Tuesday, May 25, 2010
UIS Broadway Series
Thursday, May 20, 2010
That ’70s Show: Doobie Brothers to play Sangamon Auditorium tonight
The Doobie Brothers’ total worth is greater than the sum of the band’s parts.
The group, which performs tonight at Sangamon Auditorium, has had sounds ranging from laid-back country-rock to funky-electric R&B.
That owes primarily to three distinct leaders during the band’s 1970s heyday.
Formed as a Northern California bar band, the Doobie Brothers first found wide success with its second album, “Toulouse Street” (1972).
At the time, the group was under the leadership of founding member Tom Johnston.
In the early years, it scored hits with “Listen to the Music,” “Jesus Is Just Alright,” “Long Train Runnin’” and “China Grove.”
The laid-back vibe and catchy hooks of these songs are backed by acoustic guitars and — in the case of “Listen to the Music” — a banjo.
It’s all right there in the group’s name, which its website defines as “a kind of pasture grass.” The “Rolling Stone Album Guide” has another toke — oops, that was supposed to be “take” — saying the group was “named after the ... end of a joint.”
. . .Article by Brian Mackey
The State Journal-Register
Read the article
Monday, May 17, 2010
An Evening With Lily Tomlin
Ticket Prices: $85 (Gold Circle), $65, $55, $40
Lily Tomlin Brings Her Classic Characters to Springfield!
The incomparable Lily Tomlin brings her one-woman show to Sangamon Auditorium in Springfield on Sunday, June 13. One of America's foremost comediennes, Tomlin brings more than a dozen of her famous characters to life onstage, from the precocious six-year-old Edith Ann to the irascible telephone operator Ernestine.
Known for her unique comedic style, smart, relevant, and woven with love and concern for humanity, Tomlin says, "I've always tried to reflect what I thought was interesting, funny, and moving about the human experience."
While the characters may be classic, the observations are pointedly current. Letting the characters take a break, Tomlin will follow her performance with a question-and-answer session with the audience.
Tomlin continues to venture across an ever-widening range of media, starring in television, theater, film, animation, and video. Critics are currently raving over her riveting performance as the steely wife of a stock swindler in the legal drama Damages. Her recurring character from Desperate Housewives is currently being developed for her own spin-off series, and she recently completed a sold-out run headlining at the MGM-Grand in Las Vegas.
She earned an Academy Award nomination for her role in Robert Altman's film Nashville and followed that achievement with dozens of film characterizations, including her iconic role in 9 to 5, along with Dolly Parton and Jane Fonda; All of Me with Steve Martin, and Lake Wobegon Days alongside Meryl Streep. Appearances on Sesame Street and her role as Ms. Frizzle in the award-winning animated series The Magic School Bus cemented her popularity with the elementary school crowd.