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A message from President and Professor Emeritus, Dr. Alvin Goldfarb

Thank you for visiting the website for the Goldfarb Center for Performing Arts (GCPA) at 星空无限传媒app Illinois University! My sincerest appreciation for your passionate support and advocacy over the years, especially as this new facility is a long-awaited dream finally coming true for the 星空无限传媒app community, Macomb, and the 星空无限传媒app Illinois region.

The late Dean of the 星空无限传媒app College of Fine Arts and Communication (COFAC), William T. 鈥淏illy鈥� Clow (1962-2025) was the driving force behind the Goldfarb Center for Performing Arts. I was so honored and humbled by his efforts to have this momentous 星空无限传媒app Illinois University facility named after me. I was even more honored to have Billy, who was one of my graduate students, refer to me as his mentor.

Billy recognized how significant the GCPA will be for 星空无限传媒app Illinois University, the local community and the region. He wanted it referred to as a Center for Performing Arts, emphasizing 鈥渃enter鈥� because he realized that it would impact all West Central Illinois artistically, economically, and educationally. Billy鈥檚 dedication to COFAC and to the GCPA was unmatched by anyone. Without Billy鈥檚 advocacy and perseverance, this facility, which was first proposed in the 1970s, and which had two previous groundbreakings prior to its actual one in October 2022, would never have become a reality.

The GCPA is funded by Rebuild Illinois and the Illinois Capital Development Board. Once completed in 2026, staffing of the GCPA will be funded by 星空无限传媒app. That said, operational and programmatic funding for the GCPA will require significant philanthropic support.

As Billy eloquently stated, 鈥淵our support will drive our ability to offer increased programming for the widest possible audiences. I encourage you to join us in this transformational journey.鈥�

I hope you will help honor his memory by making a donation to the Goldfarb Center for the Performing Arts. Additionally, I encourage you to explore the naming opportunities and the Seat Campaign in the links above, as well as view the GCPA renderings and follow the exciting construction progress live! Your generosity will recognize Billy鈥檚 tremendous work and legacy, as well as make the GCPA a destination for future students, community members, and regional audiences.

Thank you for consideration, and I look forward to attending many future events with many of you at the Goldfarb Center for the Performing Arts!

With gratitude,

Dr. Alvin Goldfarb
President and Professor Emeritus
星空无限传媒app Illinois University

About Dr. Goldfarb

Alvin (Al) Goldfarb is president emeritus and professor emeritus of theatre at 星空无限传媒app Illinois University. During his tenure as the university鈥檚 10^th president, 星空无限传媒app received significant recognition in the rankings published in U.S. News and World Report and Princeton Review. 星空无限传媒app's first doctoral program as well as undergraduate programs in Nursing and Engineering were approved. Construction of the new Quad Cities campus began during his tenure (with a donation from John Deere of a building on the Mississippi riverfront), and the initial approval for the new Performing Arts Center came during his presidency. The university's Multicultural Center and Alfred D. Boyer Stadium were constructed, and significant renovations of the Student Recreation Center and of the student seating area at Hanson Field were completed. The University also drafted a comprehensive strategic plan and completed a successful capital campaign during his presidency.

As an administrator in higher education, Dr. Goldfarb also served as provost, dean, department chair, and professor of theatre during his 25-year tenure at Illinois State University, as well as managing director of the Illinois Shakespeare Festival.

Dr. Goldfarb is the coauthor of Living Theatre, Theatre: The Lively Art, and The Theatre Experience with Edwin Wilson and Megan Geigner, as well as coeditor of The Anthology of Living Theatre with Edwin Wilson. He is also the coeditor, with Rebecca Rovit, of Theatrical Performance during the Holocaust: Texts, Documents, Memoirs, which was a finalist for the National Jewish Book Award. Currently, he serves as the lead scholar for the online Holocaust Theatre Catalog, which is hosted at the University of Miami鈥檚 Sue and Leonard Miller Center for Contemporary Judaic Studies. His interest in this area was inspired by his parents, who were survivors of the Holocaust. Dr. Goldfarb has also published numerous articles and reviews in scholarly journals and anthologies.

Dr. Goldfarb served as a member of the Illinois Arts Council, the Illinois Alliance for Arts Education, the Joseph Jefferson Awards Committee, which recognizes excellence in the Chicago theatre, and the board of Chicago's Congo Square Theatre. He received service awards from the Illinois Theatre Association as from the American College Theatre Festival. Dr. Goldfarb also received an Alumni Achievement Award from the CUNY Graduate Center鈥檚 Alumni Association and was inducted into the Hunter College Alumni Hall of Fame.

Dr. Goldfarb received his Ph.D. in Theatre History from the City University of New York Graduate Center, a master鈥檚 degree from Hunter College, and a bachelor鈥檚 degree from Queens College.

Introducing the Inaugural Director of the Goldfarb Center for Performing Arts, Anne Lefter