting for since I signed up to come to Vanderbilt.” You can spot Moore in pink shoes and No. 23, a statement number in basketball made famous by Michael Jordan. She moved from Milwaukee to Murfreesboro in middle school, and she later stood out at Blackman High School. Moore is a junior in school but a sophomore on the court — she tore her ACL in September, allowing her to sit out the remainder of the year and reserve a season of eligibility. “My freshman year they asked me to score the ball,” Moore tells the Scene after practice on Jan. 17, 20 hours before tip-off against Auburn. “And play defense. If I was doing those two things, and playing with energy and effort, I was gonna see the floor. Everyone who knows me knows I’ll pass the ball — I look to get my teammates involved. But they told me, ‘You can’t keep passing up opportunities.’ Every time in practice, it was shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot, shoot.” Three years later, Moore will take the open shot. She’s third in points behind Cambridge and post Sacha Washington, the same teammates she relies on for support and for the ball. “Jordyn knows how I like to score, where I like to score, and gets me the ball on time,” says Moore. The team also leans heavily on Jordyn Oliver, recently recruited by Ralph from Duke, where she was an all-conference starter and got a taste of the NCAA tournament in 2023. Washington, a hard-driving junior with WNBA

aspirations, controls the paint for Vanderbilt on offense and defense. Against Auburn, a block from Washington midway through the second quarter sparked her own 7-point run, including a physical drive through traffic that resulted in a coveted 3-point play. Vanderbilt thrives on that kind of basketball. They hassle you. They put hands in your face. Players pride themselves on defense first, and when it works, Vanderbilt controls the entire floor. When it doesn’t, the team’s all-in pressure can give up easy lanes and uncovered shots, the formula that Missouri used to outshoot Vanderbilt en route to a 65-63 comeback win on Jan. 14. Compared to an exciting and productive defense, the Dores’ offense can seem like an afterthought — what you do when you’re not getting steals or blocks, picking off passes, jumping for rebounds or protecting the rim. Everyone shoots well from the free-throw line, but a comfortable win often takes standout performances from shooters like Moore and Pierre. If she gets the opportunity, Coach Ralph will shout out every player on her roster: Justine Pissott, a tenacious defender with a strong 3-point shot; senior Bella LaChance, whom Ralph calls the team’s “engine”; or sophomore Ryanne Allen, who came off the bench for two clutch 3s against Missouri. “Yes, we’re playing a sport, and we want to win at that sport, and our players are very talented at it,” says Ralph, pacing in the practice gym. “But we’re also trying to grow as a group that really loves each other, cares about each other, and wants the best for each other. If we can teach them what that looks and feels like as they move on into life, no matter what we do out here, we’ll be successful.” ▼

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

WITNESS HISTORY Thomas Hart Benton’s acrylic-on-canvas mural, The Sources of Country Music, began with Tex Ritter’s visit to the artist’s home, a bottle of whiskey, and a big idea—and ended as an American masterwork. Benton is shown here during the later stages of creating the mural. From the exhibit An American Masterwork: Thomas Hart Benton’s “Sources of Country Music” at 50 photo: From the documentary Thomas Hart Benton: The Sources of Country Music by John Altman and Mary A. Nelson

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

Winter Arts Guide 2024 A look at the state of Nashville’s visual arts scene, along with previews of coming art, theater, dance, film and book events

Metro Arts, the Arcade and an uncertain future are on the minds of Nashville’s artists BY LAURA HUTSON HUNTER IT WAS ONLY the second morning of 2024, but David Onri Anderson was already working. The lifelong Nashvillian was busy finalizing the exhibition schedule for his alternative art space Electric Shed, sending emails about a group show he was curating in WedgewoodHouston that weekend, and getting a painting to a different group show downtown. He’d been expecting a delivery of art books that day, so he wasn’t surprised when he heard a knock at the door. But he wasn’t planning to see a government official standing in front of him, having just posted official notices on the doors of the shed behind his home. “It was the property standards inspector, from the Metro Department of Codes and Building Safety,” he says. The issue? Electric Shed, which is an actual outdoor utility shed in Anderson’s backyard, was operating without an official permit, and the Department of Codes and Building Safety had been monitoring his Instagram and taking screenshots of his stories as evidence. The inspector told him he had six weeks to stop his exhibitions, or else there would

be a $100 fee for every day he didn’t comply. “I was just like, ‘Whoa, I’m just doing free shows for the community.’ He said, ‘It’s a cultural center — you have to get a permit.’ ” At Nashville dinner parties and gallery openings, it’s not art-world trends or up-andcoming talent but bureaucratic interference that’s most often on the tips of artists’ tongues. The affordable studios and artist-run spaces that once made Nashville a welcoming home for artists have all but disappeared. Commercial galleries that are finally coming out from under the pandemic are still struggling to reach art collectors, and independent artists looking for government grants are competing with established organizations that have long been vital to the city’s cultural community. In Nashville, creativity is big business. Lawyers and dentists decorate their lobbies with photos of Dolly Parton or watercolors of the Ryman to demonstrate local pride. Murals of Johnny Cash are plentiful. But getting that mentality — that the arts are the backbone of Nashville’s identity — to translate into something that’s actually useful for artists has not been easy. Nashville takes pride in its reputation as a creative capital, but its artists often can’t afford to, for instance, rent or own work and living spaces. Is there life after It City?

PHOTO: DANIEL MEIGS

The State of the Arts

DAVID ONRI ANDERSON OUTSIDE ELECTRIC SHED

At Nashville dinner parties and gallery openings, it’s not art-world trends or up-and-coming talent but bureaucratic interference that’s most often on the tips of artists’ tongues. NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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—YANIRA VISSEPO ABOVE ALL OTHER topics, the most talkedabout conflict among local artists has been the ongoing tumult at Metro Arts. Going into the 2023-24 budget cycle, the city agency — which decides how grant money will be distributed among artists and artistic organizations — attempted to make the grant process more equitable. But that attempt also led to a confusing strategic direction and delayed funding, with the 15-seat board plagued by turnover. The situation frustrated independent artists and those who work for the organizations that depend on Metro Arts funding — from the Belcourt Theatre and the Nashville Symphony to the Nashville Children’s Theatre and Nashville Shakespeare Festival. Artist Yanira Vissepo is in a unique position. She received grant money as an individual artist, and is also an employee of the Belcourt — which depends on Metro Arts funding. She was invited to speak at an open meeting at Metro Arts in August, but says she felt conflicted afterward. “It was really frustrating, it was really upsetting, and it was also really worrying,” Vissepo tells the Scene about her experience. “I think a lot of people want change in Metro Arts, but it’s so rooted in years and years of the same, and people are scared of change. People are scared of not getting their money. “Sure, I would love more money as an individual artist,” Vissepo says. “And yes, the Belcourt makes a lot of money, and they do have a lot of importance and influence in the community. But I think it’s fair to say that Nashville needs more public arts funding for artists, and these arts organizations like Cheekwood, the Frist, Belcourt — they kind of need to step down and do the work to find more ways to raise their funds elsewhere. It’s time for individual artists, because there’s so many of us now, and we do need more funding.” “There’s a million reasons why grant funding is so important to individual professional artists and the orgs that work with them,” says

Elisheba Israel Mrozik, another Nashville-based artist who was affected by the tumult at Metro Arts. Her nonprofit lost its operating support, and funding applications for four of her mural projects were denied. “We already don’t care enough about the arts as a literal service, as skilled labor.” Still, artists remain unified on the matter of public funding for the arts — namely, that there should be more of it. “It’s ridiculous that we’re out here fighting for these scraps,” says Mrozik, who notes her frustration that public money is going toward a new Titans stadium. She’d like to see more public investment in art. “It’s nothing in the pockets of these bigwigs who use us to make the city more playable, beautiful and enticing to the people who they want to come in and spend money. “All the arts orgs, all the individual artists, need to come together and demand proper, consistent and permanent funding for the arts in Nashville, period.” AMONG THE POSSIBLE bright sides of the Nashville art community’s future is the downtown Arcade, which was at one point the hub of Nashville’s art scene, and the onetime home of some of the city’s most beloved artistrun galleries. Some locals say Linfield Capital, the New York-based firm that purchased the property for $28 million in April 2021 and has since purchased several neighboring properties, has been a positive presence that has residents hopeful for a return to those glory days. Linfield’s Nashville-based investor Rob Lowe has overseen the update effort and worked to retain some of the Arcade’s longtime tenants. “The good news is that the Arcade’s developer [Linfield Capital] isn’t just looking at the bottom line,” says artist and Tinney Contemporary’s gallery manager and curator Joshua Edward Bennett, whose gallery is directly across the street from the historic spot. “They realize that there is

could create more incentive for art-related businesses to come here. They’ve certainly done that for tech-related business and musicrelated businesses, and that’s obviously working because those businesses are very much a part of the fabric of the economy here.” IT’S VALUABLE TO pay attention to how Nashville-based artists fare outside their hometown, and use that as a barometer for what might be possible here given the kinds of incentives Bennett imagines. “I see Nashville artists branch out more, and when they do, it goes well,” says David Onri Anderson, noting the publicity around Emily Weiner’s booth with Red Arrow at New York’s Future Fair, and Elephant Gallery’s participation in the upcoming Outsider Art Fair in New York. Benji Anderson (David’s brother), Ash Atterberry, Don Shull and Brett Douglas Hunter will all be showcasing their work to international audiences. “I feel like Nashville can make a mark on the world, but it needs to think about how it’s doing that more,” Anderson says. About the parameters Metro is enforcing on the local art scene, Anderson’s takeaway is simple. “It’s a bummer, but it’s pushing me to be more radical.” ▼

PHOTO: ANGELINA CASTILLO

“It’s time for individual artists, because there’s so many of us now, and we do need more funding.”

value, especially long-term, to have this cultural capital here be a draw. Especially as an alternative to the circus of Broadway, for visitors that are seeking something that’s not so party-driven.” Among the Arcade’s tenants will be new outposts of Urban Cowboy, a bar and restaurant Bennett says will take up the first quarter of the Arcade’s first and second floors, as well as Cafe Roze. Other bright spots Nashville’s artists highlight include newer artist-driven spaces like Random Sample. People also point to The Forge’s STATE program, which offers six artists a year apiece of free studio space, and is underwritten by partners including the Tennessee Titans. New events like Artville, as well as Metro Arts initiatives like the lending library, have been ways for artists to get paid for their work. Another positive, according to Bennett, is Nashville’s newly elected mayor. “Freddie O’Connell is a friend of the arts,” says Bennett. “And in our district, [newly elected Metro Councilmember] Jacob Kupin has been a vocal ally. It takes people who have this elected power to actually move the dial in terms of actual municipal change, and I’m encouraged by that. There’s ample opportunity to create something quieter and more culturally different than the Redneck Riviera. I’m optimistic about the future, especially as it pertains to downtown.” “It’s a long game,” he says. “The government

“All the arts orgs, all the individual artists, need to come together and demand proper, consistent and permanent funding for the arts in Nashville, period.” —ELISHEBA ISRAEL MROZIK

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

century. The exhibition is organized by the Mint Museum in Charlotte, N.C., in collaboration with the Georgia Museum of Art. The display features more than 100 works from artists including Carroll Cloar, Aaron Douglas, Caroline Durieux, Will Henry Stevens and Alma Thomas, as well as Black Mountain College luminaries like Josef Albers, Jacob Lawrence and Elaine de Kooning. Southern/Modern also includes selections from Thomas Hart Benton and Elizabeth Catlett, whose work helped highlight Southern themes. I’ve been suggesting that contemporary American art is trending toward the kind of abstraction and formalism we find in early prewar modernism. For me, Southern/Modern is arriving right on time, and it’s my most highly anticipated local show of 2024.

