Southern Voices 2009 Guests

Adriana Trigiani

2009

Adriana Trigiani was raised in a small coal-mining town in Virginia in a big Italian family. A graduate of St. Mary's College in South Bend, Indiana, she moved to New York to seek her fortune, first as a playwright and founder of an all-female comedy troupe, and later as a writer/producer for television's The Cosby Show, A Different World and City Kids. Her Lifetime television special, Growing up Funny, garnered an Emmy nomination for Lily Tomlin.

Her determination and self-discipline as a writer cannot be questioned. While writing her first novel, Big Stone Gap (now in movie production), Adriana awoke at 3 a.m. every morning for 18 months to write before going to her TV job at 10 a.m.

This critically acclaimed, bestselling novel was followed by the sequels Big Cherry Holler, Milk Glass Moon and Home to Big Stone Gap as well as her other books, Lucia Lucia, The Queen of Big Time and Rococo, all instant New York Times bestsellers. Her newest novel, Very Valentine, will debut in February. In addition, Adriana and her sister, Mary, co-authored Cooking with My Sisters, a cookbook and memoir that features recipes and stories from the Trigiani sisters and their mother that trace back a hundred years.

Published in more than 30 countries, Adriana's novels has been described as "sophisticated and wise," "full-bodied and elegantly written" and "tiramisu for the soul." Of her writing, she states, "I come from a long line of artists who owned their own businesses . . . glorious shoemakers and seamstresses and craftswomen. It never dawned on me that I wouldn't work hard, or that I wouldn't express myself as an artist. It's in the DNA."

Adriana lives in Greenwich Village with her husband and their daughter, Lucia. Of her life there, she says "I love it. Every morning I wake up here, I'm happy. I am jazzed through and through by this city. I feel I can do anything living in New York City. It's spectacular."

Greg Iles

2009

Greg Iles was born in Germany, but grew up in Natchez, Mississippi. Following graduation from the University of Mississippi, he began playing in and touring with the band, Frankly Scarlet. After his marriage, Iles left the band and began work on his first novel, Spandau Phoenix. The book went on to become the first of Iles' 10 New York Times best sellers. His novels have been published in more than 20 countries and include Turning Angel, Third Degree and the soon-to-be released The Devil's Punchbowl. In his free time, Iles plays in the band The Rock Bottom Remainders, which includes authors Dave Barry, Stephen King, Amy Tan and Mitch Albom.

Tasha Alexander

2009

Tasha Alexander is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where she signed on as an English major in order to have a legitimate excuse for spending all of her time reading. She has lived in Amsterdam, London, Wyoming and Vermont, and presently resides in Chicago. The author of And Only to Deceive and A Fatal Waltz, she was commissioned to write the novel for the film Elizabeth: The Golden Age.

Mary Kay Andrews

2009

Mary Kay Andrews began her reporting career covering the murder trials on which the book Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil is based. She is the author of 15 books, (10 of which were written under her "real" name, Kathy Hogan Trocheck) including the New York Times best-sellers Savannah Breeze, Blue Christmas and Deep Dish. She also claims to know the location of every promising thrift store and flea market in the southeastern United States.

Daniel Omotosho Black

2009

Daniel Omotosho Black grew up in Arkansas on the land his great, great grandfather purchased upon emancipation. A graduate of Clark College, Black earned his PhD. in African American Studies from Temple University and later founded an organization that seeks to teach character and principle to black youth. His books include They Tell Me of a Home, The Sacred Place and Perfect Peace.

Patti Callahan Henry

2009

Patti Callahan Henry grew up a minister's daughter, learning early the impact of storytelling. She attended Auburn University, earned a master's degree in child health, and worked as a clinical nurse specialist prior to the birth of her first child. She is now a national best-selling author whose books include Where the River Runs, The Art of Keeping Secrets and Driftwood Summer.

Ronald M. Gauthier

2009

Ronald M. Gauthier was a life-long resident of New Orleans before Hurricane Katrina forced him to evacuate. With master’s degrees in both counseling and library science, he has worked as a library branch manager, social service counselor and educator in Louisiana’s prisons. He is the author of Prey for Me: A New Orleans Mystery and Hard Time on the Bayou.

Daniel Wallace

2009

Daniel Wallace is a Birmingham native whose writing has been published in more than two dozen languages and whose illustrations have appeared nationwide. His novels include Big Fish, The Watermelon King and Mr. Sebastian and the Negro Magician. Big Fish was later made into a major motion picture in which Wallace portrayed a professor at Auburn University. (In reality, he teaches at his alma mater, the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.)

The Art of Pamela Watters

2009

Artist Reception and Southern Voices Purchase Award Presentation will be Thursday, February 19 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. in the Theatre Level Friends Gallery. It is free and open to the public.

"Pastel is my medium of choice because my objective is to create bold and dynamic art with gesured energy. I love the pure colors, the immediacy and the feeling that the pastel stick is an extension of my fingers. "

Pamela Watters Art

Color. Bright, vivid, rich. This is the hallmark of Pamela Watter's work. Watters grew up in Fort Payne, Alabama, in the shadow of Lookout Mountain. Because few opportunities to study art were available, Pamela spent hours at the public library, pouring over the work of great artists. "Early on, I developed a love of the natural world, endlessly sketching the countryside, a never-ending source of inspiration. Landscapes reflect my love of the lush surroundings found in the Southeast, " she states. By combining techniques of the Impressionists and Post-Impressionists with the outrageous colors of the Fauves, Watters conveys a sense of excitement, a feeling of shimmering light and movement that captures the eye and imagination of the viewer. Her work is represented in private and public collections across the country, including those of Ellis Marsalis, The Delta Blues Museum, Michael Moore, Summit Records and the U.S. Government. She lives in Atlanta.

Loudon Wainwright III - In Concert

"There are at least two Loudon Wainwrights - one is the unflinchingly naked autobiographical writer; the other a comic, red-nosed performer."

Touted as a "new Bob Dylan," Loudon Wainwright began his career in the late 1960s. Known for his novelty hit "Dead Skunk," he played a recurring role on TV's M*A*S*H as Captain Spalding (the singing surgeon). Wainwright’s musical reputation, however, goes much deeper. He has recorded more than 20 albums on 11 different labels including his most recent, Recovery, and has appeared in the movies Big Fish, Elizabethtown and The 40-Year-Old Virgin. Talent runs in the family - Wainwright’s children include singer-songwriters Rufus and Martha Wainwright. Tickets $22
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Saturday, Febuary 21 at 8 p.m. - SOLD OUT!

Sunday, February 22 at 2 p.m.