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The World Grotto Experience!

Knoxville as a city is heavily influenced by it proximity to the Great Smokey Mountains with its rich Appalachian culture. Knoxville, because it is home to the University of Tennessee, is also heavily influenced by the diverse intellectual and artistic curiosity that characterizes any major university. The convergence of these influences have given rise to a number of distinctively diverse hot spots around town. One of the most distinctive of these is the World Grotto!

World Grotto is located at 16 Market Square in Knoxville (click HERE for a map). They are open: Tueday thru Wednesday 5:00 PM until 1:00 AM, Thursday thru Friday 5:00 PM until 3:00 AM, Saturday 8:00 PM thru 3:00 AM, and Sunday varies.

This unique Knoxville hot spot is characterized by an art gallery and marketplace on the main level which highlights art from around the area and around the world! There is also an underground performance grotto! This one-of-a-kind crystal grotto, so called because its walls are adorned with 8,000 pounds of crystals and semi-precious stones, provides the perfect place to highlight some of the best performances in dance, spoken word, music, and world DJs. Additionally, World Grotto hosts classes, seminars, films, private parties, corporate events, art openings, wine and liquor tastings, charitable fund-raisers, and masked balls.

Here is a sampling of some of the upcoming events at World Grotto:

Aug 14 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Aug 15 2008 6:00P Poetry Slam (Every 1st & 3rd Friday of the Month)

Aug 15 2008 10:00P Shadowwax

Aug 16 2008 10:00P Quartjar - Randall Brown Turns __!!

Aug 18 2008 7:00P Grotto Hoop Group (Weekly)

Aug 18 2008 8:00P Salsa Dance Lessons & Free Style (Weekly)

Aug 20 2008 6:00P Girls Night Out: Martinis, Manicures, & Massages (Weekly)

Aug 21 2008 10:00P Zach Deputy

Aug 21 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Aug 22 2008 10:00P Garage A Go-Go: Bitter Pills & The Infidels 45 DANCE PARTY

Aug 23 2008 10:00P Erick Baker

Aug 28 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Aug 29 2008 12:00A Dual Boot

Aug 30 2008 10:00P Bellfield w/Arpetrio

Sep 4 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 6 2008 12:00A International Dancy Party (Weekly)

Sep 10 2008 10:00P TEA LEAF GREEN with Moonalice

Sep 11 2008 10:00P Albannach w/Cutthroat Shamrock

Sep 11 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 12 2008 10:00P Garage Deluxe CD Release Show

Sep 13 2008 10:00P The Coveralls

Sep 18 2008 11:45P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 20 2008 10:00P New Riders of the Purple Sage

Sep 25 2008 11:00P Bass Block Beats with Mic 1 & Simon Belmont

Sep 26 2008 10:00P Dubconscious

Sep 27 2008 6:00P Funktion 2.0

Oct 24 2008 10:00P MoonTaxi

About the Author

If you are in the market to purchase a home or even refinance an existing loan and you want a loan officer that will walk with you every step of the way, then contact Danny or Rich of the Thornton Team at Home America Mortgage today. We can have you pre-approval in as little as 4 hours. You can visit our website or send an email to thorntonteam@homeamericamortgage.com or call us @ 865-951-0522.

Posted by Rich Dansereau on 08/13/2008 01:34 PM

Comments (9)

rich dansereau, home america mortgage, thornton team, knoxville, market square, world grotto, music, art

Originally posted at: Rich's Blog: The World Grotto Experience!

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9 Comments on The World Grotto Experience!

AUG

2008

The World Grotto sounds Brilliant. I must visit on my next trip to the Smokey's.

AUG

2008

Christina - I could see you enjoying the regular Wednesday, girl's night out martini, manicure, and massage! Heck! who wouldn't enjoy that! Or maybe a coffee (can have some Kahlua or Irish whiskey added) and poetry would be the ticket!

Rich, I never knew about this place. I am going to have to check it out.

Very nice place. I have always been surprised that it does not get more attention locally.

Danny - It is definitely a unique fusion of some of the elements that make Knoxville a great place.

Patrick - It really does deserve more attention as it really reflects some of the most fun and culturally diverse aspects of the area.

Rich......I think the main reason more people are not familiar with it is because of it's location.... although downtown Knoxville is growing at an extremely fast rate. There are so many "hidden treasures" so to speak downtown.

I agree. With parking not being directly adjacent to Market Square, you have to walk around the buildings, many people simply don't go! I also think that many of the UT students don't have cars so they either have to ride together or walk; that is quite the walk! On my other site, The Knoxville, Tennessee Area Local Expert, I have posted on several events and places in that general area.

AUG

2008

Rich: WOW!! World Grotto sounds waaayyyyy cool...A feast for the senses, to be sure. Knoxville is a gem of a city. Kinda like Chattanooga...a funky, fun, hip mix.

Kim - You are right on with that assessment. Knoxville is a very cool city. UT adds another dimension. Chattanooga has UT Chattanooga, which is much smaller than UT Knoxville, but still lends a fun and funky flair to Chattanooga. I agree, Chattanooga is a wonderful city!

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