Speakers
Thursday, October 8, 2026
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Join us for a reading by poet Philip Metres! Philip Metres (he/him) grew up in the suburbs of Chicago, Illinois, the grandchild of Lebanese refugees and migrants and the descendent of Irish famine survivors. Metres has been called “one of the essential poets of our time,” whose work is “beautiful, powerful, magnetically original.”

Thursday, October 15, 2026
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October Dance 2026
RecurringIn this year of the 250th anniversary of our nation, Dance at Illinois celebrates collaboration as the key concept of democracy. Paige Cunningham Caldarella creates a new work for the mighty first-year undergraduate students of Dance at Illinois.

Friday, October 16, 2026
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October Dance 2026
RecurringIn this year of the 250th anniversary of our nation, Dance at Illinois celebrates collaboration as the key concept of democracy. Paige Cunningham Caldarella creates a new work for the mighty first-year undergraduate students of Dance at Illinois.

Saturday, October 17, 2026
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October Dance 2026
RecurringIn this year of the 250th anniversary of our nation, Dance at Illinois celebrates collaboration as the key concept of democracy. Paige Cunningham Caldarella creates a new work for the mighty first-year undergraduate students of Dance at Illinois.

Thursday, November 5, 2026
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Join us for a reading by Illinois Alumni, Chekwube Danladi, Chris Vanjonack, and Weston Morrow!

Thursday, November 12, 2026
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SPEAK stands for Song, Poetry, Art, and Knowledge. It is an open-mic public performance space at Krannert Art Museum curated by local artist, Shaya Robinson, featuring guest performers and welcoming all to the mic.

Thursday, February 11, 2027
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Join us for a reading by author Carmen Maria Machado! Carmen Maria Machado is the author of the bestselling memoir In the Dream House, the graphic novel The Low, Low Woods, and the award-winning short story collection Her Body and Other Parties.

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SPEAK stands for Song, Poetry, Art, and Knowledge. It is an open-mic public performance space at Krannert Art Museum curated by local artist, Shaya Robinson, featuring guest performers and welcoming all to the mic.

Thursday, March 4, 2027
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SPEAK stands for Song, Poetry, Art, and Knowledge. It is an open-mic public performance space at Krannert Art Museum curated by local artist, Shaya Robinson, featuring guest performers and welcoming all to the mic.

Thursday, March 25, 2027
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Join us for a reading by author Brandon Hobson! Dr. Brandon Hobson is a 2022 Guggenheim Foundation Fellow. His novel, Where the Dead Sit Talking, was a finalist for the National Book Award.

Thursday, April 1, 2027
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SPEAK stands for Song, Poetry, Art, and Knowledge. It is an open-mic public performance space at Krannert Art Museum curated by local artist, Shaya Robinson, featuring guest performers and welcoming all to the mic.
