Entertainment by youth featured at Children’s Museum Gala – Oak Ridger
Beach-themed rock music from the 1960s will entertain guests at the 20th annual Gala at the Children’s Museum of Oak Ridge from 6 through 9:30 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 3.
Student musicians from the School of Rock and teen singers with the Oak Ridge High School Choral Ensemble will be featured entertainers at the Gala, with the theme “Surf’s Up!” promising a fun-filled evening with dinner from Calhoun’s, dancing and entertainment.
Leslie England, TNBANK senior vice president of retail banking and a rock singer with the band Jada Blade, will emcee the event. A beach scene mural by artist Gale Hinton will greet Gala guests.
During the Gala, the Museum will present the Selma Shapiro Friend of the Child award to Sandra Berry, a longtime volunteer and supporter of the Children’s Museum.
The School of Rock’s house band will entertain as guests arrive for the Gala. The Knoxville school offers performance-based lessons for youth to age 18. Its student musicians have performed live at such venues as Bonnaroo and Lalapalooza and locally at the Tennessee and Bijou theaters. The band will include guitar, bass, keyboard, drums and vocals.
The Oak Ridge High School Choral Ensemble, conducted by Amanda Ragan, will bring back memories with a medley of Beach Boys tunes, including “Surfin’ USA,” “Little Old Lady from Pasadena,” “Kokomo,” “Surf City” and “Don’t Worry Baby.”
Matt Sieger, of Knoxville, will bring his DJ skills and soft-volume beach music as the crowd enjoys dinner. Later, guests are invited to dance to the DJ’s higher volume beach tunes.
“I’ve had a lot of fun digging into 1960’s surf rock,” Sieger said. “Groups like Dick Dale and the DelTones, The Ventures, The Rivieras, The Surfaris, and others were clearly riffing off of Chuck Berry, Chubby Checker, and other early rock pioneers, and it turned into this really distinctive sound that the Beach Boys took worldwide.
“I love it, because when it really gets going, it really moves — you can’t stay still when this stuff is playing. I’m really excited for this night!” he added.
By day, Sieger is a deputy project director for the Oak Ridge Leadership Computing Facility, the group that builds and runs the supercomputers at Oak Ridge National Laboratory. At home, his DJ hobby led him to convert his basement to a night club, dance studio and movie room, with lights, a smoke machine and big sound.
Clinton auctioneer William “Bear” Stephenson, of Stephenson Realty and Auction, will once again donate his skills to lead the live auction, featuring an Echo Show 15, a Cinderella carriage necklace from Karen’s Jewelers, a Ft. Loudon Lake cruise, pottery by Bill Capshaw, and more. The event will also feature a silent auction.
Tickets to the Gala are $125 per person. A table for eight may be purchased for $800. Tickets may be purchased at: https://handbid.app.link/cmorgala21. If you can’t attend, you may donate at http://bit.ly/givetocmor. Call Beth Shea at CMOR at (865) 482-1074 or email her at bshea@childrensmuseumofoakridge.org to learn more about Gala sponsorships or for more information.
The Museum has stressed COVID-19 safety while operating during the pandemic and is committed to providing a safe in-person event. To comply with new state legislation enacted on Nov. 12, the Museum, an entertainment venue, is asking Gala guests to voluntarily provide one of the following: proof of a negative COVID-19 test no more than 48 hours before the event, proof of COVID-19 antibodies, or proof of vaccination. Your ticket confirmation will include information about how to provide this, either before the Gala or at check-in. This information will be kept strictly confidential and shredded immediately after the event.
