As the balmy days of summer recede and cooler temperatures begin to prevail, it’s traditional for the theatrical venues of central Illinois to start heating up. This fall’s stage-bound offerings are all over the map, with touring and regional companies providing examples of drama and musical theater ranging from improvisational comedy to opera to true […]
Scott Faingold
Scott Faingold is a journalist, educator and musician. He has been director of student media at University of Illinois Springfield, founding editor of Activator magazine, a staff reporter for Illinois Times and co-host of Old School Bleep, a music-centered podcast.
Posted inSpecial Issues
The music of fall
Just as the changing leaves of the season provide a broad spectrum of colors to delight the eye, so do the sonic offerings available to local music fans range all over the palette of pleasing sounds this autumn – indeed, from country to punk to symphonic grandeur, there’s no shortage of variety to the sounds […]
Posted inNews
Library of Congress wants riot artifacts
The long-brewing Springfield rail relocation project, which would move the railroad tracks currently on Third Street to 10th Street, has unearthed significant archaeological findings from the 1908 Springfield race riot. The riot led directly to the formation of the NAACP and so the findings are considered to be of national significance. Librarian of Congress Dr. […]
Posted inNews
Remains of the race riot
“Whites have often feared that greater freedom for others necessarily implies a loss for themselves” – Michael Cassity, Chains of Fear (1984) In recent weeks, much area media attention has been focused on the 110th anniversary of the mid-August, 1908, race riot in which 5,000 white Springfield citizens were responsible for lynching two black men, […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Striking ceramics at SAA
The latest iteration of Springfield Art Association’s biennial “Shapes of Influence” exhibit stands as both an exceptional showcase for original ceramics work from across the country and an introduction to the show’s jurist – world-renowned ceramic artist Simon Levin, who settled in Springfield last November. Currently on display at the M. G. Nelson Gallery on […]
Posted inNews
State Fair revs up for 2018
There is a fresh coat of paint on the firehouse, roads have been repaved, flowers are in bloom and the 2018 Illinois State Fair is set to open on Thursday, Aug. 9. Fair manager Luke Sailer appeared at a press preview for the fair last week, touting this year’s eclectic Grandstand concert lineup (ranging from […]
Posted inNews
In love with Shakespeare
For 40 summers, the Illinois Shakespeare Festival, part of Illinois State University’s College of Fine Arts, has presented professional theatrical productions in the idyllic setting of Bloomington’s Ewing Manor Cultural Center. This season’s offerings consist of the Bard’s historical drama Henry V and his wacky Elizabethan sex farce The Merry Wives of Windsor (here given […]
Posted inNews
Interiority gets exteriorized at UIS Gallery
A smiley-face pin balanced on a wall-mounted thermostat; an infant’s onesie reflected in an antique mirror; an office lamp propping open a window shade. The experience of walking through “Interior Space” – an installation which opened July 26 at University of Illinois Springfield’s Visual Arts Gallery – is something like wandering into a stranger’s sparse […]
Posted inNews
A way forward
Throughout July, three prominent Illinois politicians working together as the Anti-Harassment, Equality and Access Panel (AHEA) has been holding meetings across the state in order to engage women in conversation about their experiences of sexual harassment, inequality and barriers to access in the political arena, whether as candidates, campaign staffers or officeholders. The members and […]
Posted inNews
The fourth kind of corruption
Early on Wednesday evening, July 18, Springfield grassroots groups Action Illinois and Indivisible Illinois jointly held a rally in front of 18th District congressman Darin LaHood’s downtown office at Sixth Street and Monroe. The gathering, which attracted around 50 people with very little advance publicity and was part of a national vigil to “confront corruption […]
Posted inNews
Sacred spaces for sale
“There has to be community engagement on the sale of this campus,” said Ward Five alderman Andrew Proctor at a public meeting held Monday, July 16, regarding the sale of Springfield’s sprawling branch campus of Benedictine University, headquartered in Lisle. The property has been unused since the conclusion of the 2018 spring semester and the […]
Posted inNews
Trail blazing
After years of idle public speculation, abandoned plans and long periods of apparent inaction, the stretch of Jackson Street north of the Governor’s Mansion will unveil the results of a new streetscaping project. This will coincide with the completion of the renovation of the mansion itself as well as the premier of the newly completed […]
