SPlog

Attention local actors! The Celebration Company at the Station Theatre will be holding auditions for Stupid xxxxxx Bird! on Sunday, January 20 from 1 to 3:30 pm.  Written by Aaron Posner, Stupid xxxxxx Bird!  will be directed …

Rumors on the internet indicate that The Strand, “A Classic Diner,” will take over the space formerly occupied by Merry Ann’s in Downtown Champaign. Hopefully this is entirely true, and all funding and details will …

Well, technically, the folks who run Kohinoor are on vacation, but you get the point. The Downtown Champaign Indian restaurant will be closed from January 14th through January 23rd, and will reopen just in time …

I am a frequent criss-crosser through the center of Champaign in my daily travels, and over the past several months I’ve noticed a handful of yard signs (at one point mixed in with the candidate …

UPDATE: Monday, January 14th at 11:15 a.m. I think I spoke too soon — as per this report back in 2014, McFadden has appeared on McDonald’s cups in the past. Regardless, still awesome, but I …

The exhibit is called Besa: A Code of Honor – Muslim Albanians that Rescued Jews During the Holocaust, and comes from Yad Vashem: The World Holocaust Remembrance Center. January 24th is International Holocaust Remembrance Day, and the …

Earlier this week, we shared the news that Bunny’s now serves breakfast on the weekends. We’re not wanting for breakfast options in C-U. From Sam’s Cafe’s very special French toast, to Silvercreek’s fancy-ish breakfast buffet, …

January is National Mentoring Month, and the CU One-to-One Mentoring program is looking for a few good mentors, especially men. And no, they aren’t trying to be sexist here, there just tends to be an …

Have you been to Urbana Boulders yet? Admittedly I have not, but I’ve taken both kids there for various gatherings, and it seems like a totally unique and fun way to be active and build …

C-U’s Khan family is extraordinarily wealthy — they own the Jacksonville Jaguars, and Shad Khan is frequently referred to as the “American Dream” — and they are making it known that they’re diving into professional …

Calling all future book authors and illustrators! Mark your calendars for the last two meetings of the Urbana Free Library’s Write On! Story Club. Librarian Elaine Bearden will lead kids through the process of writing and …

WCIA reported in the wee hours of this morning (4 a.m.) that someone drove their car into Manzella’s front window last night around 3 a.m. The driver was OK according to the report, but for …

The C-U community and beyond will celebrate the life of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. next weekend with a full slate of activities beginning with the annual celebration at Vineyard Church in Urbana. The celebration …

Anita Purves Nature Center and Busey Woods are gems, and were a favorite field trip spot for my kids when they were little. Photo by Julie McClure The nature center, named for the late Anita …

Chili (con carne or not) is a dish that has potential to be delicious, but is often better when you make it at home. It’s certainly not high on the list of most beautifully photogenic …

While this isn’t what I’d consider “light reading” for your Wednesday afternoon, I stumbled upon a discussion about hospitals and transparency within the structure of what services cost. As of January 1st of this year, …

Midwest Punkfest is back for their 11th installment in 2019, and it’ll take place June 13-16 over in Bloomington at nightshop, as per the Facebook event. The venue is located at 517 N Main Street in …

The McKinley Foundation is seeking nominations for its annual social justice awards. The awards will be presented at a gala on Saturday, March 30, with Dr. Rebecca L. Sandefur, who won a McArthur “Genius” Fellowship …

With this Friday’s show at the Loose Cobra in Tolono to kick things off, former frontman of the Fights, Cole Bridges, has announced a short tour stint over the next week or so. The 9-date …

Out of the ashes of Rumours Hat Shoppe’s closure towards the end of last year, owner and operator Sally Mundy has a new project on her hands on campusat U of I. Happy Jack Hat Co. will …

We all know hospital cafeteria food can leave much to be desired, but staff and guests at OSF Urbana now have a little added perk in the form of Papa Del’s pizza. It’s available Monday …

One Book One Campus, an initiative of Illini Union Bookstore, is basically a giant campus-wide book club. From the website: “Each year, a panel of key university representatives compile a list of books for the …

Bunny’s, home of one of our favorite burgers, now serves breakfast on the weekends — that’s right, both Saturday and Sunday.  Check out the menu, which looks pretty solid: Bunny’s 119 W Water St Urbana M-F 9 …

Stephen Larson, an Urbana High School grad, has been using old photos of UHS after it was first built to put together a digital “flyover” of the building. I did not go to Urbana High …