“A STORY TOLD BY MY MOTHER,” CARROLL CLOAR

MARILYN MURPHY: CURIOUS CIRCUMSTANCES Through March 22 at Haley Gallery

Gallery View Nashville’s winter art season features local favorites and a blockbuster regional survey BY JOE NOLAN SOUTHERN/MODERN Jan. 26-April 28 at the Frist Art Museum

maybe even the year — is Southern/Modern at the Frist. It’s the first comprehensive survey of paintings and works-on-paper created in the American South between 1913 and 1955. The show tracks the evolution of early modern art in the U.S. and reflects the social upheaval and cultural transformations that took place across the South during the first half of the 20th

“PARALLELS,” EMILY WEINER

“LOOKING FOR ANSWERS,” MARILYN MURPHY

The biggest local art show of the season —

The Country Music Hall of Fame and Hatch Show Print are iconic local culture destinations, but sometimes the bigger programming at the museum can overshadow the shows at Hatch’s Haley Gallery. The space recently hosted a painting exhibition by iconic painter Wayne White and a printmaking invitational that included work from 60 printers from across the U.S. Curious Circumstances is a new exhibition of drawings from Vanderbilt professor emerita of art Marilyn Murphy. I’m a longtime fan of Murphy’s meticulous graphite drawings,

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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which speak to midcentury design aesthetics, film noir and science-fiction. This show also nods to Hatch history, including a selection of letterpress prints from the artist.

EMILY WEINER: NEVER ODD OR EVEN Feb. 3-24 at Red Arrow Never Odd or Even is Emily Weiner’s first solo exhibition at Red Arrow, and viewers can expect a signature display of the artist’s paintings in creative frames. Weiner’s works are symbolic and figurative, and packed with allusions to classical theater and ancient religious practices as well as celestial bodies and other natural forms. Their elemental subjects make them universally appealing, and her unique combinations of oils-on-linen with painted wood and ceramic frames make her work unmistakable. Never Odd or Even opens Feb. 3 with a reception from 6 to 9 p.m. during the February Art Crawl.

CAROLINE ALLISON: WAITING BETWEEN THE TREES Feb. 3-March 30 at Zeitgeist

ROB MATTHEWS: FRAGMENTS March 2-30 at David Lusk Rob Matthews has been teasing a series of large, colorful, graphic abstract paintings on Instagram for months, and we’ll finally get to see the real things when the artist opens Fragments at David Lusk in March. These large acrylic-on-canvas abstracts feature boldly minimalist palettes and compositions that nod to print design and represent a 180-degree turn from the Cubism-inspired portraits the artist has formerly created. Matthews has been on this abstraction kick since at least 2021, when he showed a massive multipanel mural called “The Forest” at Lusk’s Nashville space. And that puts the artist ahead of the 2024 art trends, which will find fewer figures and narratives on our gallery walls. ▼

“HOMEMADE JAMS,” ROB MATTHEWS

A Caroline Allison show at Zeitgeist is always an event, and her latest exhibition finds the artist continuing her explorations of the natural world even as she continues to evolve her practice and her ideas about what photography can be. With Waiting Between

the Trees, Allison is reengaging evergreen conversations about landscapes and time. Portraits of rocks and pictures of clouds as well as cyanotypes are presented in a series of shaped, bent and folded prints. The result is a show that challenges the formal boundaries that separate painting, photography and sculpture. It looks like another groundbreaking exhibition from Allison. Waiting Between the Trees opens on Feb. 3, with special First Saturday hours from noon until 8 p.m.

Spiritual Bread With Paula Vogel’s Indecent, Nashville Rep explores timely themes and the power of theater BY AMY STUMPFL PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING playwright Paula Vogel once said, “I think art is our spiritual bread that we break together.” And that’s exactly what artistic director Micah-Shane Brewer is hoping for as Nashville Repertory Theatre prepares to open Vogel’s compelling work Indecent on Feb. 2. “I first saw Indecent on Broadway in 2017,” Brewer says. “I knew very little about the story going in, but by the end, I was absolutely speechless. I couldn’t stop thinking about it. It’s such a love letter to the theater, but there’s so much more to it than that. It looks at antisemitism and censorship, the sacrifices that artists must make, the telling of gay stories and being able to love who you love. It really packs a lot into just 95 minutes. But the storytelling, the music and imagery all blend together so beautifully, creating an incredibly moving piece of theater.” Inspired by actual events, Indecent chronicles the 1923 Broadway debut of Sholem Asch’s God of Vengeance — a controversial work that featured, among other things, a love story between two women. One of the first plays by a Jewish playwright to be presented on Broadway, the piece was by turns celebrated and reviled. But soon after its historic premiere, the play was shut down and the cast was arrested on charges of obscenity. “What’s interesting to me is that Asch’s play was performed so successfully all over Europe and then moved to the Lower East Side in New York, where it was performed in Yiddish,” Brewer says. “It wasn’t until it moved to Broadway, where it received its English translation, that everyone went crazy. It’s a fascinating story, but also scary when you consider where we are as a society today. The fact is that we’re still dealing with a lot of the same issues 100 years later.” Beyond Indecent’s exploration of timely themes, however, Brewer says the work offers a

marvelous tribute to the resilience of artists and the power of theater itself. With that in mind, he has assembled a great cast of new and familiar talent — including Thomas DeMarcus, Delaney Amatrudo, Dustin Davis, Sarah Aili, Galen Fott, Rona Carter and Garris Wimmer. The cast also features a trio of klezmer musicians, with Trevor Targowski on clarinet, Laurie Canaan on violin and Eric Sorrels on accordion. “It’s a rich, complicated show, but there’s so much hope and joy to be found, as well,” he says. “And this cast is simply amazing. From our very first rehearsal, there has been such a sense of energy and excitement. I hope audiences will feel that energy. I hope they’ll be as moved by Indecent as we are, and that it inspires them to stand up against the censors and those who would silence other voices. “In these times of uncertainty, it’s important to come together to share these kinds of stories,” he adds. “That’s the ‘spiritual bread’ that Paula Vogel talks about. That’s the power of art, and that’s what this show is all about.” INDECENT FEB. 2-11 AT TPAC’S ANDREW JOHNSON THEATER NASHVILLEREP.ORG OTHER UPCOMING PERFORMANCES: Nashville Opera’s Florencia en el Amazonas, Jan. 26-28 at TPAC’s James K. Polk Theater The world premiere of The Gingerbread Kid, Jan. 27-Feb. 25 at Nashville Children’s Theatre Shamel Pitts/Tribe’s BLACK HOLE: Trilogy and Triathlon, Feb. 2-3 at OZ Arts Nashville Ballet’s Attitude, Feb. 9-11 at TPAC’s James K. Polk Theater Mazelfreten’s Rave Lucid, Feb. 29-March 2 at OZ Arts Jagged Little Pill, March 1-2 at TPAC’s Andrew Jackson Hall Street Theatre Company’s The Trail to Oregon!, March 8-23 at The Barbershop Theater ▼

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

Snow Bound The Scene’s list of this season’s literary highlights — from book clubs to author events and more BY KIM BALDWIN NASHVILLE’S REPUTATION AS a literary city is as solid in 2024 as it’s ever been. We’re a frequent stop on book tours, and we have independent bookstores like Parnassus Books, The Bookshop, Novelette Booksellers and The Green Ray that celebrate local writers, host book club discussions and serve as go-tos for niche publications and magazines. We also have The Porch, which offers writing classes, live storytelling events, writing retreats and affinity group meetups like Nashville Black Storytellers, Latine Creative Collective, Nashville AAPI Writers, Queer Writers, Parent Writers, Writers Over 40 and Songwriters. We’ve rounded up a sampling of events happening this season. For a complete list of events, check the websites of Parnassus Books, The Bookshop, Novelette Booksellers, The Green Ray, the Nashville Public Library and, of course, The Porch, which will celebrate its 10th anniversary this year. Your TBR pile might never recover.

Thursday, Jan. 25: Tender Headed: A Reading and Panel with Olatunde Osinaike, 6 p.m. at All People Coffee, 347 Douglas Ave. Thursday, Jan. 25: Novelette Book Club: Jonathan Abernathy You Are Kind by Molly McGhee, 7 p.m. at Novelette Booksellers, 1101 Chapel Ave. Friday, Feb. 2: Crystal Wilkinson, author of Praisesong for the Kitchen Ghosts, presented in collaboration with The Porch, 6 p.m. at The Bookshop, 1043 W. Eastland Ave. Saturday, Feb. 3: Heartbreak Happy Hour: The Anniversary Show, with Megan Stielstra, Eva Cassel and more, 6 p.m. at The Blue Room at Third Man Records, 623 Seventh Ave. S. Saturday, Feb. 3: Kiley Reid, author of Come & Get It, in conversation with ZZ Packer, 6:30 p.m. at Parnassus Books, 3900 Hillsboro Pike Sunday, Feb. 11: In Other Worlds Book Club: The Dead Take the A Train by Cassandra Khaw and Richard Kadrey, 4 p.m. at Hanna Bee Coffee, 1035 W. Eastland Ave.

Thursday, March 14: Caroline Frost, author of The Last Verse, in conversation with Ann Powers, 6:30 p.m. at The Bookshop

Sunday, Feb. 18: Heartbreak Happy Hour, featuring six Porch community writers, 7 p.m. at Jackalope Brewing Company, 429B Houston St.

