In an announcement that reflects their inability to land a big Rayna James stadium tour, the stars of Nashville (the ones who are not Connie Britton or Hayden Panettiere) are hitting the road for three club dates, where they will perform songs from the show in between melodramatic struggles with their many personal problems. Charles Esten (Deacon), Clare Bowen (Scarlett), Sam Palladio (Gunnar), Jonathan Jackson (Avery), and Chris Carmack (Will) are set to play Chicago on Apr. 25 and Washington D.C. May 4, then it’s on to New York, where they’ll be joined May 6 by Will Chase’s Luke Wheeler. Luke’s participation in helping these fake up-and-coming artists no doubt comes at the behest of his love for Rayna, or as part of a labyrinthine long con being played by that asshole record exec guy from Edgehill.
The tour raises so many more questions that are amusing solely to people who watch Nashville: Will being on the road together only exacerbate the tension between Gunnar and Scarlett, or will at least one of them simply behave like a reasonable adult for a few nights? How many pills will Scarlett take? How many pills are left in that bottle, anyway? How many guys will Will sleep with in New York, then punish himself for? Why can’t he just love himself and be The Gay Cowboy, because that seems like a built-in audience right there? Will Deacon even be able to perform, in between all the smashing things and staring forlornly at a whiskey bottle? All these questions and more will soon be answered in person, as you quickly realize that they pertain to fictional characters on a TV show. Tickets go on sale Friday.