THE
Daily Egyptian SERVING THE SOUTHERN ILLINOIS UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY SINCE 1916.
DAILYEGYPTIAN.COM
WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2023
VOL. 107, ISSUE 15
Two SIU automotive students die in collision
Joei Younker | @younker_joei
The Saluki family suffered two losses Monday morning in an automotive accident. Wolfgang Gustaveson, 19, of Park Ridge, Illinois, and Frank Martinez, 18, of Des Plaines, Illinois, were both SIU students majoring in automotive technology. Carbondale Police Department responded to the 1500 block of North Illinois Avenue for the traffic crash on Dec. 4 at 7:45 a.m. Upon arriving at the scene officers
found two trucks that were in a headon collision. The occupant of the southbound vehicle was transported to Memorial Hospital of Carbondale, while the two SIU students were found dead in the northbound vehicle as a result of the collision. “We extend our deepest condolences to their families and friends,” Chancellor Austin Lane said in an email sent to the student body soon after the accident. With the excruciating number of losses in the Saluki family this year, it is
highly encouraged for students to utilize the Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) that Southern Illinois offers. CAPS can be reached by calling (618) 453-5371 or online at https:// shc.siu.edu/counseling/. All classes in automotive technology were canceled Monday as the student body mourns the deaths of these two students. Reporter Joei Younker can be reached at jyounker@dailyegyptian.com.
SIU delivers performance of Alice Childress’ “Wedding Band”
Aidan Quinn (44) rushes the ball down the field as the Salukis face the Idaho Vandals in round two of the FCS Playoffs Dec. 2, 2023 at P1FCU Kibbie Dome in Moscow, Idaho. Photo provided by Saluki Athletics
Midnight strikes for SIU football: Salukis eliminated
Carly Gist | cgist@dailyegyptian.com
The Southern Illinois University School of Theatre and Dance is holding its final production of the semester: Alice Childress’ “Wedding Band: A Love-Hate Story in Black and White.” The two-act play, which explores themes such as racism, loneliness, social injustice and community, was written in 1962 and first performed in 1966 at the University of Michigan. According to PBS THIRTEEN, the play was optioned for Broadway, which would have made Childress the first Black woman to have a play in the renowned theater district. However, after she refused “to compromise in order to make white audiences more comfortable,” “Wedding Band” did not receive a wider audience until 1972, when it was performed at the New York Shakespeare Festival. It received a major New York revival last May, 50 years later, by Theatre for a New Audience at Polonsky Shakespeare Center in Brooklyn. The play is making its southern Illinois debut Thursday. “We have a lot of opportunity to engage in path-making without a lot of predecessors to shape what expectations might be, so there’s lots of freedom in that,” Guest Director Omiyemi (Artisia)
Brandyn Wilcoxen | @brandynwilcoxen 17-10 late in the fourth quarter, Kaitlyn Rose (left), playing Juila Augustine, reads a letter from Mattie’s husband, October, during the first act of “Wedding Band” by Alice Childress Nov. 28, 2023 at the Christian H. Moe Laboratory Theater in Carbondale, Illinois. Malia Jones (center) is playing Mattie and Israeli Jones (right) is playing Lula Green. Jasmine Thompson | jthompson@dailyegytian.com
Green said. Green is a Professor of Theater and Africana Studies at William & Mary, a public research university in Virginia. She said she lived in Chicago for some time and spoke highly of returning to Illinois. “It’s been a great opportunity for me to see a different part of the state that I would have never thought about traveling to, and to see what it’s really like to live in the southern part of middle America,” she said. “I have fallen in love with the sort of small town portraiture on the architecture, because you just don’t see that in the suburban area where I live.” Green also said she has really appreciated getting to work with the
students at SIU, and that this place has become a “home away from home in multiple ways.” “That’s just been really affirming, as we tackle what I think is one of Childress’ most significant plays,” she said. “I’m really glad to know that Childress is experiencing a bit of a revival in this time period. I feel like it’s long overdue, and I’m grateful that SIU Carbondale School of Theatre and Dance has decided to be a part of that conversation to revive this woman’s work.” “Wedding Band” is set in Charleston, South Carolina (Childress’ place of birth), during the 1918 flu epidemic and nearing WEDDING BAND | 9
As Saturday became Sunday in the Midwest, Southern Illinois fans were glued to their televisions to watch Saluki football come closer to an upset than almost any other team in the second round of the FCS Playoffs, which had gone chalk throughout the day. But just past midnight back home in Carbondale, Idaho kicker Ricardo Chavez hit a field goal from 29 yards out to send the Vandals to the quarterfinals with a 20-17 overtime win, and end the Salukis’ potential Cinderella run before it could truly begin. “Heck of a football game to be a part of,” head coach Nick Hill said. “It’s tough coming up on the wrong end of it.” Although the contest came down to a final kick, several pivotal moments occurred leading up to Chavez’s game-winner. The Salukis led 10-0 at one point, and
forcing No. 4 Idaho to play catchup for most of the night despite being the favorites in their home stadium. “When we take the emotion out of the game, we’ll look back and see that we had our opportunities in this game to win it,” Hill said. The Salukis got on the board first with a Ro Elliott rushing touchdown in the second quarter, and tacked on three more points after Idaho fumbled in its own territory on the next drive. Suddenly up by two scores, the result was as good as SIU could have asked for against one of the top teams in the country. Idaho found some rhythm on its final drive before halftime, going into the break down 10-3. With a chance to add onto that Saluki lead at the start of the third quarter, running back Justin SALUKIS | 10
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