OUTSIDE at the Research Park with Marcia Ball and Jive Bag
This performance will be held unless weather causes a safety concern. Please see Facebook.com/KrannertCenter or Twitter.com/KrannertCenter, where weather-related announcements will be posted as they are available.
Krannert Center for the Performing Arts once again joins forces with Fox/Atkins Development, LLC and the University of Illinois to present Marcia Ball and Jive Bag as part of the FREE and popular OUTSIDE at the Research Park series. The sensational Southern blues woman Marcia Ball will take the stage at 7:30pm with her superb keyboard skills that blend “rollicking, two-fisted New Orleans piano, Louisiana swamp rock, and smoldering Texas blues” (Boston Globe). Ball’s inventive songwriting, renowned vocals, and boundless, barrelhouse piano chops have earned her worldwide fame in soul-satisfying concerts that, like Krannert Center, have spanned five decades. Arrive early for an opening set at 6:30pm of New Orleans funk and jazz from local favorite Jive Bag, led by Jonny Beckett.
Special event amenities will include a Community Resource Fair featuring Allerton Park and Conference Center, Champaign County Forest Preserve, Champaign Park District, Common Ground, Prairie Rivers Network, Second Wind Running Club, Stephens Family YMCA, and Urbana Park District with a bike raffle from Champaign Cycle and tasty food options from The Cracked Truck; Oh, Honey Pie; and Kona Ice.
OUTSIDE at the Research Park plays upon a simple concept: great music, all-ages enjoyment, and community wellness partnerships in an open, relaxed environment. The tree-lined, grassy space has hosted thousands of audience members each summer since the inception of OUTSIDE in 2007. The 2018 OUTSIDE concert—a warm-up event for the Center’s two-season 50th-anniversary celebration—will continue to demonstrate Krannert Center’s commitment to promoting wellness through the arts and to partnering with other community assets to enhance life in Champaign-Urbana.
The performance space and seating area are located just south of the Atkins Building at the corner of First Street and St. Mary’s Road in Champaign. Free parking is available in the lot south of the Caterpillar Building at 1901 South First Street. All performances are free and open to the general public.
