Being a resident of this town often reminds you of the Vachel Lindsay poem Springfield Magical. Lindsay describes Springfield as “the City of my Discontent” and any longtime resident would second his sentiment. As a native of Springfield, I am all too familiar with the feeling of discontent this city breeds. Growing up here, I […]
Vachel Lindsay
Posted inOpinion
Going for the fences
Woman of the Year, the 1942 movie starring Spencer Tracy and Katherine Hepburn: Sportswriter Tracy invites the Hepburn character to her first baseball game, at Yankee Stadium. She arrives in the sixth inning or so; told that the score is 0-0, she says, “Good, I haven’t missed anything.” What is wonderful about the moment is […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Vachel Lindsay Walks Springfield
On the last evening of National Poetry Month, I want to share with you a song authored by John C. Van Orman called “Vachel Lindsay Walks Springfield.” It is about Vachel Lindsay (pictured above, my fav photo of Vach by the way) fashioned after Lindsay’s poem “Abraham Lincoln Walks at Midnight” published in the 1919 […]
Posted inOpinion
Please Mr. Postman
Vachel Lindsay and Sara Teasdale Just when I thought I could learn to forget herRight through the door come a tear-stained letter.– “Tear-stained Letter,” Richard Thompson “We will go out and write poetry in red chalk on the State House walk, where he who runs may read. That will be a conjunction of planets, and […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Grave matters
This is a glimpse of a car trip flanked by billowy clouds, suspended raindrops on my car window and light brown soybean flats surrounded by palisades of corn. A hint of dark cast upon our prairie that day. Fitting for my destination to Abraham Lincoln and Vachel Lindsay‘s final resting place in Oak Ridge Cemetery. […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Vistas and visions
PHOTO COURTESY ROSEMARY WILLIAMS An interesting installation called New Springfield, by Minnesota new media artist Rosemary Williams, is currently on display at University of Illinois Springfield UIS Visual Arts Gallery. The exhibit is literally about Springfield. The artist used as inspiration local poet Vachel Lindsay’s prediction of our 2018 capital city as a utopia (laid […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Lindsay’s ‘Little Turtle’ comes back to life
Vachel Lindsay, a lifelong resident of Springfield, internationally renowned poet and author of 20 books of poetry and stories, was born in 1879. Two years before Lindsay’s death in 1931 came the birth of George Colin, now an acclaimed artist who lives in Salisbury. Today the two central Illinois men have their works united in […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Poetic party
The public is invited to hear award-winning poets Allison Joseph and Jon Tribble at Quiddity’s fifth anniversary celebration. Held Nov. 7 in the historic Brinkerhoff Home on the campus of Benedictine University at Springfield, Joseph and Tribble will read, Springfield High School Jazz Band will play Dixieland-style music and the local Vachel Lindsay contest winner will […]
Posted inArts & Culture
Literary drama
Reserve your tickets now by phone for a performance of Prairie Voices and Lincoln and Shakespeare at Theatre in the Park indoor theater at Lincoln’s New Salem Sate Historic. Kevin Purcell directs and stars, along side local acting sensation Aasne Vigesaa, in Prairie Voices, a performance of poems and songs that celebrate the beauty of […]
Posted inOpinion
Wanderings and doings
Yes, kids, I really did used to walk two miles to school. For the whole of my ninth grade year in 1962-63, I often walked from Washington Junior High at 21st and Jackson to our house near the Statehouse. I was not moved by any of the current faddish arguments for walking. Nor was I […]
Posted inOpinion
Modern minstrels
Poets, we are reliably told, once were creatures of the street and the court, not the study, and poetry was sung, or at least recited. That past lives again every year when Springfield area schoolkids take the stage during the Poetry Out Loud recitation competition, whose winners have a chance to go on, if not […]