Tuesday, Feb. 20: Mary Liza Hartong, author of Love and Hot Chicken, in conversation with Kim Baldwin, 6:30 p.m. at Parnassus Books

Friday, Feb. 23: Paths to Publishing, hosted by The Porch, noon at Parnassus Books

Club: Hot Springs Drive by Lindsay Hunter, 4 p.m. at Hanna Bee Coffee

Saturday, March 2: The Porch Presents Mirror House, with Hilary Bell, Justin Taylor, the Styrofoam Winos and Cassie Berman, 7 p.m. at Tempo Nashville, 2179 Nolensville Pike

Sunday, Feb. 18: Meet Cute Book Club: That Time I Got Drunk and Saved a Demon by Kimberly Lemming, 4 p.m. at Hanna Bee Coffee

Thursday, March 14: Anna Quindlen, author of After Annie, in conversation with Ann Patchett, 6:30 p.m. at Parnassus Books

Saturday, Feb. 17: Unlikeable Females Book

Tuesday, March 19: Between the Covers Book Club: Butcher & Blackbird by Brynne Weaver, 7:15 p.m. at Parnassus Books Friday, March 22: Visiting Writers Book Club: Maurice Carlos Ruffin, author of The American Daughters, moderated by Susannah Felts, 5:30 p.m. at The Porch House, 2811 Dogwood Place Friday, March 22: Steven Hale, author of Death Row Welcomes You, in conversation with Demetria Kalodimos, 6:30 p.m. at Parnassus Books Monday, March 25: Percival Everett, author of James, in conversation with Khalil Ekulona, 6:30 p.m. at Parnassus Books Saturday, March 30: Get the Right Shot! Professional Headshots for Writers, with photographer Emily April Allen, 9 a.m. at The Porch House, 2811 Dogwood Place

Tuesday, April 2: Jenna Voris, author of Every Time You Hear That Song, in conversation with Brian D. Kennedy and Jenna Miller, 6:30 p.m. at The Bookshop Friday, April 5: The Porch’s 10th Anniversary Fundraiser with Ross Gay, check porchtn.org/happening for details Saturday, April 6: A Reading and Signing With Ross Gay, hosted by The Porch, 3 p.m. at the Nashville Public Library, 615 Church St. Thursday, April 18: Rebecca Makkai, author of I Have Some Questions for You, Vanderbilt University, College of Arts and Science, Buttrick Hall, Room 101 ▼

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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ORIGIN

Coming Attractions This season at the movies, from Origin and The Taste of Things at the Belcourt to Dune: Part Two at the megaplexes BY D. PATRICK RODGERS NOMINATIONS FOR THIS year’s Academy Awards landed earlier this week. Whether you’re an Academy hater or an Oscar devotee, there’s no denying that Hollywood’s biggest night serves as a sort of line of demarcation in the movie world. The stretch between the holidays and the Oscar ceremony in March is typically the most cinematically erratic 10 weeks on the movie calendar. Nevertheless, some good stuff is coming to theaters during winter’s coldest days. It’s worth noting that this year’s A Red Carpet Evening at the Belcourt is the Hillsboro Village arthouse’s 25th annual Oscar party. The 21-and-up event will feature the March 10 Academy Awards ceremony being broadcast on both of the Belcourt’s big screens, along with a silent auction, a cocktail buffet and loads of perks for VIP ticketholders. As always, the event serves as a fundraiser benefiting the 99-year-old theater and beloved independent film nonprofit. The Belcourt has an impressive stack of upcoming releases hitting the screens this winter, beginning with Ava DuVernay’s already-heralded Origin — based on Isabel Wilkerson’s bestselling nonfiction book Caste: The Origins of Our Discontents — opening in early February.

Following that will be Belcourt openings for director Rachel Lambert’s anticipated Sometimes I Think About Dying (with Lambert scheduled for a post-screening discussion on Feb. 9) and the Mads Mikkelsen-starring period piece The Promised Land. Vietnamese French director Trân Anh Hùng’s award-winning The Taste of Things is scheduled for release on Valentine’s Day. Bhuta-

nese filmmaker Pawo Choyning Dorji’s The Monk and the Gun, British coming-of-age drama How to Have Sex and legendary German director Wim Wenders’ Perfect Days will likely hit Belcourt screens in late February or early March. As ever, the Belcourt also has a number of repertory series scheduled in the coming weeks. The Winter Classics series is winding down this month with Doctor Zhivago (Jan. 27-28) and Misery (Jan. 28 and 30), and the Sunday Supper series draws to a close in advance of The Taste of Things’ release with Babette’s Feast (Jan. 28) and I Am Love (Feb. 4). Audiences can also count on on-

going repertory series Midnight Movies, Weekend Classics, Music City Mondays, Queer Qlassics and Staff Picks to continue. Expect some romantically themed offerings in those series, including Harold and Maude, Casablanca, The Notebook, Happy Together, Go Fish, Baz Luhrmann’s Romeo + Juliet and all three installments of Richard Linklater’s Before Trilogy. The theater’s annual Oscar-Nominated Short Films series and its Best Picture Marathon land in February. Also still screening at the Belcourt are buzzy recent releases All of Us Strangers, American Fiction, Poor Things and The Zone of Interest. Meanwhile in the megaplexes, a couple of big tentpole releases are slated to keep audiences satiated before blockbuster season hits in the warmer months. Kingsman director Matthew Vaughn’s spy comedy Argylle is set for release on Feb. 2, with Sony Pictures’ Madame Web — starring Dakota Johnson as the titular hero, with Sydney Sweeney, Isabela Merced and Celeste O’Connor as separate iterations of Spider-Woman — landing on Valentine’s Day. Denis Villeneuve’s long-awaited Dune: Part Two, delayed for months by the film industry’s labor disputes, will hit screens everywhere March 1, with Ghostbusters: Frozen Empire arriving on the first weekend of spring. On the horizon after that: Godzilla x Kong: The New Empire (March 29), Luca Guadagnino’s Zendaya-starring tennis-world love triangle Challengers (April 26) and Furiosa: A Mad Max Saga in May. Fathom Events has a number of repertory screenings coming to Regal and AMC locations this season as well, including The Wizard of Oz (Jan. 28, 29 and 31), My Fair Lady (Feb. 4-5), David Lynch’s Dune (Feb. 18-19) and iconic David Bowie fantasy vehicle Labyrinth (March 6 and 10). Meanwhile in Hermitage, delightful independent screening house Full Moon Cineplex will keep up its frequently freaky repertory offerings, including The Frighteners and Fatal Games in early February. ▼

THE PROMISED LAND

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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Loveless Heatwave Trio

Spicy Leg Quarters

Three Nashville Hot chicken legs, a slice of white bread, pickles, biscuits and your choice of one of their famous made-fromscratch Southern sides.

BROWN’S DINER

Inside-Out Hot Chicken Sandwich

Bolton’s famous hot chicken leg quarters with fries.

Hot Chicken & Hoe Cake

Brown’s house-made Calabrian chili hot chicken stacked on top of a savory hoe cake.

BUDS & BREWS

MAKESHIFT

Nashville Hot Bell and Evans Organic chicken breast injected with spicy garlic butter, lettuce, pickles and ranch on a Martin’s potato roll.

NASHVILLE UNDERGROUND

Mimi’s Hot Chicken Dip

High Hot Chicken

Nashville HOT chicken tender snack basket with tots or fries.

Mimi’s hot chicken roasted and pulled, topped with blue cheese crumbles and green onion. Served skillet style with a bed of tortilla chips and celery sticks.

FAMILY TACOS

Nashville Hot Chicken Tender

Hot Chicken Tacos

Three chicken breast breaded tacos marinated with a secret Mexican spicy pepper, topped with grilled onions, cilantro and chipotle sauce. Served with a fountain drink.

GERMANTOWN PUB

Smokin’ Hot Leg Quarters

Two smoked leg quarters with a house-made Nashville Hot BBQ sauce, white bread and pickle slices.

HATTIE B’S

Hot Chicken Sandwich & Crinkle-cut French Fries

A boneless chicken breast spiced your way, on a toasted brioche bun with creamy coleslaw, Nashville comeback sauce and kosher pickles with crinkle-cut french fries.

HI-FI CLYDE’S

Hot Chicken Avocado Toast

NOBLE’S EAST

One Nashville hot chicken tender on a piece of white bread and topped with pickles.

OTTO’S BAR

Chicken Tinga Roti Taco

Spicy tinga shredded chicken on roti bread topped with vinegar coleslaw.

PEACHTREE GRILL

Hot Chicken Kabob

Grilled chicken kabob with home made hot sauce, tzatziki sauce, pickles and pita bread.

PEPPERFIRE HOT CHICKEN

RED’S HOT CHICKEN

Hot Chicken Polenta Bowl

Hot chicken on top of a creamy herbed Italian polenta.

THE SLIDERHOUSE

The SliderHot Chickens

Two freshly baked chicken patties tossed in a signature Hot Chicken sauce with coleslaw and pickles on white slider buns.

SOUL

Tenders & Fries

Your choice of hot chicken tenders or wings with a side of fries.

STAY GOLDEN

Hot Chicken Salad Sandwich

Crispy fried chicken thigh, celery, house dressing, bread & butter pickles and Stay Golden Buttermilk Ranch on a Martin’s Bun.

STOMPIN GROUNDS

Crispy Hot Chicken Bao Buns

Perfectly steamed bao buns slathered with a sultry smoked Duke’s mayo sauce that’s hugging crispy fried Nashville hot chicken thighs and a crunchy dill pickle slaw.

STREETCAR TAPS

The Nashville Quarter

Nashville Hot smoked leg quarter off our 6500 lb smoker. A savory, spicy rub served with white bread, house pickles chips and a tangy hot sauce.

TACO MAMACITA

Hot Chicken Taco + Side

Double-stacked taco with queso, spicy slaw, fried chicken, chipotle honey hot sauce, jalapeño lime aioli, bread & butter pickles and cilantro. Served with your choice of Mexican rice, street corn, or charros beans!

TEE LINE

Hot Chicken Bao Buns

Three mouth watering bao buns topped with blazing Nashville hot chicken, pickled onions and cucumber slaw.

THISTLE & RYE

Crispy Hot Chicken Bao

Everything you love about fluffy bao buns, combined with Nashville’s unique flare. The dish includes Hot Chicken Bao, toasted sesame, paprika aioli and crunchy slaw.

PRINCE’S HOT CHICKEN

Fowl Mouth Chicken Sandwich

Tenders on a toasted brioche bun, topped with poppy-seed dressing slaw and Sabi Sauce. Served with fries.

Prince’s Chicken Sliders with Fries & a Fountain Drink

HOLSTON HOUSE

See website for details. Specials vary by location

Pickle brined crispy chicken thigh, spicy slaw, house made pickles and comeback sauce on a buttery brioche bun.

Red Onion’s chicken drumette lollipops are cured with a signature hot chicken rub, smoked, wrapped in jalapeño bacon, coated in a hot bourbon glaze and served with a spicy broccoli slaw.

Nashville’s Original Hot Chicken Sandwich

Layered avocado slices, avocado cream, kosher dill pickles, fried hot chicken, feta, chipotle cream, a sunny side up egg and a dash of cilantro.

Holston House Crispy Chicken Sandwich

RED ONION

Bacon-Wrapped Hot Chicken Pops

A 4-ounce chicken breast and fluffy Hawaiian Roll with your choice of heat, topped with a crisp pickle and your choice of grilled or fried chicken.

PUNK WOK

Saigon Sando

Heat from a Nashville Hot tweaked PW style and served as a bahn mi sandwich with housepickled vegetables & yum yum mayo, cucumber, and cilantro stuffed into a small baguette.

