As a young man on the campus of a Big10 school, with a summer's worth of time to kill, I found myself gravitating to where a couple friends worked and could get me into their employers multiple shows, either at a reduced price (cha-ching!) or on short notice (they would tell me when tickets were leftover). The place was the Krannert Center for the Performing Arts on the University of Illinois campus in Urbana IL.
I also happened to graduate from my bachelor's business program a bit "off schedule", in January of 1998 (please, don't do the math). Due to this "Spring Graduation", our ceremony was held in the Krannert Center, the Foellinger Great Hall to be exact. While I'd seen a number of amazing musical performances in this hall, like YoYo Ma & Wynton Marsalis, this was the first and only time I was ever on the stage myself. It felt good... as good as it could have, I guess. My parents and some siblings had come down for the ceremony, marking, I think, the 2nd time they had visited since I started school in C-U. (To their credit, we had many children to take care of, and a new small business to run, so partying with #3 wasn't high on the list of priorities).
Anywho - This post is simply a walk back in time for myself and the friends that I spent many hours with in this space. Check out the images below and be transported to a simpler time. Also note that this 2019-2020 season is their 50th anniversary. Pretty special. Pretty special place too.
You are told on the tours, I presume still, that while the wood Teak is no longer allowed to be imported into the USA, they received the US' entire annual allotment when this floor was put in. It also is said to represent the look of IL from the air, with all the corn fields in the area...
Don't forget the outdoor auditorium. It looks like it has some fresh new white paint, visible all the way almost to the Quad too.
I love this performing arts center, always have and always will. If you're in the neighborhood in the coming months, you might be able to sneak in a show in their 50th year.
