Here’s a list of what to do this weekend: a Scruffy City fundraiser, Narnia, music, trail-running, classical music, Greek cinema, and more! Visit the Knoxville Mercury online calendar or pick up this week’s issue for a full list of the weekend’s offerings.

FRIDAY, SEPT. 23
Knox Heritage Scruffy City Soiree
The Standard • 6:30 p.m. • $125
In 1947 writer John Gunther called Knoxville “the ugliest city in America.” Over the past 30 years, Knoxville has been transformed—and historic preservation has played a critical role in that transformation. Support Knox Heritage at the venerable nonprofit organization’s annual fall fundraiser.

Knoxville Children’s Theatre: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
Knoxville Children’s Theatre • 7 p.m. • $12
KCT’s adaptation of C.S. Lewis’ novel about the adventures of the Pevensie siblings in Narnia and their alliance with Aslan against the White Witch. Through Oct. 9.

Royal Bangs
Barley’s Taproom and Pizzeria • 10 p.m. • $5 • 18 and up
The superstars of Knoxville’s underground noise pop/punk/indie rock scene make one of their infrequent local appearances, with Sweet Years (“a sound that falls somewhere between early Merge Records alt-punk and earnest Polyvinyl-style arpeggiation”) and the blue-collar L.A. rockers the Americans.

SATURDAY, SEPT. 24
KTC Big South Fork Trail Race
Big South Fork • 8:30 a.m. • $30-$45
The crown jewel of East Tennessee’s trail-racing calendar has been around since the mid 1990s. There are longer trail races in the area now, and some of them might be steeper or more rugged. But none of them match the big one for prestige. The main race is 17.5 miles; there’s also a 10K option. Visit the Knoxville Track Club website for more info.

Louie Bluie Arts and Music Festival
Cove Lake State Park (Lake City) • 10 a.m.-7 p.m.
A one-day festival can’t do justice to the range and diversity of Howard “Louie Bluie” Armstrong’s fascinating career. Over the course of six decades, from the late 1920s into the ’90s, Armstrong played string jazz and blues, folk and pop, country and gospel, with a particular fondness for the clever urbanity of Tin Pan Alley—George Gershwin’s “Lady Be Good” was an early favorite. But the Louie Bluie Music and Arts Festival, now celebrating its 10th year, makes an admirable effort.

Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra: Pride of Place
Oak Ridge High School • 7:30 p.m. • $25
Oak Ridge Symphony Orchestra and the Manhattan Project National Historical Park collaborate to celebrates Oak Ridge’s scientific heritage with a world premiere performance of a new work by East Tennessee composer Mark Harrell and Peter Boyer’s Ellis Island: The Dream of America.

SUNDAY, SEPT. 25
The Public Cinema: Chevalier
Knoxville Museum of Art • 2 p.m. • Free

Panos Koronis in Chevalier

Six Greek men have booked a luxury yacht for a short vacation cruise. They spend their days spearfishing in the brisk Aegean, and they spend their nights dining, wining, and talking. That talk often turns, as it does among many men, to a not-so-subtle game of display and dominance. By the end of dinner one evening, the friends have resolved to play a game to determine who is “the best in general,” as scored by each other. Read Lee Gardner’s review here. Part of the Public Cinema series.

Ready for the World Music Series: Poland
UT Natalie L. Haslam Music Center • 2 p.m. • Free
The Ready for the World Music Series brings renowned artists to perform and talk about music from around the world. The series continues in 2017 with music from Brazil (Sunday, Feb. 12) and China (Sunday, April 2).

KSO Chamber Classics Series: Haydn and Mozart
Bijou Theatre • 2:30 p.m. • $13.50-$31.50
Knoxville Symphony Orchestra opens its Chamber Classics Series with three works by Mozart and Haydn: Mozart’s Overture to The Marriage of Figaro and Piano Concerto No. 21 and Haydn’s Symphony No. 104 in D Major, nicknamed the “London.” (Read Alan Sherrod’s preview of the classical music season and his review of KSO’s first Masterworks concerts.)

Old Gray Cemetery Lantern and Carriage Tour
Old Gray Cemetery • 4-7 p.m. • $10
Scattered throughout Old Gray Cemetery and downtown Knoxville are some landmarks so distinctive that they remain notable to Knoxvillians, even if the stories and people behind them have largely faded from collective memory. See them at Old Gray’s annual Victorian-style guided tour.

Needtobreathe
Knoxville Civic Coliseum • 7 p.m. • $29-$50

Sully Sullivan

South Carolina folk-pop bros Needtobreathe headline the Tour de Compadres with Mat Kearney, John Mark McMillan, and Welshly Arms.

Krish Mohan
Preservation Pub • 8 p.m. • Free
On his website, Indian-American comic Krish Mohan describes himself variously as a “Stand up comedian. Writer. Social Vigilante” and a “socially conscious” standup and writer. He’ll be giving advice on how not to fit in at Preservation Pub’s weekly comedy show.

Matthew Everett

Senior Editor Matthew Everett manages the Knoxville Mercury's arts & entertainment section, including the comprehensive calendar section—Knoxville’s go-to guide for everything worth doing in the area. You can reach Matthew at matthew@knoxmercury.com.