WALDO’S

Fried thigh, habanero oil, cheddar, jalapeño slaw, mayo and Comeback Sauce on a toasted bun.

WILCO FUSION GRILL

The King Elvis Empanada

Crispy corn empanada filled with Nashville Hot Chicken, sweet plantain puree, queso fresco and spicy corn aoili. This item is gluten-free!

Download the Hot Chicken Week app on the App Store or Google Play. NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

2023/24 SEASON

NASHVILLE SYMPHONY COME HEAR EXTRAORDINARY FEB 2 & 3 | 7:30 PM

FEB 7 | 7:30 PM

FEB 8 TO 10 | 7:30 PM

LUNAR NEW YEAR PATTI LABELLE

CLYNE, MOZART, AND PROKOFIEV

FirstBank Pops Series

Nashville Symphony Nathan Aspinall, conductor Ma Xiaohui, erhu Jen-Jen Lin, choreographer

Nashville Symphony Nathan Aspinall, conductor Janice Carissa, piano

Nashville Symphony Enrico Lopez-Yañez, conductor

The Lawrence S. Levine Memorial Concert.

COMING SOON TO THE SCHERMERHORN FEB 14 | 7:30 PM Special Event

ROMANCE AT THE SYMPHONY: CINEMA’S ICONIC LOVE THEMES with the Nashville Symphony FEB 22 TO 24 | 7:30 PM Classical Series

ELGAR’S ENIGMA with the Nashville Symphony

FEB 25 | 7:30 PM Presentation

MAR 7 TO 9 | 7:30 PM Classical Series

Presented without the Nashville Symphony.

WEST SIDE STORY AND HARLEM with the Nashville Symphony

MAR 14 | 7:30 PM Special Event

MAR 1 | 7:30 PM Jazz Series

MAR 10 | 7:30 PM Presentation

MAR 16 | 2 PM & 7:30 PM MAR 17 | 7:30 PM Amazon Movie Series

LADYSMITH BLACK MAMBAZO

THE DUKE ELLINGTON ORCHESTRA

AIR SUPPLY

Presented without the Nashville Symphony.

THANK YOU TO OUR CONCERT PARTNERS

ENCANTO IN CONCERT with the Nashville Symphony

The Ann & Monroe Carell Family Trust MOVIE SERIES PARTNER

FAMILY SERIES PARTNER

POPS SERIES PARTNER

BUY TICKETS: 615.687.6400

music director 24 Giancarlo NASHVILLEGuerrero, SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

THE IRISH TENORS with the Nashville Symphony

NashvilleSymphony.org/Tickets

MUSIC LEGENDS PARTNER

WITH SUPPORT FROM

CRITICS’ PICKS: WEEKLY ROUNDUP OF THINGS TO DO Visit calendar.nashvillescene.com for more event listings

BURLESQUE

THURSDAY / 1.25

FILM

COMEDY

[FACT-CHECKING BUT MAKE IT FUNNY]

ADAM CONOVER

Adam Conover has worked for more than a decade as a writer, labor organizer and “investigative comedian,” so there are a dozen different ways you might have encountered his erudite observations and playful corrections. His hit show Adam Ruins Everything features Conover literally popping up in scenarios — like his friends getting engaged, buying a car or getting hit by a bus — and “ruining” their days by dispelling all the misconceptions involved. Think of him as a kind of historical and societal MythBuster. In 2022, Conover created and starred in The G Word, a spiritual sequel to Adam Ruins Everything in which civil servants including President Barack Obama describe their work and the systemic shortcomings involved. But if you haven’t seen him on the TV, then maybe you’ve seen him on your phone, offering selfie-style explainers on the 2023 writers strike and negotiations. In his new hour of stand-up, Conover brings his signature maniacal fact-checker energy to talk doomscrolling addiction, ADHD and coping when everything demands your attention. RYNE WALKER 7:30 P.M. AT CITY WINERY 609 LAFAYETTE ST.

PAGE 26

LIGHT MY FIRE: A NIGHT OF DOORSTHEMED BURLESQUE

Who better embodied the allure of ’60s counterculture than Jim Morrison, singer of iconic rock band The Doors? Both poet and provocateur, the man known as the Lizard King exuded sexual energy onstage. In honor of “Mr. Mojo Risin’,” House of Lux presents Light My Fire: A Night of Doors-Themed Burlesque. “Tantalizing Tennessee temptress” Lux-OMatic hosts an evening of enticing acts backed by Nashville’s premiere Doors tribute band, Shaman’s Blues. “The music of The Doors is sensual and mysterious, which creates the perfect backdrop for live burlesque,” says Lux. “This pairing is ritual rock ’n’ roll meets the art of seductive dance; a hypnotic visual feast for the eyes, an electrifying symphony for the ears.” Entertainers include Bonnie Valentine, Eden L., sword swallower La Reine the Thrill, “Hell’s Darling Daughter” Kat Scratch, Caroline Zander and the mistress of ceremonies herself. Featuring members of Smashmouth, Humble Pie and Jamestown Revival, Shaman’s Blues reimagines The Doors’ live experience. “The Doors’ early shows at the Whiskey-a-Go-Go in Los Angeles nearly always featured provocative live dancers,” says frontperson and Morrison reincarnate James Volpe Rotondi. “So it makes great sense to bring Lux’s burlesque troupe and our Morrison/Doors revival together to look at weaving that particular spell again.” Acoustic blues by local glam rocker Gyasi will open the evening. JASON VERSTEGEN 8 P.M. AT THE EIGHTH ROOM 2106 EIGHTH AVE. S.

MONDAY, JAN. 28

SIX ONE TRÏBE SINGLE RELEASE

[IS EVERYBODY IN?]

THE WIZARD OF OZ 85TH ANNIVERSARY SCREENINGS PAGE 28

PET SHOP BOYS: DREAMWORLD: THE GREATEST HITS LIVE PAGE 30

[WORLD PREMIERE]

MAC GAYDEN ‘FRIENDS OVER’

On Thursday, the Belcourt will host the world premiere of Mac Gayden “Friends Over,” a superb concert film celebrating the music of Mac Gayden, the hit songwriter and pioneering guitarist who was a member of session supergroup Area Code 615 and founder of the seminal Southern rock outfit Barefoot Jerry. Produced by Gayden’s wife Diane and Steve Boyle (who also directed and edited the film), Mac Gayden “Friends Over” is an undeniable testament to the songwriting greatness of the legendary Nashville cat. The film, which features videography and audio of the highest quality, was shot with a dozen cameras during a pair of “Friends Over” shows at 3rd and Lindsley on Sept. 20, 2022, and Jan. 4, 2023. There are inspired performances by not only Gayden, but also an all-star lineup of musical friends and

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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1/22/24 12:38 PM

FRIDAY / 1.26 [A JOURNEY OF THE HEART]

FLORENCIA EN EL AMAZONAS

Valentine’s Day is still a couple of weeks off, but Nashville Opera has romance on the mind this weekend as it presents Daniel Catán’s enchanting Spanish-language opera Florencia en el Amazonas. Inspired by the writings of Gabriel García Márquez and featuring a libretto by Marcela Fuentes-Berain, Florencia follows a famous opera singer who embarks on a perilous journey down the Amazon River, braving the mysteries of the jungle — and the human heart — as she searches for her long-lost love. After the show was first presented by Nashville Opera in 2015, artistic director John Hoomes took his shimmering production to Lincoln Center for its New York City premiere. This weekend’s performance marks the welcome return of acclaimed soprano Elizabeth Caballero, who dazzled Nashville audiences in the title role in 2015. The rest of the cast is excellent as well, including Evelyn Saavedra, Sandra Eddy, Luis Orozco, César Delgado, Mark Whatley and Ricardo Lugo. Dean Williamson will be on hand

[ART STARTS]

ART

MIDDLE TENNESSEE REGIONAL STUDENT ART EXHIBITION AWARDS CEREMONY One of the greatest joys of my job as an education reporter is interacting with students. Through this work I’ve found that there is no shortage of young Nashvillians who are intelligent, creative, motivated, hilarious and even a little intimidating at times (because Gen Z does not play). Those looking for proof of all this can find it at the Parthenon, which is hosting the 16th annual Middle Tennessee Regional Student Art Exhibition in collaboration with the Centennial Park Conservancy and the Tennessee Art Education Association. The exhibition, which opened Jan. 21, features an array of student art ranging from photography

MUSIC

SIX ONE TRÏBE SINGLE RELEASE

Hopefully by now you’re well aware of Nashville hip-hop collective Six One Trïbe, the ever-evolving group of MCs, producers and other creative talents that combines their powers Voltron-style to release stacks upon stacks of material from individual members as well as the group as a unit. Friday night you have a perfect opportunity to get a handle on what they’re all about, as they take over the O.G. Basement to celebrate the release of their latest single. Over a beat that’s melancholy but never loses its kinetic energy, “Paradise Lost” features AndréWolfe, Blvck Wizzle, Riø Tokyo and collective co-founder Gee Slab — who, as it will delight but not surprise you to learn, recently announced Expect to Win, his first solo album in several years, due March 26. Expect to hear lots from each of them and many more Trïbe members through the night, and through the weekend: Saturday, you can catch a brief performance at Center 615 as part of a viewing party celebrating Season 2 of Mobile Melody, a streaming program focused on Nashville hiphop. The Trïbe features in the first episode, but you’ll get to see some snippets of other episodes from the season too, and there’s an afterparty at Plane Jane. STEPHEN TRAGESER 9 P.M. AT THE BASEMENT 1604 EIGHTH AVE. S. [DEARLY BELOVED]

VIDEO GAMES LIVE

Video game soundtracks have come a long way from the beeps and boops emanating from arcade cabinets and archaic consoles, and cities like Los Angeles and New York even have standing jam bands that get together to play “standards” from “The Great Video Game Songbook” in a variety of styles. (Relatedly: Why doesn’t Nashville have these? Who wants to play the Persona 5 soundtrack with me?) At Video Games Live, the Nashville Symphony and members of the Vanderbilt Chorale will perform video game music of the more epic and orchestral variety, including tracks from Final Fantasy, Kingdom Hearts, Skyrim, The Last of Us, Metal Gear Solid, Halo and many other blockbuster games, while clips from those games are projected on a massive screen in the Schermerhorn. I attended a similar Final Fantasy VII concert in 2022, and while the presentation takes some getting used to, it’s stunning to hear tracks that have underscored hours of your life performed by a massive live orchestra. If nothing else, show up for the novelty of seeing brightly clad cosplayers milling about the stately halls of the Schermerhorn. COLE VILLENA 7:30 P.M. AT THE SCHERMERHORN 1 SYMPHONY PLACE

THEATER

[YOU CAN’T CATCH ME]

THE GINGERBREAD KID

Nashville Children’s Theatre is kicking off the new year with a brand-new musical: The Gingerbread Kid. Written, directed and choreographed by frequent NCT collaborator Abe Reybold, the play follows Allspice, whose “mischievous escapades in the kitchen set the stage for a sugary adventure.” Touching on themes of self-perception, impulse control, communication and problem-solving, it’s a sweet story designed especially for kids ages 5 to 10. But what really sets this production apart is the original music by award-winning songwriter and producer Jodi Marr (who has worked with artists like MIKA, Ricky Martin, Kristin Chenoweth and more), plus orchestrations by Sarah Michele Bailey. The cast features a number of familiar faces, including Mallory Mundy, Jonah M. Jackson, Piper Jones, Gerold Oliver, Megan Murphy Chambers, Sarah Zanotti Jackson and David Murphy. I’m also looking forward to checking out Jesse MooneyBullock’s delightful puppetry designs. The show’s run includes a special neuro-inclusive performance scheduled for Feb. 10, and an ASL-interpreted performance is set for Feb. 11. AMY STUMPFL

JAN. 27-FEB. 25 AT NASHVILLE CHILDREN’S THEATRE 25 MIDDLETON ST.