Jeff Tweedy of Wilco will perform at the Virginia Theatre on Thursday, April 18th as per an announcement by Champaign Park District and the theatre. Tweedy released a brand new solo record, WARM, last year, and …

Grovestone, the specialty store in Champaign, has been hosting cooking classes for a while now, and they’re almost always sold out. The next class is on January 17th from 6:30 to 8 p.m. and called …

Many of you are probably familiar with NowThis News. Well, I’ve just learned that they have a series of videos entitled Apocolypse NowThis which examines various ways that we all could die and/or the Earth could …

On January 20th there will be a lunar eclipse — the only one that will be visible in 2019 — and Staerkel Planetarium is partnering with the C-U Astronomical Society to give the public a pretty cool …

Rosecrance is opening a new facility for treatment for those that suffer from substance abuse disorders, and they are hosting their grand opening of their new facility in Champaign-Urbana this Wednesday, January 9th. Here’s the …

The City of Urbana has announced the development of townhomes, extended stay room, retail, and public outdoor areas at the bustling intersection of Lincoln and University. It will be called Gather, and it will surely be …

Rafters Draft & Dough, located at 1906 W. Bradley Avenue in Champaign, has officially closed, as per this report by The News-Gazoo. The pizza/craft beer joint opened just over a year ago in December of 2017, but has …

Back in November, Visit Champaign County announced the dates for this year’s (yes, I can say “this year’s” now because it is 2019, finally) Restaurant Week in and around Champaign County. January 25-February 2 marks …

Poetic.         View this post on Instagram                   America has fallen. A post shared by Virgil Bryce Grider (@vgrid101) on Dec 31, 2018 at …

According to this post on 25 O’Clock Brewing Company‘s Facebook page, their taproom is officially open for business. It was just over one year ago when it was announced that Pizza M was vacating Cafeteria …

Radio Maria, a long beloved Downtown Champaign restaurant, and an institution by any measure, has allegedly closed for good. We posted about it being on sale earlier this year, but it seems as though brunch …

Once again, Travis Wayne Hurt’s Christmas Special has arrived, and the always-bizarre production features a variety of clips and components within the special. Urbana Public Television hosts the special, which features some familiar faces: Travis …

Attention local actors! The Celebration Company at the Station Theatre has just announced auditions for Marisol,  written by Jose Rivera and directed by Jace Jamison.  Here’s the scoop directly from the Celebration Company staff:  Auditions …

There’s been a story that’s circulating around social media published by Christopher Hansen, a U of I graduate and resident of Urbana, about his experience with the Champaign County judicial system, the Champaign Police Department, …

With the kids out of school, it’s a good time to take advantage of the educational opportunities C-U has to offer. Just be sure to double check holiday hours for the places you intend to …

The semester is over, and Campustown is a little less crowded. I’m going to take myself to Maize on Green Street for a quiet meal of nachos. You should treat yourself to the same. The …

Wolfram Research is based right here in Champaign, and their technology via Wolfram Alpha is already embedded into iPhones via Siri. Now, that technology is getting intergrated with Amazon’s Alexa. That’s pretty excellent news, indeed, …

I’m headed to a family gathering this weekend, so I popped into Fleurish yesterday to peruse some options for something lovely to bring as a hostess gift. I found both fun and beautiful things.  First …

Every year, Courier Cafe closes for some deep cleaning. This year the restaurant will close at 2 p.m. on Monday, December 24th and reopen at 7 a.m. on Wednesday, January 2nd. So go now to …

The building project, titled Urbana Arts, will begin construction in 2020 in the city-owned lots along Illinois Street, just south of Lincoln Square (seen above). Here are the details from the press release: The City …

With a little bit of fanfare (probably as much as can be conjured up at 5:30 in the morning) the first flight to Charlotte out of Champaign took off this morning. The added American Airlines …

Local theatre fans rejoice. The Twin City Theatre Company has just announced an exciting line up for its spring 2019 season.  Actors will want to take note of audition details.  The following information is courtesy …

HUM’s 1998 monster of a record, Downward is Heavenward, is getting the reissue treatment. This came to light back in September when frontman Matt Talbott posted an update about the new record and this reissue ahead …

According to the City, this initiative is meant to encourage “City departments, contractors and other vendors doing business with the City to increase the amount of goods and services provided by local businesses owned by …