When the Springfield-based Illinois Innocence Project hosts its annual fundraising banquet this weekend, they’ll have a fresh victory to celebrate. Peggy Jo Jackson of Shelbyville was released from prison in Lincoln last week after serving nearly 26 years for a murder her brother admitted to committing. Gov. Pat Quinn approved Jackson’s clemency petition on March […]
University of Illinois Springfield
Posted inArts & Culture
Eastern points
This Engaged Citizenship Common Experience Speaker Series at the University of Illinois Springfield is one you won’t want to miss to learn more about countries bombarding the news lately, particularly North Korea and China. The key challenges and opportunities presented to the U.S. by the historic rise of Asia will be discussed by Robert M. […]
Posted inNews
She may be innocent
In the early morning hours of Dec. 3, 1986, Richard Harshbarger grabbed his .38 caliber revolver and a homemade bat, climbed into his Dodge Rampage truck, and departed from his home in Pana. His younger sister, Peggy Jo Jackson, lived in the southern Illinois town of Mt. Vernon with her abusive husband, William Jackson, and […]
Posted inMusic
UIS music at UIS
Most of the live music shows held at the University of Illinois Springfield, our still growing, four-year institution of higher learning on the southern outskirts of Springfield’s civilized world, come from beyond the college’s borders. Part of the reason for this apparent lack of college-based music making comes from the absence of an extensive formal […]
Posted inNews
Innocent, but still guilty
Although Anthony Murray walked out of prison on Oct. 31 a free man after 14 years, gaining his freedom required admitting to a murder he says he didn’t commit. “It’s been a long road,” the 41-year-old Chicago resident said in a Marion County courtroom in Salem during a hearing the day before his release. “I’m […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Guitar genius
Guitar guru Stanley Jordan performs Nov. 9 at the Studio Theatre as part of the Kitchen Sink Series at the University of Illinois Springfield. The Chicago native and jazz fusion guitarist began studying music early in his childhood and received a Bachelor of Arts in digital music composition from Princeton University. Nominated for multiple Grammy Awards and […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Comedy of heir-ors
Tartuffe opens at University of Illinois Springfield Studio Theater Oct. 26 igniting the 2012-2013 season for the UIS theater department. Six performances showcase this comedy by Moliere, twice banned in the 17th century as sacrilegious, and brought to light in a contemporary translation by Ranjit Bolt. Subtitled, “The Hypocrite,” the play focuses on a religious […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Rockin’ punk-blues
The next WUIS Bedrock 66 Live! Concert features Libertyville native Ike Reilly. You’ll like Ike. From his critically lauded records to his latest solo offering, “Hard Luck Stories” – a more groove-oriented and melodic album than previous recordings – is a combination of corroded rhythm and blues, furious punk-blues, lounge-pop and classic rock, all laced […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Bold prints
Roger Shimomura, an internationally renowned artist known for his prints, paintings and performance works, talks at the University of Illinois Springfield Oct. 11 at 5:30 p.m. Following the lecture, there will be an exhibit reception from 6:30-8 p.m. in the UIS Visual Arts Gallery. Shimomura’s collection of prints, America Behind Barbed Wire, colors a Pop […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Engaging songster
Singer-songwriter William Fitzsimmons, of Jacksonville, will perform Oct. 6 in the Studio Theatre at the University of Illinois Springfield as part of the UIS Kitchen Sink Series. You might have heard Fitzsimmons’ music on ABC’s Grey’s Anatomy, Private Practice, Brothers and Sisters, MTV’s Life of Ryan and Teen Wolf, The CW’s One Tree Hill, ABC Family’s […]
Posted inNews
AFSCME under siege
What would drive a crowd of unionized state employees to boo the very governor they helped elect? The answer is about $83 billion of pension underfunding, a broken labor contract and a lot of jobs in jeopardy. When Gov. Pat Quinn stood before a crowd of fellow Democrats and union members on Governor’s Day at […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Visual virtuosos
zthe Pharmacy shines again. Go swiftly into the good July 14 night, and get absorbed in the third art exhibition in The Pharmacy’s warehouse on Pasfield Street. On display will be the work of Pharmacy artists, including many new members’ pieces, alongside the canvases of dazzling founder Andrew Woolbright. An installation by UIS professors, Shane […]
