Story and photography by Megan Venable
The annual Rossini Festival was held throughout Knoxville on Gay Street, Clinch Avenue, Market Square and in various venues downtown. The event featured multiple stages with hours of free entertainment celebrating the arts with dance, music and opera from the nation’s best talent including hundreds of performers, a beer garden and food and craft vendors. Proceeds from the weekend will benefit the Knoxville Opera. Founded in 1978, the Knoxville Opera is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide the residents of East Tennessee with high quality, locally produced opera and to contribute to the future of the operatic art form by educating the community about opera and its role in our culture.