SUNDAY / 1.28 MUSIC

Several lines in Olatunde Osinaike’s debut collection of poetry gave me pause, but when I read the words “Everything within shouting distance is an emergency contact,” I actually had to briefly close the book to fully consider the gravity of what that meant. Tender Headed might be only a 92-page paperback, but the 5.6-ounce book could not be any heavier if it were made of concrete and steel. Tender Headed, winner of the 2022 National Poetry Series, is the writer’s uncomfortably raw examination of manhood, Blackness and patriarchy, taking voyeuristic readers with him to the church of his youth, to his grandma’s house and to moments of personal shame and self-doubt. He takes on the confusing isolation within social norms with such a pensive technique. Osinaike, a Chicagobred Nigerian American, invites his audience to understand his relationship to the world around him. His lines flow so musically — sometimes meditative and sometimes turbulent — but with consistently scalpel-sharp word choices. The Porch, a local organization that coordinates literary events and workshops, is bringing Osinaike to All People Coffee to celebrate the Tender Headed book tour. The reading will be followed by a panel discussion with Soul’d Creative Collective founders Christian Sinclair and Jonathan Wynn, as well as writer-filmmaker Tyquan Morton. P.J. KINZER 6 P.M. AT ALL PEOPLE COFFEE 347 DOUGLAS AVE.

[E PLURIBUS UNUM]

SATURDAY / 1.27

[HOLLERIN’ FOR HOPE]

HELLO FROM THE HILLS

A who’s-who of guitar-pickin’ and pianoplayin’ storytellers will gather at City Winery this weekend for the second annual Hello From the Hills benefit concert. The one-night show is organized by nonprofit fundraising groups The Hello in There Foundation (launched by the family of late folk hero John Prine) and Hope in the Hills (a West Virginia-based team raising awareness in the fight against opioid addiction) and boasts a lineup that’s worth hollering about. Tyler Childers anchors the eclectic bill alongside Wynonna Judd, Ben Folds, Abby Hamilton, S.G. Goodman, Jeremy Short, Gabe Lee and Lindsay Lou. This year’s concert benefits three groups: MusiCares, Tennessee Justice for Our Neighbors and Musicians Recovery Network. And with Childers atop the bill, this fundraiser offers a rare opportunity for die-hard fans of the Kentucky troubadour to watch him cook (so to speak) up close, in a room reserved for intimate listening sessions. The next time Childers comes to town? This spring, when he headlines two nights at Bridgestone Arena. MATTHEW LEIMKUEHLER 7:30 P.M. AT CITY WINERY 609 LAFAYETTE ST.

FILM

TENDER HEADED: A READING AND PANELS WITH OLATUNDE OSINAIKE

to conduct the Nashville Opera Orchestra, and audiences can look forward to stunning design elements that fully embrace the tale’s magical realism. AMY STUMPFL JAN. 26-28 AT TPAC’S POLK THEATER 505 DEADERICK ST.

MUSIC

[TENDER IS THE NIGHT]

and paintings to ceramics, digital media and more. More than 600 pieces were submitted from sixth- to 12th-graders in Middle Tennessee, and the exhibition showcases those that were blindly selected by judges to be the top three submissions, along with honorable mentions, in each grade level across various categories. On Thursday, an awards ceremony will honor the students whose works appear in the exhibition, but if you can’t make it, fret not. The exhibition will remain at the Parthenon until March 3. The works designated “best of” in their categories will be displayed at Belmont University in July in the Best of the Best Statewide Exhibition during the Tennessee Arts Academy program. You can bet the submissions from these young artists will have you questioning your own artistic abilities. KELSEY BEYELER 5:30-7:30 P.M. AT THE PARTHENON 2500 WEST END AVE.

OPERA

BOOKS

admirers, including Jimmy Hall, Tracy Nelson, Charlie McCoy, Dianne Davidson, The Valentines and Buzz Cason, who co-wrote Gayden’s biggest hit, the pop and R&B standard “Everlasting Love.” “This is a snapshot of a generation of Nashville music that is not normally recognized because it’s not country,” Boyle tells the Scene. Clocking in at two hours and 25 minutes, the film features material from throughout Gayden’s career, which spans more than six decades. At present, this is the only scheduled screening of the film. DARYL SANDERS 6:30 P.M. AT THE BELCOURT 2102 BELCOURT AVE.

[VELBEKOMME]

SUNDAY SUPPER: BABETTE’S FEAST

While it may be known as one of the most mouth-watering foodie movies ever, the 1987

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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1/22/24 12:39 PM

Southern/Modern is the first comprehensive survey of paintings and works on paper created in the American South between 1913 and 1955. Featuring over one hundred works from various artists, the exhibition reflects a period of change and upheaval across the region. Thematic groupings weave together the region’s rich cultures, telling stories of agriculture and industry, class division and racial injustice, natural beauty, and stylistic innovation.

THROUGH APRIL 28

Downtown Nashville 919 Broadway, Nashville, TN 37203

FristArtMuseum.org

@FristArtMuseum

#TheFrist

Southern/Modern is organized by The Mint Museum in collaboration with the Georgia Museum of Art. Lead support for Southern/Modern is generously provided by the Henry Luce Foundation. Additional funding comes from the Terra Foundation for American Art and the Wyeth Foundation for American Art. Southern/Modern was also made possible by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Alfred and Betsy Brand Fund at The Mint Museum. Platinum Sponsor

Education & Community Engagement Suppor ters

Suppor ted in par t by our

Hospitality Sponsors

The Frist Ar t Museum is suppor ted in par t by

2024 Frist Gala patrons Nell Choate Jones (1879-1981). Georgia Red Clay (detail), 1946. Oil on canvas; 25 x 30 in. Morris Museum of NASHVILLE Art, Augusta, 1989.01094 SCENEGA, • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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1/19/24 1:08 PM

PHOTO: MARK SELIGER

ELVIS COSTELLO

FEBRUARY 18

SUNDAY SERVICE

BLACK HERSTORY

FILM

AGES 21+ ONLY

MARCH 2

JOHN MAILANDER’S FORECAST

MARCH 6

TINSLEY ELLIS ON SALE FRIDAY AT 10 AM

[WHAT A WORLD! WHAT A WORLD!]

THE WIZARD OF OZ 85TH ANNIVERSARY SCREENINGS

In the 85 years since The Wizard of Oz’s release, the lore surrounding the making of Victor Fleming’s adaptation of the L. Frank Baum children’s book has nearly outgrown the movie itself. Many cinephiles know, for instance, that original Tin Man Buddy Ebsen was replaced by actor Jack Haley when Ebsen suffered a severe reaction to his aluminum makeup and had to be hospitalized. Or that Wicked Witch of the West Margaret Hamilton was also hospitalized after suffering second-degree burns due to a pyrotechnics mishap during filming. Or that then-16-year-old star Judy Garland suffered a number of traumatic experiences while shooting — some of which affected her for the rest of her too-short life. (But no, despite its pervasiveness, the urban legend that an extra

portraying a Munchkin died by suicide on set is definitely not true.) Point is, The Wizard of Oz was an enormous and groundbreaking undertaking that changed the course of filmmaking forever. And despite the harrowing experiences of some of its performers, it remains unforgettable for its remarkable production design, iconic songs and exceptional performances — particularly Garland’s. At the end of the month, Fathom Events will host a number of screenings of the film. If you’ve never seen it on the big screen, here’s a great opportunity. D. PATRICK RODGERS JAN. 28, 29 & 31 AT REGAL AND AMC LOCATIONS

MONDAY / 1.29 MUSIC

Danish dramedy (and Academy Award winner for Best Foreign Language Film) Babette’s Feast is essentially about close-minded, selfcentered Christians. Two elderly sisters (Birgitte Federspiel and Bodil Kjer) live in a Protestantheavy village in 19th-century Denmark. For more than a dozen years, they’ve housed Babette (French actress Stéphane Audran), a Paris refugee who’s been working for free as their housekeeper. When Babette wins the French lottery, she celebrates by making a “real French dinner” for the sisters and the villagers that makes them more concerned than honored. Apparently, these people never bothered to ask this lady about her life back home. If they did, they would know she was a culinary superstar, and they’re about to eat the best friggin’ meal of their lives. Anyway, you can watch all the scrumptious dishes ol’ girl serves up (BTW, the whole menu is listed on the film’s Wikipedia page) this weekend as part of the Belcourt’s Sunday Supper series — and in glorious 35 mm! CRAIG D. LINDSEY 7 P.M. AT THE BELCOURT 2102 BELCOURT AVE.

[THERE WAS A CHECKPOINT CHARLIE]

ELVIS COSTELLO AND THE IMPOSTERS W/CHARLIE SEXTON

Another Elvis Costello tour, another Mother Church show, another glowing endorsement in the Nashville Scene. It might be the most “Critics’ Pick” of Critics’ Picks — an alt-weekly writers’ cycle for at least the past 25 years. It’s like a twoon-one fastbreak lob. It’s easy and predictable, yet somehow still thrilling. Whether it’s Costello reuniting with original Attractions members, his gameshow-esque Spectacular Spinning Songbook or just the opportunity to hear all those incredible tunes played live just one more time, the London-born songwriter always packs the pews of country music’s most sacred cathedral. If you’re a fan, you’re probably fully aware of Costello’s career status as rock ’n’ roll’s “songwriter’s songwriter.” You probably know that he believes writing about music to be akin to dancing about architecture. You probably need no explanation of the significance of My Aim Is True or his instrumental hand in reviving Burt Bacharach for a new generation or that he produced records for The Specials and The Pogues. You might know that Costello is a walking encyclopedia of country and Western music, peppering his sets with anecdotes about

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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1/22/24 12:39 PM

LOCALS PAY WHAT YOU WANT

It's the last chance to cash in on daily pay-what-you-want Museum admission for residents of Davidson and bordering counties—a real bargain coming to a close on January 31. above: Don Williams outside a market in Nashville, 1975. photo: Raeanne Rubenstein

LEARN MORE NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

THU 1.25 • CALI WILSON • WHITNEY FENIMORE • MADDIE LENHART • PRESENTED BY

PINEWORKS CREATIVE & PARALLAX CREATIVE

FRI 1.26

• MARY AND THE MATRIX • VENUS AND THE FLYTRAPS • SOFIA PEREZ • AILANI PEDROZ

SAT 1.27

• TIMOTHY MYLES “SECRETS” RELEASE SHOW • OLIVIA FRANCES • EVA CASSEL

SUN 1.28 • GLAMPER • TIBLINSKI • WESLEY & THE BOYS • HONEY DAGGER MON 1.29 • CLOSEBYE • LO NOOM • JOELTON MAYFIELD • FUTURE CRIB •ULTIMATE COMEDY • FREE LOCAL STAND UP!

