History of the Arts on Campus
The University of Chicago has a distinguished history in the creative and performing arts, with three moments of particularly intense activity. The first of these moments came in the first few decades after the University's founding in 1892. In 1898, students initiated a tradition of student-run productions that continues today with University Theater. In 1903, the University inaugurated Mandel Hall with a concert by the ensemble that became the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. In 1909, sculptor Laredo Taft moved into the complex known as Midway Studios on the site of the David Logan Arts Center, and in the 1920s he began sharing the space with art students (for more, see "The Project"). University faculty were instrumental in the founding of Poetry Magazine in 1912 and the Renaissance Society in 1915.
The second great moment in the arts at the University of Chicago occurred from World War II until the mid-1960s. An extraordinary number of the University's most distinguished arts alumni graduated during this period, including composer Philip Glass, director Mike Nichols, and writer Susan Sontag. In 1943, the University of Chicago Presents Chamber Music Series was formed; one of its first performances was by 24-year-old violinist Isaac Stern. In 1955, Richard Stern (no relation) joined the Department of English as its first faculty member in the area of creative writing, and he facilitated campus visits by Saul Bellow (who taught at the University for three decades), Bernard Malamud, and others. In 1959, a student improv group called the Compass Players reconstituted itself as Second City under the direction of co-founder and Chicago alumnus Bernie Sahlins. In 1964, faculty member and renowned composer Ralph Shapey formed the Contemporary Chamber Players, which continues today under the artistic direction of Pulitzer Prize-winning composer Shulamit Ran and a new name, Contempo.
Now at the beginning of the 21st century the University of Chicago is experiencing a third renaissance in the arts. In addition to our many curricular and extra-curricular student arts activities (see "Student Arts Programs"), our professional arts organizations are flourishing. Court Theatre was recently named by the Wall Street Journal as "the most consistently excellent theatre company in America." The Renaissance Society is one of the most respected venues in the country for the presentation of contemporary art. Founded in 1974 with a gift from brothers David and Alfred Smart, the Smart Museum is recognized nationally for its innovative education programs and ambitious exhibitions. Finally, the University of Chicago Presents continues to be an important venue for contemporary classical musicians, including resident ensembles Pacifica Quartet and eighth blackbird.
In addition to approximately twenty permanent and visiting faculty who are practicing visual artists, composers, and performers, there are an additional thirty faculty members in the Division of the Humanities who, although their primary role is scholarship, are also active in the world of the arts at a professional level. David Levin, for instance, a scholar of 19th-century German opera, also works as a dramaturg, most recently for the San Francisco Opera and the Lyric Opera of Chicago. (See: Department of Germanic Studies) Thomas Pavel, a distinguished scholar of French literature, knighted by the French government for his scholarship, is also a published novelist in France. (See: Department of Romance Languages and Literatures) Malynne Sternstein, a scholar of Czech literature and European modernism, also makes animated films. (See: Department of Slavic Languages and Literatures) There are also approximately two dozen lecturers on campus in any given quarter, many of whom are working artists who bring their up-to-date expertise to the classrooms. The work of our faculty testifies to the crucial role that creativity plays in the culture of inquiry at the University of Chicago.
