418 South Illinois Avenue, Carbondale, Illinois 62901, United States
A historic arts & entertainment venue in downtown Carbondale Illinois
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TRON & A SALON
SIU Philosophy and the GPU present:
Tron and the Advent of AI, with a special talk by Dr. Andrew Youpa, PhD.
The original Tron, with its dazzling visuals and inventive depiction of cyberspace, captured the world's imagination of the future of Artificial intelligence. Please join us in returning to the cinematic roots of AI to help not only understand our present, but also the future of our relationship between programs and programmers.
Doors & Varsity Bar open at 6 -- for a 7 PM event.
FREE Admission
More about the film:
TRON (1982)
Tron is a 1982 American science fiction adventure film written and directed by Steven Lisberger from a story he co-wrote with Bonnie MacBird. The film stars Jeff Bridges as Kevin Flynn, a computer programmer and video game developer who is transported inside the software world of a mainframe computer where he interacts with anthropomorphic programs in his attempt to escape. It also stars Bruce Boxleitner (in the eponymous role), David Warner, Cindy Morgan and Barnard Hughes. Tron was one of cinema's earliest films to use extensive computer-generated imagery (CGI).
Runtime: 96 minutes
Free Admission - RSVP Below
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New Moon on the New Moon - Cinema at the Varsity EMO NIGHT
The Twilight Saga : New Moon (2009)
Bella Swan finds herself living dangerously when her vampire boyfriend Edward Cullen leaves her. She soon reconnects with a childhood friend and learns there are more supernatural beings living in her town, and they may be the only ones who can protect her from a vampire seeking vengeance.
Starring: Kristen Stewart, Robert Pattinson, Taylor Lautner, Ashley Greene, Rachelle Lefevre
Runtime: 106 minutes
Rated PG-13
Break out your best emo & goth garb. Doors and the Varsity Bar open at 6 PM; the show
starts at 7.
Tickets
Adults $8
Students: $6
Jr. Varsity $3 (age 10 and under) can be purchased in advance at Eventbrite (see below) or at the door on the night of the show.
The Stage Co. Presents : Season 44
make believe
By: Bess Wohl
Directed By: Shay Miller
Four young siblings recreate their everyday lives in a game of make-believe in their attic, while the world beneath them bodes a more sinister reality. Defying all narrative expectations, Make Believe is a gut-wrenching meditation on the imprint of childhood trauma on adults.
April 17-19 & 23-26, 2026
Union County Sal brings a “Mood Indigo” to the Varsity
Union County Sal with The SquadFathers & Special Guests
She has become a Varsity favorite among Southern Illinoisans, and she’s returning to the
Balcony Stage with some of the region’s best musicians.
Union County Sal will bring a “Mood Indigo” along with the Squadfathers and special guests
Mike Arthur, Chris Thornton, and Joe Stafford. The annual spring concert will feature classics
from the Great American Songbook as well as jazz offerings.
Catch this special show on Saturday, April 18. Doors and the Varsity Bar open at 6 PM; the show
starts at 7.
Tickets are $15 and can be purchased in advance at Eventbrite (see link). Any remnant tickets will be available at the door on the night of the show.
Advance tickets recommended.
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SPECIAL SCREENING & CONVERSATION with WALTER THOMPSON-HERNÁN
Special Screening of If I Go Will They Miss Me, and Pipas (Kites) with an in-person conversation wit
About the films:
If I Go Will They Miss Me
A boy sees ghostly figures of other boys in his neighborhood as he grapples with his father's distance. These visions uncover hidden connections between them and their shared heritage.
Pipas (Kites)
A 25-year-old Rio gangster named Duvo seeks redemption through conversations with his guardian angel in this magical realist tale of life in the favelas.
About the filmmaker:
Thompson-Hernández has written for The New York Times, where he was a multimedia subculture reporter. At The Times, Thompson-Hernández wrote about the Compton Cowboys, who eventually wrote a book revolving around them, The Compton Cowboys: The New Generation of Cowboys in America's Urban Heartland, published in 2020 by HarperCollins. His work has additionally been featured in NPR, BuzzFeed, The Guardian, and Remezcla.
In 2022, Thompson-Hernández directed the short film If I Go Will They Miss Me which had its world premiere at the 2022 Sundance Film Festival, where it won the Sundance Film Festival Short Film Jury Award. It was then expanded into a feature-length film of the same name starring J. Alphonse Nicholson and Danielle Brooks, and premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival.
In 2025, Thompson-Hernández directed the documentary Untold: Shooting Guards for Netflix, revolving around an incident involving Washington Wizards teammates Gilbert Arenas and Javaris Crittenton. That same year, he made his narrative directorial debut with Kites, which premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Festival, where it received a Special Jury Mention for Viewpoints.
Doors & Varsity Bar open at 6
FREE Admission - Sponsored by the Fine Arts Activity Fee, School of Media Arts.
Free Admission - RSVP Below
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R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIV
In co-operation with the Fuller Futures Festival 2026
“R. Buckminster Fuller: THE HISTORY (and Mystery) OF THE UNIVERSE” -- a play by D.W. JACOBS from the life, work, and writings of R. B. Fuller, directed by Kira Rutter, and performed by Jon-Michael Rutter.
This one-man show is coming to Carbondale for these special performances in The Varsity Balcony Theater -- at the corner of South Illinois Avenue and Cherry Street, just a couple of blocks east of the Fuller Dome Home! These performances are brought to you in partnership with the Fuller Futures Festival 2026 here at SIU.
The play takes the audience on an inspiring journey through the life of one of the 20th century's greatest visionaries and an immensely impactful change agent who helped forge the modern SIU and reshape the world we live in today.
Doors and hospitality open one hour prior to each performance.
Friday April 24 - 6:30 PM showtime
Saturday April 25 - 6:30 PM showtime
Sunday April 26 - 1:00 PM showtime
Tickets available at the door or advance below
FILMS
LIVE EVENTS, THEATER, ART
LIVE EVENTS, THEATER, ART
LIVE EVENTS, THEATER, ART
LIVE EVENTS, THEATER, ART
LIVE EVENTS, THEATER, ART