PHOTO: ZACHARY CHICK

TUE 1.30

WED 1.31 • KELSEY ABBOTT • HANNAH FLORA • MACHO PLANET

Saturday, February 10

SONGWRITER SESSION

Jenna LaMaster

Carter Faith

NOON · FORD THEATER

Sunday, January 28

Sunday, February 11

MUSICIAN SPOTLIGHT

Danny Rader

Lisa Horngren

1:00 pm · FORD THEATER

Saturday, February 3

Friday, February 16

SONGWRITER SESSION

BOOK TALK

Tommy Karlas

Steve Fishell

NOON · FORD THEATER

Discusses Buddy Emmons

Saturday, February 3

TAYLOR SWIFT EDUCATION CENTER

CONCERT AND CONVERSATION

Sunday, February 18

Morgan Wade

MUSICIAN SPOTLIGHT

11:00 am

2:30 pm · FORD THEATER Sunday, February 4

Terry Crisp 1:00 pm · FORD THEATER

MUSICIAN SPOTLIGHT

Saturday, February 24

Natalie Murphy

SONGWRITER SESSION

1:00 pm · FORD THEATER

Gabe Lee NOON · FORD THEATER

WITNESS HISTORY

Museum Membership Receive free admission, access to weekly programming, concert ticket presale opportunities, and more.

1/3 Page_PrintAd_01.25.24.indd 1 30MKTG_Scene NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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the early artists who got their start playing the Opry. So if Costello at the Ryman isn’t quite denim-shirted-Gen-X-er enough for you, the opener is ace Austin guitar slinger Charlie Sexton, a guy who landed a song on a John Hughes soundtrack, co-wrote music with Steve Earle and had notable runs as a sideman with David Bowie, Lucinda Williams and Bob Dylan. The whole event reads like an insufferable page from Nick Hornby’s novel High Fidelity, but the point is that you know you’re about to open the ticket-purchasing app of your choice to look for tickets, because you know you’re going to regret it if you don’t go. This Pick is just here to remind you. P.J. KINZER 7:30 P.M. AT THE RYMAN 116 REP. JOHN LEWIS WAY N.

FILM

Saturday, January 27

WEDNESDAY

FULL CALENDAR

[THE RIGHT NOTES]

MUSIC CITY MONDAYS: GRACE OF MY HEART

Allison Anders’ beloved 1996 riff on the life of a not-Carole King played by the incomparable Illeana Douglas occupies a weird space in music film. To some, it’s an example of what 30 Rock called the Jackie Jormp-Jomp syndrome — making a biopic without the life rights or songs of an artist. But that’s not really accurate, because what Anders ended up creating is something weirder and more electric than any traditional biopic could have been. It was for this film that the partnership between Burt Bacharach and Elvis Costello began. It was for this film that Brill Building elders and cuttingedge ’90s rock voices worked together to create an entire alternate history of American music. (Personal faves: Lesley Gore finally getting to write her lesbian torch song “My Secret Love,” almost-forgotten girl group For Real with “Unwanted Number” and “I Do,” and Kristen Vigard’s devastating takes on “Boat on a Sea” and “God Give Me Strength.”) You can play the game of “Who is this person really supposed to be?” if you want to, but doing so means you miss the joy and insanity of this singular American

indie. Songwriter/musician and music journalist Bill DeMain will introduce the 8 p.m. screening. JASON SHAWHAN

3:10 & 8 P.M. AT THE BELCOURT 2102 BELCOURT AVE.

TUESDAY / 1.30 MUSIC

@THEEASTROOM

[THANK YOU, THING]

WEDNESDAY W/HOTLINE TNT

It’s been a while since I’ve felt stranded at an early-adulthood crossroads, caught in a tug-ofwar between where I wanted to be in life, where it looked like I was headed and how far it might be possible for me to go. Asheville, N.C., rock outfit Wednesday took me right back there with their latest LP Rat Saw God. The record’s stories all orbit this kind of internal conflict, and singerguitarist Karly Hartzman & Co. process it and share their findings in a way that rings true to me — not to mention the appealing Pavementmeets-Drive-By Truckers sound. Like a lot of folks, I heard about Wednesday for the first time in early 2022 when Hartzman’s Twitter thread about the harsh economic realities of touring as an indie band went viral. Wednesday’s work is a rock-solid example of musicians doing valuable cultural work that they ought to be paid fairly for. NYC’s Hotline TNT supports at Tuesday’s show, bringing a heavy and dreamy brand of post-shoegaze-y rock as heard on their new album Cartwheel. STEPHEN TRAGESER 8 P.M. AT EASTSIDE BOWL 1508 GALLATIN PIKE S., MADISON

WEDNESDAY / 1.31 FILM

2412 GALLATIN AVE

[ALWAYS ON MY MIND]

PET SHOP BOYS: DREAMWORLD: THE GREATEST HITS LIVE

Whether you view Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe as the masters of deadpan disco or (gasp) just think of them for “West End Girls” or

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This week at...

INEBRIATED SHAKESPEARE 1/26 molly martin & gloom girl mfg

THURSDAY

1/25 FRIDAY

SATURDAY

1/27

JANUARY 28

LIVE AT THE OPRY HOUSE

FRANKIE VALLI & THE FOUR SEASONS

with THE SEWING CLUB

FEBRUARY 2

comedy night

CHRIS DISTEFANO

with CORTNEY WARNER

MARCH 26

Rent out

The Blue Room for your upcoming event! BLUEROOMBAR@THIRDMANRECORDS.COM

THEBLUEROOMBAR.COM

@THEBLUEROOMNASHVILLE

623 7TH AVE S NASHVILLE, TENN.

BRELAND & FRIENDS WITH AVERY ANNA, DALTON DOVER, JOSH GROBAN, WALKER HAYES, CHASE RICE, CAITLYN SMITH, THE WAR & TREATY, DRAKE WHITE

ON SALE FRIDAY AT 10 AM APRIL 2

LIVE AT THE OPRY HOUSE

THE BLACK CROWES ON SALE FRIDAY AT 10 AM MAY 2 UPCOMING SHOWS AT THE CMA THEATER FEBRUARY 25

RUSTON KELLY

ON SALE FRIDAY AT 10 AM

MARCH 5

CAT POWER

GEOFF TATE & ADRIAN VANDENBERG

CAT POWER SINGS DYLAN: THE 1966 ROYAL ALBERT HALL CONCERT

MAY 3

APRIL 18

DIXIE DREGS

ALEJANDRO ESCOVEDO

WITH SPECIAL GUESTS STEVE MORSE BAND

MAY 7

HERMANOS GUTIÉRREZ ON SALE FRIDAY AT 10 AM MAY 16

TICKETS ON SALE NOW Museum members receive exclusive pre-sale opportunities for all CMA Theater shows.

TICKETS ON SALE NOW

THE STEELDRIVERS ON SALE FRIDAY AT 10 AM

Museum members receive exclusive pre-sale opportunities for all CMA Theater shows. Learn more at CountryMusicHallofFame.org/Membership. BOOKED BY

@NATIONALSHOWS2 • NATIONALSHOWS2.COM

The CMA Theater is a property of the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

224 REP. JOHN LEWIS WAY S • NASHVILLE, TN CMATHEATER.COM • @CMATHEATER

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

THE WHITE ANIMALS

MUSIC

“Opportunities,” the duo has been making a staggering amount of enduring electronic pop in their 40 years as recording artists, songwriters and producers. The Dreamworld Tour was conceived as a way of easing back into the global music circuit as the planet was trying to figure out how to manage the continuing fallout of the COVID pandemic, gathering the hits together (but, as they always do, reworking the arrangements and finding new thematic structures) and showing envious rockists that traditional band forms are neither necessary nor required. If the heaps of awards (including the Novello!) and scads of records sold don’t have you intrigued, think of the concert film Dreamworld as a luxury one-off club night with some of the greatest-written pop songs of the past four decades. JASON SHAWHAN JAN. 31 & FEB. 4 AT REGAL AND AMC LOCATIONS [NASHVILLE ROCK PIONEERS RETURN]

THE WHITE ANIMALS’ WTF FEST

vocals), Rich Parks (lead guitar, vocals) and Ray Crabtree (drums, vocals) — were rock pioneers in Nashville in the ’80s on many fronts. Initially a duo, the group jump-started the music scene at Phrank N’ Stein’s Rathskeller, which became ground zero for the city’s burgeoning punk scene. They also were the first Nashville rock band to have music videos in rotation on MTV, a feat made even more remarkable by the fact that they were truly DIY, releasing all their recordings on their own label, Dread Beat Records. “We’ve got about 10 or more new songs, and we’re gonna try to bash those out and inflict them on the public,” Gray tells the Scene with a laugh. “We’re also going to do some deep cuts and rare B-side kind of stuff.” Gray says each night the band will play “two leisurely 45-minute sets,” and afterward “hang out and visit” with their fans. DARYL SANDERS 6 P.M. JAN. 31-FEB. 2 AT SPRINGWATER 115 27TH AVE. N.

Beloved Nashville indie rockers The White Animals have been recording their first new music in two decades and plan to test-drive the material at a trio of free shows, which the band has dubbed “The WTF Fest,” beginning Jan. 31 at Springwater. Heavily influenced by The Beatles, The White Animals — Kevin Gray (rhythm guitar, vocals), Steve Boyd (bass,

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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A N A L O G AT

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Buzzworthy indie rock artist Michigander, the sonic alter ego of Michigan native Jason Singer, delivers elevated and eloquent songcraft, uplifting instrumentation, and plainspoken heartland storytelling punctuated by alternative flare.

DOORS: 6 PM SHOW: 7 PM GA: $20 RES: $30

ALL SHOWS AT ANALOG ARE 21+ 1808 WEST END AVENUE, NASHVILLE,

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

Tuesday, March 5, 2024 | 6 – 8 p.m. tnflavors.org

Tennessee Flavors is an annual tasting event that brings together Nashville’s top restaurants and food and beverage artisans for a delicious evening in support of the Nashville State Community College Foundation. Our focus is on Tennessee-sourced products and the culinary talents and local flavors that help make our growing community so special.

