Just shy of a year ago, the Memphis Flyer reported on a new outdoor performance space at the Germantown Performing Arts Center (GPAC) that showed great promise. The Grove had been years in the making, partly because there were no half-measures in its planning or construction.
Yet the venue showed only an unrealized promise at its completion because of the pandemic’s lockdown. Through the summer and fall of last year, however, it came into its own. Indeed, as an outdoor performance space, it was unrivaled in its combination of high professional standards and open-air safety.
(Justin Fox Burks)
Now The Grove is gearing up for an even more ambitious 2021. It begins this week as a series known as Spring Into the Grove gets under way.
All this month and into May, music, poetry and film will light up the place in ways that will feel gloriously close to those pre-pandemic days of congregating in public, albeit with the usual caveats. Given that outdoor gatherings are far safer than any others, these nights of entertainment will offer the best way to ease out of the shut-in life. It will happen via The Grove’s state of the art projection and sound in the beautifully landscaped space surrounding GPAC. The highlights include some of our best-loved local singer/songwriters, performances from the Memphis Symphony Orchestra and Iris Orchestra, and a celebration of poetry in memory of one of the city’s most ardent supporters of the arts, the late Mitch Major.
Spring Into the Grove Schedule:
Thursday, April 1, 2021, from 4 to 8 p.m.
Bluebird Happy Hour with Deborah Swiney.
Every Thursday in April will feature music and cocktails on the First Horizon Foundation Plaza, with a full bar, beer, wine, snacks and drink specials.
Thursday, April 8, 2021, from 4 to 8 p.m.
Bluebird Happy Hour with Michelle & Jeremy Shrader.
Friday, April 9, 2021, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Gates at 5 p.m.
Family Night: Aladdin and live music with Josh Threlkeld.
Includes a local food truck, live music by Threlkeld, and drinks on the First Horizon Foundation Plaza. At 6 p.m., the movie Aladdin will be screened.
Sunday, April 11, 2021, from 2 to 4 p.m.
Word Travels: Annual Poetry Contest Kickoff.
April is National Poetry Month, which includes Germantown’s annual poetry contest. In collaboration with the Germantown Library, Parks & Recreation, and the Department of Public Works, the city’s Public Art Commission (PAC) will host the Word Travels: Annual Poetry Contest. Each year, winning poetry entries will be imprinted on sidewalks throughout the city. At this event, there will be literary activities provided by the library, food truck fare, live music, and more.
To partially fund the project, GPAC and PAC will establish a Mitch Major – Word Travels Memorial Fund in memory of late GPAC board member and Germantown resident Mitch Major, whose fondness for literature shaped his life.
Thursday, April 15, 2021, from 4 to 8 p.m.
Bluebird Happy Hour with Blackwater Trio.
Saturday, April 17, 2021, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Gates at 5 p.m.
Crawfish Boil, Gus’s Fried Chicken, and the Mighty Souls Brass Band.
Sunday, April 18, 2021, at 2:30 p.m.
Memphis Symphony Orchestra with Kalena Bovell, conductor, and Adrienne Park, piano.
MSO assistant conductor Bovell leads the orchestra in a program that includes British composer Doreen Carwithen’s piano concerto featuring MSO principal pianist Adrienne Park.
Thursday, April 22, 2021, from 4 to 8 p.m.
Bluebird Happy Hour with Mark Edgar Stuart.
Friday, April 23, 2021, from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Gates at 5 p.m.
Family Night: Mary Poppins and GPAC Dance Kids.
GPAC Dance students perform at 5 p.m. and Mary Poppins starts at 6 p.m. Food trucks and cocktails.
Saturday, April 24, 2021, at 2 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.
GPAC Youth Symphony Program Spring Concert.
Including pieces for string orchestra, wind ensemble, and chamber orchestra that highlight historical composers (including Mendelssohn, Hindemith, Grainger, and Tchaikovsky) and contemporary composers (including John Mackey and Steven Bryant).
Thursday, April 29, 2021, from 4 to 8 p.m.
Bluebird Happy Hour with Amy LaVere & Will Sexton.
Saturday, May 1, 2021, at 2 p.m.
Iris Orchestra Concert.
Featuring violinist Nancy Zhou, the program will include Sally Beamish’s Hover, Mozart’s Violin Concerto No. 5, and Saint-Georges’ Symphony No. 2.
Sunday, May 2, 2021, at 2 p.m.
Iris Orchestra Chamber Concert.
Featuring violinist Nancy Zhou, the program will include Beethoven’s Violin Sonata No. 6 in A Major and Grieg’s Violin Sonata No. 3.
Thursday, May 13, 2021, from 4 to 8 p.m.
Bluebird Happy Hour with artist TBD.
Saturday, May 15, 2021, from 6 to 9 p.m. Gates at 5 p.m.
Sierra Hull Concert.