Nashville

Admission is free. No advance reservations. Your seat will be assigned to you when you pick up your ticket at the box office. Seats are assigned on a first come, first served basis. The box office opens one hour before the event.

Nashville

U.S., 1975

Robert Altman had never been to Nashville when he asked screenwriter Joan Tewkesbury (Thieves Like Us) to go there and keep a travel diary as the basis for a “panorama which reflected America and its politics.” The masterful mashup that emerged from Tewkesbury’s experiences, deft on set improvisation and Altman’s feel for the times captures the moment when America’s political and celebrity cultures began to merge. The hustle for fame and votes run parallel across a homespun tapestry of stories that culminate in a (still) shocking act of violence. Spared from the satire peppered throughout, however, is an artistry unadorned and sincere, its fleeting beauty exemplified when Ronee Blakley sings.—Senior Public Programmer Paul Malcolm

DCP, color, 160 min. Director: Robert Altman. Screenwriter: Joan Tewkesbury. With: Ronee Blakley, Henry Gibson, Lily Tomlin.