College of DuPage renames performance hall after Belushi brothers
The performance hall at the newly built McAninch Arts Center at College of DuPage will be named after alumni John and Jim Belushi.
The announcement was made by COD President Robert L. Breuder at a benefit Saturday night for the new arts center after a performance by Jim Belushi and The Chicago Board of Comedy.
"On behalf of the board of trustees and the foundation board of directors, we are honored to name this stage the Belushi Performance Hall in memory of your brother John and in recognition of your many achievements," Breuder told Jim Belushi during the announcement.
Jim Belushi, a Wheaton native who graduated from COD in 1974, said he was honored by the recognition.
"It's sweet, thoughtful, generous and kind, and that's what I've always received at College of DuPage," Belushi said. "Thank you for honoring me and my family and my brother. It's really cool."
The Belushis have had a long history with COD. In 1983, Jim, along with The Second City, created the John Belushi Scholarship Fund. It has since provided more than $120,000 in scholarships to more than 75 students.
According to a COD news release, Jim Belushi has raised more than $330,000 for student scholarships and programs at the college. Jim Belushi also established the Belushi Artist-in-Residence Fund, which provides funds to pay for artists' extended stays on campus to teach and work with students.
The Saturday night fundraiser, called the Grand Opening MAC Madness Celebration Benefit, raised nearly $380,000, according to the college.
The McAninch Arts Center on the school's Glen Ellyn campus houses three performance spaces: the 800-seat newly named Belushi Performance Hall; the 184-seat Playhouse Theatre; and the 70-seat black box Studio Theatre. It also houses the new Cleve Carney Art Gallery.
The MAC began a 14-month, $35 million renovation in fall 2012 to update its three performance spaces, construct a new art gallery and outdoor patio stage, and make improvements to the infrastructure, teaching and learning spaces and patron service areas. The work was funded partly through a $168 million referendum that voters approved in November 2010.