THE
Daily Egyptian SERVING THE SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY SINCE 1916.
DAILYEGYPTIAN.COM
WEDNESDAY, APRIL 8, 2026
VOL. 109, ISSUE 28
Renovation, budget cuts affect SIU Theater students MARIAH FLETCHER mfletcher@dailyegyptian.com
SIU School of Theater and Dance students and professors this spring semester have been unable to use McLeod Theater, the school’s main stage, after the space shuttered in December to prepare for renovations. But as the semester nears
an end, there is not a contractor assigned to the job and work has yet to begin. Students and professors said they have felt left in the dark, citing a lack of communication from university leadership about the project’s plans and timeline. Teachers also expressed concerns about the program’s enrollment,
as McLeod — a 521-seat theater on the south end of the Communications Building on SIU’s Carbondale campus — is an essential part of recruitment efforts for the school. McLeod renovation is part of long-awaited Communications Building revamp
Odenkirk brings new film ‘Normal’ to Normal, Illinois
The McLeod Theater renovation is part of a larger project to overhaul the campus’ Communications Building, which was built in 1964 and houses the School of Communication Studies and the College of Arts and Media, which includes the schools of Theater and Dance, Journalism
CARLY GIST cgist@dailyegyptian.com
SIU alum Bob Odenkirk’s upcoming independent film “Normal” made its Illinois debut on Thursday, April 2. In the action-thriller, Odenkirk stars as an interim sheriff in a small town called Normal, but — spoiler alert — nothing about it is normal. However, the early screening took place at the Normal Theater in Normal, Illinois, and it doesn’t get much more normal than that. “This is a bigger town than the one pictured in this movie,” Odenkirk told a sold-out crowd after the screening. “But in a lot of ways, I think the town in this movie is representative of a lot of towns in America.” The film takes place in Minnesota,
not Illinois, and the town has a population of just under 2,000. For Odenkirk’s character Ulysses, crime is a rarity — until he uncovers a dark secret while responding to a bank robbery. The movie is violent and gory, but it’s also funny and mysterious. For current cinema student Olivia Lockhart, this resonated with the work she does at Movie Camera Movement, a registered student organization that produces short films. “This was really cool, because there’s so much in it,” Lockhart said. “I can see a lot of the stuff that we do in MCM, like a lot of the different genres that we do, being in this movie, so it’s really cool to see it on a large scale as an independent film.”
“Normal” is based on a story by screenwriter Derek Kolstad — creator of the “John Wick” franchise — and Odenkirk. The pair, who previously worked together on “Nobody” and “Nobody 2,” brought the script to Berlin’s 2024 European Film Market with director Ben Wheatley attached and Odenkirk set to star. After numerous offers and a loan from the bank, Odenkirk said the team began filming in Winnipeg, Canada — the same place they shot the “Nobody” movies. The film premiered at the 2025 Toronto International Film Festival on Sept. 7 — right before Odenkirk’s visit to Carbondale, where he hosted several workshops for SIU students. NORMAL | 4
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Durbin raises concerns over immigration policy, global conflict during SIU visit TAY ACREE tacree@dailyegyptian.com
“Normal” star Bob Odenkirk (right) points at “Normal” screenwriter Derek Kolstad during a discussion moderated by WGLT content director Ryan Denham (left) April 2, 2026 at the Normal Theater in Normal, Illinois. Carly Gist | @gistofthestory
and Advertising, Media Arts, Architecture, Art and Design and Music, as well as WSIU, Carbondale’s NPR affiliate. Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced in January 2020 that state funding would support construction of a new
With a mix of students, faculty and community members filling the room, U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin stood at the front of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute on Tuesday, March 31 taking questions as elections, global conflict and immigration quickly took center stage. Durbin raised concerns about election integrity, U.S. involvement in global conflicts and immigration policies during his visit to Southern Illinois University, pointing to issues that he said directly impact college students. John Shaw, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, introduced Durbin, highlighting his long career in public service and his connection to the late Sen. Paul Simon. Durbin is amid his final year in the U.S. senate, and will vacate his seat — and position as the Democratic Whip — come November. Shaw said Durbin’s visits to
Carbondale have been a consistent part of his 29 years in office. “It’s always a pleasure when he comes back to the Paul Simon Institute,” Shaw said. “It’s always a terrific moment.” Speaking to a packed audience, Durbin focused less on formal remarks and more on answering questions, often circling back to how decisions made in Washington affect young people. When asked what students should be paying attention to right now, Durbin pointed to the upcoming November election, specifically concerns about voting access. “The November election and the efforts to make it more difficult for people to vote,” he said. He pointed to broader concerns about election interference and efforts to influence upcoming midterms, including proposed changes to district maps and voting access that could affect who is able to participate. When asked about young voters,
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to host civil engineering i SIU symposium | Page 4 n s How photojournalists document i immigration | Page 5 D Carbondale Farmer’s Market gets E new manager | Page 9