Enjoy a beverage (sold separately) from our concession stand while experiencing skilled local artists sharing their work in the intimate UIS Studio Theatre.  These short events will leave you with time for dinner afterwards to make for a great date night!

In Partnership with UIS Music

Travel the world through jazz as saxophonist Jade Kastel and pianist David McEathron share a vibrant collection of music inspired by cities and cultures across the globe, highlighting the genre’s remarkable journey across time and place.

Jade Kastel is the Saxophone Instructor and Director of the Jazz Ensemble at the University of Illinois Springfield, Deputy Director at the Illinois State Library, and the Director of Music & Worship and Organist at Hope Presbyterian Church in Springfield. Jade holds a Doctor of Musical Arts and Jazz Performance with a minor in Queer Studies from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign and a Master of Library and Information Science from the University of South Florida. In 2019, Jade was a fellow in the Institute of Jazz Studies Archival Fellowship at Rutgers University and she completed a saxophone teaching assistantship in the Tirocinante program of the Conservatorio di Musica “Niccolo Piccinni” in Bari, Italy.

David McEathron is a jazz keyboardist, vocalist, and composer active across Springfield, Champaign, and central Illinois in several different groups, as well as on his own. In 2023 and 2024 he received his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Jazz Piano Performance from the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, which encompassed the written thesis project, “Everything I Do ‘Gon Be Funky From Now On: The Legacy of Alan Toussaint” as well as an accompanying septet recital dedicated to Toussaint’s music and unique impact. At the piano, he particularly draws inspiration from Herbie Hancock, Cedar Walton, Elaine Elias, and John “Chip” Stevens.