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Secret City Festival includes free concerts, art show, other activities this weekend

Posted at 12:49 pm June 9, 2017
By John Huotari 1 Comment

Two weekends, counting Fridays. Two weekdays. Seven days of celebration, from June 2 through June 10, 2017, mostly at A. K. Bissell Park. And admission to all events is free of charge. (Photo and caption courtesy Celebrate Oak Ridge and Carolyn Krause)

Two weekends, counting Fridays. Two weekdays. Seven days of celebration, from June 2 through June 10, 2017, mostly at A.K. Bissell Park. And admission to all events is free of charge. (Photo and caption courtesy Celebrate Oak Ridge and Carolyn Krause)

 

The Secret City Festival features free concerts and other activities at Alvin K. Bissell Park this weekend. Organizers have posted an entertainment schedule for both days, which is printed below.

Organizers said parking is available at the west end of the park (enter via Badger Road), Oak Ridge High School, First Methodist Church, and various paid lots around town. Accessible parking is available at the Oak Ridge Public Library.

The TN Creates Juried Art Show begins at 10 a.m. daily in the Shep Lauter Room at the Oak Ridge Civic Center, and all other festival activities begin at 2 p.m. on Friday and 10 a.m. on Saturday, organizers said. Admission is free.

There are free water stations throughout the park and water and other drinks are available for purchase via vendors, organizers said. There are food vendors at the festival, and “we have plenty of cold beer and moonshine cocktails ready to go,” organizers said.

Other activities include a petting zoo, wildlife encounter, Home Depot area, and Oak Ridge National Laboratory Traveling Science Fair, according to an event map, which is included below.

Here’s the entertainment schedule for Friday and Saturday: [Read more…]

Filed Under: Arts, Community, Community, Entertainment, Movies, Music, Nonprofits, Slider Tagged With: A.K. Bissell Park, Alvin K. Bissell Park, Celebrate Oak Ridge, Dr. Dog, entertainment schedule, free concert, Oak Ridge Civic Center, Oak Ridge National Laboratory Traveling Science Fair, Secret City Festival, The Black Lillies, TN Creates Juried Art Show

Reminder: Secret City Festival under way this week

Posted at 11:49 am June 3, 2017
By John Huotari 2 Comments

Pictured above are World War II re-enactor Ben Arnold, right, a board member of the Celebrate Oak Ridge task force, and Judi Gray. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Pictured above are World War II re-enactor Ben Arnold, right, a board member of the Celebrate Oak Ridge task force, and Judi Gray, who helped announce the musical entertainment scheduled for Friday, June 9, and Saturday, June 10. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was updated at 11:15 a.m. June 5.

A reminder: The new weeklong Secret City Festival is under way, and it started Friday, June 2. The festival is free, and it includes two weekends and two weekdays. Most of the events are at Alvin K. Bissell Park.

The first weekend (June 2-4) celebrated Oak Ridge and World War II history. A free family movie will be shown on Tuesday, June 6, and the arts will be celebrated on Wednesday, June 7. Music and art are the focus of the second weekend, June 9-10.

The festival has been organized by Celebrate Oak Ridge. A schedule of events is below, and a schedule for this weekend is also included.

Saturday, June 3, was a big day, organizers said. There were World War II re-enactments at 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., speakers throughout the day, the Freedom Belles, USO show, and more at Bissell Park. Historic exhibitions continued at Midtown Community Center from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Arts, Community, Community, Entertainment, Music, Slider, Top Stories Tagged With: Alvin K. Bissell Park, Ben Arnold, CAF Redtails, Cattywampus Puppet Council, Celebrate Oak Ridge, Celebrate Our Heroes, Celebrate the Arts, Dave Eggar, Dr. Dog, Electric Darling, Freedom Belles, Hudson K, Interfaith Celebration of Music & Dance, J-25 Jazz Quartet, Judi Gray, Kathy Hill & The Deltas, Megan and her Goody Goodies, Michael Messing Magic, Midtown Community Center, Natti Lovejoys, Nora Jane Struthers, Oak Ridge After DArk, Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association, Secret City Festival, Shana Banana, The Accidentals, The Black Lillies, Tim Kubart, TN Creates, Tuskegee Airmen, Vintage Rhythm Room, Warren Gooch, World War II, World War II re-enactment

RISE ABOVE: Redtail exhibition soars into Oak Ridge

Posted at 11:28 am June 1, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Rise Above

Commemorative Air Force project celebrating Tuskeegee Airmen appears as part of Secret City Festival’s “Celebrate Our Heroes” weekend

The Commemorative Air Force (CAF) Red Tail Squadron, America’s tribute to the Tuskegee Airmen, brings their RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit to Oak Ridge this week as part of the Secret City Festival’s “Celebrate Our Heroes” event. The exhibit is open to the public from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. now through Saturday at 115 South Illinois Avenue in Oak Ridge in front of Maxed Out Gym.

The RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit is a fully functional mobile movie theater housed in a climate controlled 53-foot semi trailer that is deployed to events around the country. This immersive experience inspires and educates audiences about the Tuskegee Airmen, our country’s first black military pilots and their support personnel, and the obstacles they had to overcome to serve their country during World War II. Because of its dynamic 160-degree panoramic screen, the film creates the feeling of being in the cockpit soaring above the clouds in the P-51C Mustang—the signature aircraft of the Tuskegee Airmen. View a preview at www.redtail.org/traveling-exhibit/.

More than half a million people in 36 states have experienced a compelling and inspirational piece of American history delivered by this unique educational outreach vehicle since the program launched in 2011, a press release said. Each year, the CAF Red Tail Squadron embarks on a nine-month cross-country tour that includes appearances at air shows, schools, museums, and community events. The group’s six guiding principles—Aim High, Believe In Yourself, Use Your Brain, Be Ready To Go, Never Quit, and Expect to Win—serve as the foundation for their outreach programs and are based on the experiences and successes of the Tuskegee Airmen. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Arts, Community, Entertainment, Music, Top Stories Tagged With: CAF, CAF Red Tail Squadron, Celebrate Our Heroes, Commemorative Air Force, Commemorative Air Force Red Tail Squadron, Dr. Dog, Interfaith Evening of Music and Dance, living history, Megan and her Goody Goodies, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge After DArk, Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association, RISE ABOVE, RISE ABOVE Traveling Exhibit, Secret City Festival, Sing!, The Black Lillies, Tuskegee Airmen, Vintage Rhythm Room, World War II re-enactments

Secret City Festival: Seven days of celebration

Posted at 4:53 pm May 29, 2017
By Carolyn H Krause Leave a Comment

Two weekends, counting Fridays. Two weekdays. Seven days of celebration, from June 2 through June 10, 2017, mostly at A. K. Bissell Park. And admission to all events is free of charge. (Photo and caption courtesy Celebrate Oak Ridge and Carolyn Krause)

Two weekends, counting Fridays. Two weekdays. Seven days of celebration, from June 2 through June 10, 2017, mostly at A. K. Bissell Park. And admission to all events is free of charge. (Photo and caption courtesy Celebrate Oak Ridge and Carolyn Krause)

 

Two weekends, counting Fridays. Two weekdays. Seven days of celebration, from June 2 through June 10, mostly at A. K. Bissell Park. And admission to all events is free of charge.

The new Secret City Festival, brought to you by Celebrate Oak Ridge, will be bookended by two special weekends. The first weekend will celebrate Oak Ridge and World War II history. A free family movie will be shown on Tuesday, June 6; the arts will be celebrated on Wednesday, June 7; and music and art are the focus of the second weekend, June 9-10.

Celebrate Oak Ridge June 2017 Schedule Web

On Friday, June 2, tours of the Y-12 National Security Complex in Oak Ridge will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m., with shuttles running to and from the American Museum of Science and Energy and New Hope Center. U.S. citizenship and pre-registration are required for tours. Graphite Reactor tours at Oak Ridge National Laboratory will also be held then on a first-come, first-served basis, with departure on buses from AMSE.

Oak Ridge Mayor Warren Gooch will officially open the festival, and the crew of the U.S.S. Oak Ridge will present and ring the U.S.S. Oak Ridge bell at 8:30 p.m. At 9 p.m., the movie “Mr. Smith Goes to Washington” will be shown free of charge.

Overnight, approximately 200 re-enactors will be setting up an overnight encampment with World War II-era tents in Bissell Park. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Arts, Community, Community, Dancing, Entertainment, Music, Nonprofits, Slider Tagged With: A.K. Bissell Park, Adam Austin, American Museum of Science and Energy, AMSE, Cattywampus Puppet Council, Celebrate Oak Ridge, Celebrate the Arts, Cereus Bright, Clinton Riddle, Dave Eggar, Dr. Dog, Edgar Harrell, Eileen Neiler, Electric Darling, First United Methodist Church Choir, Grace Covenant Church Choir, Green McAdoo Cultural Center, Henry Fribourg, Hudson K, Interfaith Celebration of Music & Dance, J-25 Jazz Quartet of Oak Ridge, Jewish Congregation of Oak Ridge Dance Group, Kathy Hill & The Deltas, Megan and her Goody Goodies, Michael Messing Magic, Midtown Community Center, Natti Lovejoys, New Hope Center, Nora Jane Struthers, Oak Ridge, Oak Ridge After DArk, Oak Ridge Civic Ballet Association Dance Group, Oak Ridge Civic Center, Oak Ridge Heritage and Preservation Association, Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Oak Ridge Unitarian Universalist Church Band, Ready for Rain Band, Robyn James Ensemble, Secret City Festival, Secret City Winds, Shana Banana, Sing!, Teen Spirit, The Accidentals, The Black Lillies, Tim Kubart, Udari Jayasiri, United Way of Anderson County, Warren Gooch, World War II, Y-12 National Security Complex

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