Hardeman County Arts Center Broadens Its Season to Engage Wider Audiences
The Hardeman County Arts Council (HCAC) entered its 2025/2026 production season with a lineup of events broadening its entertainment appeal to a variety of audience goers. Over the past few years, the organization has moved beyond its four-production theatre season adding Karaoke Night, Improv Night, Hardeman’s Got Talent, magic shows, music concerts, comedy shows, and more. Also, on the stage has been annual Hardeman County community fundraiser events like Hee Haw and the Carl Perkins Center Family Feud.
The Arts Center has been located at 1580 West Market Street in Bolivar since January 15, 2005, and surprisingly, there are still a number of Hardeman County residents who have never stepped foot in the building or even know what goes on behind the double doors of its entrance. This season has seen a number of regular Arts Center attendees as well as many new faces, that have been impressed by the performances and have plans to return this season for other shows.
“We are excited to expand our arts and entertainment offerings to include a variety of events which has some big names of music and entertainment,” said HCAC president Brandon Burvee.
Already this season on the HCAC stage has been Little Women, a production, which was presented in September. The timeless classic brought a talented cast to the stage and included the return of many previous HCAC actors.
Local playwright Lottie Kimbrough has been selling out theatres across West Tennessee with her productions. She brought her latest work, I Hate to Love You, another installment of her love-themed series of plays, to the HCAC for two performances in September. It was not only the first time a Kimbrough production appeared on the HCAC stage, but also the first time for many in the audience ever seeing a performance at the Arts Center.
The HCAC is a non-profit organization managed by volunteers and relies on funding from memberships, ticket sales, grants, and community donations to exist. Recent upgrades were made to sound and lighting, which have been great enhancements for the audience experience.
“With the help of the Rural Arts Facilities Fund through the Tennessee Arts Commission, we have been able to install production grade sound and lighting at our venue,” said Mr. Burvee.
In October, the annual Hardeman’s Got Talent opened the contest opportunity for not only Hardeman County residents, but also for performers outside of the area. The event shined a spotlight on the amazing talent that exists right here in West Tennessee.
A special treat for fans of Conway Twitty and Loretta Lynn was Twitty & Lynn: A Salute to Conway & Loretta, which was on the HCAC stage in October. Tre Twitty (grandson of Conway Twitty) and Tayla Lynn (granddaughter of Loretta Lynn) have been performing together for five years and brought their show singing fan favorites of their grandparents. Twitty & Lynn have built their own fanbase and people from Hardeman County, West Tennessee, and as far as Alaska came to see them perform. They sang notable Conway and Loretta songs like “Hello Darlin’, “I’d Love to Lay You Down”, “Tight Fittin’ Jeans”, “Honky Tonk Girl”, “Fist City”, “Coal Miner’s Daughter”, and more. Twitty & Lynn even gave an indirect promise to return again next year.
It was a magical evening with pink and green for the Wicked Sing-A-Long, which was presented on Saturday, November 15, 2025. Wicked fans came out in full attire and enjoyed an evening of watching the movie and singing along with the characters. The event was a great way for fans of the movie series to connect and revisit the first movie, Wicked, before the release of Wicked: For Good, which opens on Friday, November 21, 2025, at the Luez Theater in Bolivar and other locations across the world.
“The HCAC strives to bring the best of the arts to Hardeman and surrounding counties. Through these new events and our productions, we help contribute to the tourism and economic growth of Bolivar and Hardeman County. We encourage audience members to support local businesses and restaurants by taking friends and family out to eat before coming to our events,” said Mr. Burvee.
It is all about the Christmas season in December with Believe! and Ronnie McDowell: Sounds of the Season. Tickets are currently on sale for both productions.
Already on the calendar for 2026 are Shootout Saloon and Always Patsy Cline.
“We have more events scheduled for early 2026 that we will be announcing later in the year so be sure to keep an eye on our website and social media,” said Mr. Burvee.
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