The curtain opens and the lights fade in. The lead actor’s mic is turned up as she starts her line. The cast and crew are nervous as they see a full audience for the first time in their new theatre.
On Friday, October 4, 2024, the Fox Family Performing Arts Center officially opened its doors after a long-awaited ribbon-cutting ceremony. Students, faculty, and honored guests were enthralled by the beautiful new theatre as they were welcomed with an all-school Mass. The most special attendee, who cut the ribbon himself, was Geoff Fox, member of the Fox family. Geoff Fox earned an honorary degree for the class of 1968 and his brother Robert Fox was a graduate of the class of 1967. The Fox Family, including Geoff’s wife Josie, graciously donated the funds to allow the school to build the new addition. They were motivated to give back in this way because they believe that the education and opportunities they gained at St. Edward were very important in directing their lives after graduating.
After attending Mass and cutting the ribbon, Mr. Fox agreed to sit down with a student reporter. He was very happy with the outcome of the Performing Arts Center, commenting, “It’s much more than I expected.” Being in the new theatre, Mr. Fox recalled when he was in Antigone, which was performed on the stage in the gym when he was a St. Edward student. He also recalled his best memories from when he was a student at St. Edward. “My best memory is when we beat Elgin High… and the other game was at Crystal Lake when we won the regionals,” reminiscing on his basketball team’s wins. After looking back on his high school years, his advice to high school students would be to “Enjoy your time [because] it’s [going to] be short.” After seeing large programs dedicated to the arts in college, Mr. Fox saw how essential they can be, commenting, “[Artistic careers] are more important than I realized.” Geoff Fox hopes to see this theatre give opportunities in fields relating to the arts to students in the future. As a result of Geoff and Robert Fox’s generous donation, future St. Edward students will get to be involved in an impactful theatre experience.
The historic first show Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland took place on October 26, 2024, and October 27, 2024. The entire student body was able to gather for the first time in St. Edward history in a theatre and view the play together, before opening night. The next night, the theatre doors were opened allowing the school community to enjoy the amazing art preformed. This new space meant a lot to me specifically because Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland was the first production I was the stage manager for. There was a definite learning curve with all the new and upgraded equipment, but the quality of the show was improved immensely. For example, I was able to communicate with other people in tech effectively during the show. The wings could be used more effectively than before because tech and actors could wait in the wings at the same time and have more entrances. We were also able to see backstage without the use of bright flashlights because of dim, blue run lights. I am so grateful for this new space that has allowed us to put an amazing show, and will allow us to put on incredible performances in the future.