Nashville State Community College Southeast Campus 5248 Hickory Hollow Parkway, Antioch, TN 37013 Presenting Sponsor:

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FOOD & DRINK

SHORT AND SWEET … AND SOUR, SALTY AND SPICY

South Nashville’s Curry & Tikka offers creative takes on traditional Indian fare BY KAY WEST while a generous toss of pomegranate seeds delivers color and an unexpected sweet-sour surprise. That last element fulfills the four S’s that Jagga names as the cornerstones of Indian cuisine — sweet, sour, salty and spicy. Indo-Chinese food, aka Chindian or Desi-Chinese, finds its origins in Chinese people migrating south to northeastern India, the two cultures producing dishes with flavors and techniques from both countries. Beloved in India, the most popular is gobi Manchurian — labeled cauliflower Manchurian at Curry & Tikka. The dish features floured and fried cauliflower florets, drained then tossed with sweet-spicy Manchurian sauce, topped with sautéed onion and red and green peppers, all the elements of a stir-fry. Paani puri are always fun: bite-size puffed orbs of puri dough, with a hole cut at the top for a scoop of mashed potatoes, chopped green onion, green chiles and cilantro, served with two small jars of flavored water — mint-jalapeño and tamarind-date — to pour into the puri and quickly pop into your mouth. In India, dal refers to lentil, and makhani to a sauce made with butter and cream; together they create a rich, buttery, creamy-thick soupstew perfectly suited to spooning over basmati rice or sopped up with torn pieces of soft butter naan or roti. Jagga cooks his black lentils (urad) slow and low for at least six hours in the fireheated tandoor oven, adding garlic, butter and cream at different stages. The dal makhani is

TIKKA MACAND-CHEESE

SAMOSA CHAAT

PHOTOS: ERIC ENGLAND

WHEN I DID a previsit online perusal of Curry & Tikka’s menu, I was impressed by its succinct composition, certainly in comparison to menus at many of the popular Indian restaurants in Nashville. One of those is 10 pages long; another, which numbers items for takeout ordering, counts from 1 to 172; another has 174 options. My eyes glaze over before I’m midway through. Curry & Tikka, which opened in September in a Kroger-anchored shopping center on East Thompson Lane, comes in at a scant 43, not including eight house-made breads. I like that in a restaurant. I confess I scoffed at the section titled “India With a Twist,” which includes a burrito, a naanza (yes, a naan pizza), a quesadilla and tikka mac-and-cheese. The food snob in me was skeptical. The day after eating there — trying eight dishes, two breads and two desserts — I asked my dining companions to send me their favorites. Three out of three cited the tikka mac-andcheese, with one adding that she hated to admit it. What the hell, I’ll make it unanimous; that pewter serving bowl was scraped clean before it had a chance to cool off. Chef-owner Dinesh Jagga explains the vision of the overall menu and the logic behind the items in the twisted section, each of which merges two cuisines. “We wanted to keep the food classical, fresh and simple,” he says. “But at the same time attract people who don’t know Indian cuisine by fusing traditionally Indian ingredients with something familiar.” The mac-and-cheese begins with large elbow macaroni, ridged to hold the cheese and sauce, cooked al dente. Jagga stirs the pasta with lots of butter and three cheeses, then folds in tikka sauce, charred red peppers and your choice of cubed protein — paneer (if you just can’t get enough cheese) or chicken. It’s the tikka sauce — tomatoes, butter, cream and kasuri methi (dried fenugreek leaves) cooked together for hours — that elevates this particular dish from predictable potluck side to something unique and memorable. Many Indian restaurants serve the popular Indian street food samosa chaat, which deconstructs the traditional stuffed samosa down to pieces of flaky, fried pastry mixed with an earthy chickpea stew and drizzled with mint chutney. Jagga’s chickpeas are still firm, and crispy broken vermicelli noodles strewn atop add texture,

Curry & Tikka 55 E. Thompson Lane, Suite 105 thecurryandtikka.com

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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LIVE MUSIC | URBAN WINERY RESTAURANT | BAR | PRIVATE EVENTS

1.31

RUMORS ATL

A TRIBUTE TO FLEETWOOD MAC

2.04 COMEDIAN

BRANDON T. JACKSON

2.07

LIV WARFIELD

2.11 2.12

2.13

CHANTÉ MOORE

POETRY VS. HIP HOP

1.25 AARON CRAWFORD 1.26 AN EVENING WITH CREED BRATTON 1.27 AN EVENING WITH TRACE BUNDY CHRISETTE MICHELE 1.27 EARLY AND LATE SHOWS NASHVILLE BEATLES BRUNCH 1.28 FEATURING FOREVER ABBEY ROAD AND FRIENDS 1.28 WAYLON HELLO FROM THE HILLS 1.28 (SOLD OUT-JOIN WAITLIST) 1.29 ADAM CONOVER 1.30 THE SIXTIES SHOW JOHN LOMAX 1.31 THE LOMAX ON LOMAX SHOW RAINY EYES WITH JOSHUA RILKO BLUEGRASS BAND FEAT GEOFF 2.1 SAUNDERS & OLIVER CRAVEN OF SIERRA FERRELL’S BAND

EVENING WITH AJ GHENT 2.2 AN & HIS SINGING GUITAR ELLISA SUN: ALBUM RELEASE SHOW 2.3 WITH JULIA CANNON THE PIANO MEN: TRIBUTE 2.3 TO BILLY JOEL & ELTON JOHN 2.4 ANNIE LEPPERT 2.6 DALEY 2.9 BRAWDY STORYTELLING SOUL FOOD POETRY CAFE PRESENTS: LETTERS VOL. II 2.9 LOVE FEATURINGDRE THE POET, ZACARRA HEATH, ELVIE WILLIAMS WONDERFUL WOMEN WHO WRITE FEAT. 2.14 SUZI RAGSDALE, ALISON PRESTWOOD, CLAUDIA NYGAARD, ANNIE MOSHER 2.14 VALENTINE’S WITH RAUL MALO 2.15 BARRACUDA - A TRIBUTE TO HEART IMPROV COMEDY 2.16 NASHVILLE PRESENTS: LOVE AND LAUGHTER

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PHOTO: ERIC ENGLAND

ELI RALLO

I DIDN’T KNOW I NEEDED THIS LIVE

2.01

CAULIFLOWER MANCHURIAN self-served from a small silver pail, finished with more cream and butter. Tandoori chicken — a generous portion of thighs and legs — is tender, moist and delectable thanks to a double marinade process. A mix of salt and lemon (acid) breaks down and softens the tissue of the raw meat; then a thick mix of yogurt, ginger-garlic paste, garam masala, turmeric, red chile powder and kasuri methi adds subtle heat and deep flavor all the way down to the bone. Cooked to a char in the tandoor oven, it’s plated on a bed of sautéed red onion and served with mint-coriander chutney and lime wedges for spritzing. Eat straight from the bone or pull some off and wrap it in a piece of naan. I’m a fan of biryani — a basmati rice dish with roots in Iran or Pakistan — and goat, so I was sorely disappointed in the goat dum biryani, the only failure of the meal. The rice was cooked and seasoned exactly right, but the pieces of goat meat were so tough they were inedible. Jagga says he is having trouble finding a good goat purveyor; as dedicated to quality of ingredients as he shows himself to be, the error should be corrected by removing goat from the menu rather than serving an inferior product. I wished we had ordered the chicken biryani instead, or the tandoori lamb chops, or the Malabar fish curry, or the jheenga mango — shrimp cooked in creamy tomato sauce with mango. Though we were perfectly sated by the meal, professional duty compelled us to order two desserts, both thankfully small. We preferred the gulab jamun — two small, golden balls of milk dough flavored with rose water and

cardamom, deep-fried and anchored in a pool of sweet syrup — to the other dessert we tried: kulfi falooda, a not quite coherent mix of Indian ice cream (kulfi), vermicelli (falooda), rose syrup, milk and basil seeds. Jagga is still plowing through the red tape involved in getting wine and beer permits, but guests can bring their own for a small ($5) corkage fee. Decor is minimal though pleasant, and the seating in leather-upholstered booths and chairs is quite comfortable. A lunch buffet, the mainstay of every Indian restaurant, is available every day but Tuesday — when the restaurant is closed — from 11:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. The young chef — just five years in America after graduating from the Culinary Academy of India and arriving in Nashville to cook at the Marriott — is imbued with talent and passion, eager to come out of the kitchen into the dining room to say hello, full of energy and ideas. He offers Tesla owners who charge their vehicles at the station across the street a 10 percent discount if they’d like to eat while they wait. If you own a Tesla, you probably don’t need a discount on your check. You can bike, bus or drive your old jalopy to Curry & Tikka, and frankly, you won’t need a discount either. The buffet is just $14.99 per person/$11.99 for kids, and four of us ate more than our share à la carte for just over $100. You probably won’t go to Curry & Tikka Indian Restaurant for the mac-and-cheese, but having had it, I’d be lying if I didn’t admit I’ll go back for it. ▼

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y R E P YO U R C I T Y

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

Living Well

fresh perspec tives to live your best life in 2024

ADVERTISE IN THIS SECTION The Nashville Scene reaches more than 375,000 active consumers who desire to live their best life. They’re educated and affluent, and are lifelong learners. They seek new perspectives and want to know about your offerings, especially as we embark on another year. Great for integrated health clinics, therapists, nutritionists, salons, aesthetic skin centers and practitioners, spas, energy healers, workout centers, yogis and more. The Living Well section runs with an inclusion in one exclusive email to 100,000-plus recipients and social media support.

82% of Scene readers exercise two or more times a week. 68% of Scene readers have a college education. 64% of Scene readers plan to have a cosmetic procedure in the next 12 months. 42% participate in yoga, Pilates or barre classes each month. 51% are interested in integrative health opportunities. 71% participate in meditation or some form of therapy. For more information, contact your account executive or Michael Jezewski at mjezewski@fwpublishing.com.

