Beloved mentor and teacher, creative inspiration, esteemed collaborator, and community galvanizer, Professor Latrelle Bright connected and uplifted so many in the Champaign- Urbana and university communities.
For more than 60 years, Illinois Theatre has brought unforgettable performances to life—on Krannert Center stages, in the Armory Free Theatre, across Champaign-Urbana, and beyond. We asked alumni to share the memories that stayed with them.
The college of Fine and Applied Arts is proud to have many alumni who have earned high recognition in entertainment awards. So much so, that we have technically won the ‘EGOT’! We’d like to take a moment to spotlight some of our award-winning alumni who have recently returned to campus to inspire the next generation of talent.
The new BFA in Arts & Entertainment Technology (AET) program in the Department of Theatre is paving the way for a new crop of professionals with widely varied skills to take on not-yet-imagined projects in the entertainment sphere.
The Department of Theatre is paving the way for big changes in the professional theatre world with a focus on the Theatre Studies program.
Illinois Theatre alumnus and Champaign native Jonathan Butler-Duplessis (BFA ’10 Acting) made his Broadway debut as Hamilton’s iconic Aaron Burr in February 2023.
Theatre alumna Jessica Steinrock is applying her dissertation research and experience working in intimacy coordination to move the entertainment industry towards more consent-based practices.
Alumnus Tyrone Phillips (BFA ‘12, Acting) returned to Krannert Center to direct The Royale for the Department of Theatre. In this interview, Phillips shares why he loves this play, how his training and opportunities as an acting major in the department of Theatre prepared him for his career, and how Krannert Center for the Performing Arts still feels like home to him.
Illinois Theatre launched the new Daniel Sullivan Playwright-in-Residence program in September when they welcomed Mallory Raven-Ellen Backstrom. A Chicago-based theatre-maker, storyteller, and visual artist, Backstrom is well known for her “whimsical short stories and immersive audiobooks,” Fairy Tales for Sun-Kissed Women.
Susan and Michael Haney recognize the exceptional value of experiences that only the performing arts and cultural centers can provide. Since the Haneys made their very first gift to Krannert Center in 2010, they’ve sponsored close to 40 performances.
Cofounder and Artistic Director, Tyrone Phillips is dedicated to the theatre company’s mission of creating a diverse and inclusive space for all, “Our new theater will allow us to practice what we preach every day. Many of us first generation artists know well the obstacles to feeling you have a place in the theater. This is us creating a space of inclusion.”
Amplifying social equity requires us to take a critical look at how racism intersects with the stories we pass down to future generations. As a director, writer, and performer, Madeline Sayet believes that every story we put into this world has the power to harm or heal and that the stories we tell through theatre can build a better future.
