By Qianyu (Margaret) Cheng
During my first visit of University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign, a gorgeous shell-like building located in the center of campus caught my eye. At first I thought it was a stadium since it was huge, but later on I find out that Krannert Center is for performing arts. It is a place to enjoy performing arts and for art students to practice what they learn in class. It is really a hidden treasure for Champaign-Urbana, especially for students.
U of I students enjoy student discount for tickets so it is easy for students to enjoy performing arts in a fairly low price, right here on campus. Not only do Art major students in University of Illinois perform some of the shows, but also will world famous groups perform here. All kinds of shows and plays are going on. You can always find something you like. You will be surprised by how many interesting events they have.
My first visit to Krannert Center was in sophomore year. When my friend asked me to watch a play called Oh What a Lovely War together, I thought: I haven’t been to Krannert Center before. Why not give it a try? Krannert Center is on campus and really easy to find. While waiting in the line before the show start, we had a really nice conversation with another audience member, who turned out to be a professor in U of I. He visited Krannert Center almost every week and he really likes this resource. As soon as we got into the room, I realized the setting was different from the other show I’ve watched. The audience will interact with actors by moving around and sit on performing items and even be invited to dance with actors. Actors and the audience were never separated- they were in the same scene and I felt like I was part of the show. I was so touched by the story and also the enthusiasm of actors. It was such a refreshing experience for me!
The other show I went to is a Japanese opera and actors were elementary school students coming from Japan. I was impressed by how sophisticated the actors were and they were only elementary school student. I learned a lot about Japanese culture in this opera. It is so much fun to see that Krannert Center has so many variety of performing that everyone can find what he or she love and explore more in the world of arts. I always learn new things about performing art in Krannert Center!
Although the shows are awesome, what I like most is the atmosphere. Since many people come often, some of them know each other pretty well and talk to the people next to them like old friends. Gathering together with community and students to enjoy art makes me feel energetic. It is a must-go place in University if you want a chance to be free from heavy study burden and just dive into the adventure in the world of art. When I enjoy the play, sometimes I even forget that I am still in University of Illinois. Oh, what a lovely Krannert Center! I would highly recommend everyone to keep up with the schedule and become engaged with such a wonderful resource on campus.