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LIVING WELL 2024 | ADVERTORIAL

Living Well

fresh perspec tives to live your best life in 2024

80 ACRES FARMS

Mike Zelkind & Tisha Livingston An interview with 80 Acres Farms co-founders. Mike Zelkind, CEO and co-founder, 80 Acres Farms Tisha Livingston, co-founder, 80 Acres Farms, and CEO, Infinite Acres (a wholly owned subsidiary of 80 Acres Farms) How would you describe 80 Acres Farms to someone who hadn’t heard of it before? 80 Acres Farms is a vertical farming company. We’re on a mission to change the way the world eats, using fewer resources. What kind of products are you able to grow year-round? Tisha: We can grow anything in our farms, and over the years, we’ve experimented with a lot, from peppers to potatoes to hops for local breweries. We’re still trying out different plants and plant varieties in our research farms, but right now, our commercial farms are growing greens, microgreens, herbs, and tomatoes. That’s what our customers are asking for—healthy, everyday ingredients that go from farm to store in days, not weeks, so they taste better, last longer, and less wasteful. Tell me more about vertical farming and how it’s good for the planet: Mike: Before we founded 80 Acres Farms, Tisha and I worked for big food companies. In our last job together, we ran a vegetable canning company in Arkansas, which meant working directly with farmers and learning more about the supply chains that take produce thousands of miles from farm to table. When you ship lettuce 2,000 miles from California to Nashville, you lose flavor, texture, and nutrition. And outsourcing the produce section to places like California isn’t a long-term solution, as the population grows and climate change interrupts traditional growing cycles. We knew there had to be a better way. Our farms grow fresh, local food year-round, using 95% less water per pound of produce and shipping from farm to retailer in 48 hours or less. We don’t use pesticides, herbicides, or any other nasty chemicals. Our farms are so clean that we don’t have to wash our produce and you don’t, either, saving more water and saving you time and effort. And we grow using renewable energy, offsetting the environmental impact of growing indoors.

Where can I find 80 Acres Farms products in Nashville? Currently, you can find 80 Acres Farms retail products at Nashville Kroger, all three Turnip Truck locations, and The Fresh Market in Brentwood. We also partner with restaurants around Nashville, including Butcher & Bee and Herban Market. What kind of 80 Acres Farms products are available in Nashville? You can find 80 Acres Farms branded salad blends, microgreens, basil, and newly launched salad kits in Nashville retailers. We’ve just made eating healthier even more convenient with our new product line of salad kits— a quick meal solution made from clean, high-quality ingredients that are as delicious as they are healthy. It’s just so easy to grab one for lunch and have a wholesome, filling meal all in one pack! If I buy an 80 Acres Farms product in Nashville, where was it grown? Right now, we’re growing in three farms in southern Ohio and another in Kentucky, which is helping us reach Nashville. As we grow, we’ll keep building out our network of farms—starting with our next opening, in Georgia in 2024. As this is our Living Well issue, how does 80 Acres Farms products help Scene readers live well in the new year? We make eating well easy. First of all, fresh produce tastes better, so you can actually look forward to eating it, rather than settling for something that’s just “good for you.” Because we go from farm to store in just a couple of days, our food stays fresh and crisp longer, cutting down on food waste and making meal planning easier. And because our produce is always in season, that salad kit you buy in the depths of winter will taste just as good as it does at the height of summer. We think this is the freshest, tastiest produce that’s ever landed on supermarket shelves, and our customers agree.

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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ART

SACRED SPACE

With Divine Lite, a new curatorial team transforms the Downtown Presbyterian Church into a temple of the avant-garde BY JOE NOLAN

THE DOWNTOWN PRESBYTERIAN CHURCH has long been a cornerstone of Nashville’s contemporary art scene: The church’s artists-in-residence have included some of the city’s best and most recognizable artists, from Jodi Hays to Herb Williams; the artists-in-residence-curated The Browsing Room gallery has established itself as a don’t-miss downtown art spot; and the church’s art studio program turns 30 years old in 2025. Now a new cohort of artists and curators is bringing a developing series of multimedia exhibitions and performances to the church’s historical spaces. Nashville Pantheon wants to create an “avant-garde Ryman Auditorium” experience downtown, renewing and reinvigorating the Downtown Presbyterian Church’s unique and longstanding conversation with the city’s most daring creatives. The Nashville Pantheon feels like an “Avengers assemble” moment in the city’s creative scene — a talented group of artists and curators from across Nashville joining forces to double down on the downtown arts district and establish a sacred space for weirdness and wonder, just blocks from the blasted bridesmaids on Broadway. The Pantheon’s Shevy Smith is a multimedia artist who recently moved back to Nashville from Los Angeles, and she’s the newest artist-in-residence at the Downtown Presbyterian Church. Joining her are Ashley Layendecker, the gallery director at Red Arrow in East Nashville, and Joshua Edward Bennett, the gallery manager and curator at Tinney Contemporary, which is just a few blocks north of the church, on the section of Rep. John Lewis Way known as the Avenue of the Arts. The group’s first order of business was to take over the programming of The Browsing Room

“BABY II,” DAVID ONRI ANDERSON

“SPRING DISSONANCE,” SOPHIA BELKIN

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for the first two months of the year. Nashville Pantheon opened Divine Lite: Finding the Ethereal in the Ephemeral on Jan. 5 during the downtown Art Crawl. The show pulled in about twice the amount of gawkers the gallery usually gets on First Saturday, and that response bodes well for the curatorial concern’s future plans. Divine Lite hosts a number of local art faves — along with other Tinney Contemporary and Red Arrow alums — for a display of works that touch on notions of spirituality: David Onri Anderson’s “Baby II” features a meditative arrangement of flickering pink candles against a green background, while Julian Rogers’ “On the Polished Palace Floor” is an otherworldly painting of candy-colored clouds evoking the Romantic sentiments about the awe-inducing beauty of natural forms. Joshua Edward Bennett’s own “Ekvilibra” is one of the artist’s signature abstract wall sculptures. Bennett combines acrylic, faux leather, vinyl, MDF and paint into a dizzying formalist assemblage of surfaces and textures. Divine Lite also includes work from Sophia Belkin, Heather Hartman, Esther Ruiz, Calli Moore, Benjy Russell and Karen Seapker. To correspond with Divine Lite, Shevy Smith has created an immersive site-specific installation in the church’s gorgeous chapel space. “Symposia” includes two small church pews sourced from actual church pews. Smith has cut the full-sized pews down to chairs that angle up, so viewers can stare directly into the chapel’s dome while listening to a musical audio collage on headphones. Smith wrote music and sourced sounds from around the church, and she’s currently inviting collaborators to record various audio performances in the chapel. Those elements will be added to the display’s

evolving soundtrack. There are other decorative elements completing the space, along with an illuminated clock tower that tells time via the dotted faces of domino designs. Smith is a professional composer and music producer, but her art and design chops are just as noteworthy — “Symposia” is tasteful, well-executed and sharply conceptual. The installation envelops viewers/listeners in an experience that captures the overall theme of Nashville Pantheon’s ongoing program: utilizing the ritual capacities of contemporary art and music to creatively activate the church’s sacred spaces. Nashville Pantheon will host a closing event for Divine Lite on Saturday, Jan. 27. “Symposia” will continue through the end of February in the church’s chapel, and Nashville Pantheon will open a show by Nashville artist Jesse Hale in The Browsing Room during the downtown Art Crawl on Feb. 3. The curators are planning on more programming in the church’s chapel to continue throughout 2024. Most of the displays will be accessible during First Saturday each month, but the group is also planning some ambitious ticketed events that will transform the space into a multimedia theater featuring everything from film, performance and live music to projection mapping and sound art — sometimes all at once. ▼

Divine Lite: Finding the Ethereal in the Ephemeral Through Jan. 27 at the Downtown Presbyterian Church Closing reception 6-9 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 27 instagram.com/nashvillepantheon

Because Nashville is so much more than honky-tonks and bachelorettes...

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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TikTok star Eli Rallo presents a love survival guide in I Didn’t Know I Needed This BY HANNAH HERNER

Eli Rallo: I Didn’t Know I Needed This Live 8 p.m. Wednesday, Jan. 31, at City Winery

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ELI RALLO IS an idol for eldest daughters, theater kids, people who self-identify as “annoying,” people who left Greek life, people who deal with endometriosis, people who eat gluten-free snacks, people who love Sex and the City, and above all, 20-somethings trying to figure out what to do next. Rallo gained popularity on TikTok with her various lists of (fun) rules and declarations of what’s in and out. Her book, I Didn’t Know I Needed This: The New Rules for Flirting, Feeling, and Finding Yourself, commits some of those theories to print. Rallo spoke with the Scene about Sex and the City, YouTube and gossiping ahead of I Didn’t Know I Needed This Live at City Winery.

You’ve been called the Carrie Bradshaw of the TikTok generation. What’s one thing that is accurate to being a writer in New York City and one thing that is not? It’s accurate that it typically doesn’t really pay well, being a writer in New York City. When I was in journalism school, they would always tell us that people don’t go into journalism for money. I would always hear the same thing when I was in theater school. Self-expression through fashion is not only acceptable, but celebrated. People dressing like Carrie Bradshaw dressed in the middle of a small town might be a bit of a shock, but here nobody bats an eye. I really love that about New York. What’s not true — I think this is a sign of the times and the technological advancements that we’ve had — just the ease of meeting people in person. Every episode of Sex and the City is literally about Carrie Bradshaw and her friends

meeting strangers and what the strangers then become to them. That does not happen in a post-COVID world, with dating apps and everything else.

Turning 25 can be a big time of realizing things for people. You turned 25 around six months ago — has anything changed for you as you look back on your earlier 20s? I have the type of brain where I feel like I’m always realizing things. Thank you, Kylie Jenner, for saying “me and my friends are just realizing things.” I put out an episode about friendship like a year ago, and in that episode I said a lot of things that I still believe to be true. But in the last year or even in the last few months, I’ve had 1 million other realizations that are either subsets of those things that I thought were the deepest that I could go on a certain topic, or are different thoughts that I’ve had that maybe aren’t at odds with what I originally thought, but maybe paint the world in a different shade of gray than I initially expected. I think that I’m always realizing things, and it’s nice to have an audience that’s kind of flexible with that — having constant realizations and updates to what I’m feeling and thinking.

I feel like I owe so much to the women I watched on YouTube in high school in terms of learning to navigate the world. Who were those people for you? I have an education, professionally, in theater, but my love for theater and my vast and expansive knowledge of theater did not come from school. It came from literally YouTube. I think that the beautiful thing about the internet is that so many kids who have found home or allegiance or community in something

that maybe you don’t have like immense, tremendous access to. There are only so many community theaters, and there’s only one drama club show a year. I was able to satiate myself and learn via theater YouTube. That is just something that I hold so dear to me. Jenna Marbles and Fred and all of those comedy YouTubers that were popular when I was in middle school, I feel like everything they’ve done has paved the way for me to be able to have my own sort of career. I do feel like I owe a lot to them.

What gives you the confidence to post so much online? Something that I’m constantly thinking about is that for women, one of the many ways we can survive the patriarchy is sharing information with one another. If you look back at the origins of gossip — gossip has a bad reputation because it was literally women sharing information with one another, and the men didn’t like that because it gave women power. The fact that sharing my life online and being open and honest is a way to share information with other women, then they share information back to me … it’s a domino effect of empowerment through the spread of information. Once I realized that that was a part of what I was doing, even on the smallest level, it became a responsibility of mine.

What’s the best advice you’ve been given, and the worst? The best advice I’ve ever been given is be still and wait — which I write about in the book. I would say the worst advice I was ever given was to delete my social media presence if I wanted to be a serious writer. ▼

NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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NASHVILLE SCENE • JANUARY 25 – JANUARY 31, 2024 • nashvillescene.com

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