Spring Fest 2026 at EIU to take place April 23–25
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Weekend festival offers art, live music, food, more at community-focused event
By Joshua Reinhart
Eastern Illinois University and the Doudna Fine Arts Center invite members of the local community to enjoy an art fair, live performances, food, and more during the University’s annual Spring Fest being held Thursday through Saturday, April 23 through April 25.
Spring Fest 2026 will take place Thursday, April 23 from noon to 7 p.m., as well as from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. Friday, April 24 and Saturday, April 25.
Next year’s (2026-27) Doudna performance season will be announced at the beginning of the festival, so attendees should be sure to pick up the new calendar to see everything EIU has to offer, including premier events, music concerts, theatre performances, and festivals. Attendees can find a full schedule for Spring Fest 2026 at eiu.edu/festival.
Kids Day will take place Saturday, April 25, from noon to 4 p.m. Activities will consist of EIU Dancers performance and teaching a dance to kids of all ages at 1 p.m. Other activities include;
• Free glitter tattoos and face painting
• EIU Portable Observatory will be in the Black Box Theatre all weekend with presentations every hour
• Decatur’s Scovill Mobile Zoo
• Arts and science activities for kids
• There will be concerts following regular festival hours in the Doudna Fine Arts Center’s Dvorak Concert Hall at 7:30 p.m. each evening. Tickets for these performances are available at eiu.edu/doudnatix.
There will be 22 art and goods vendor booths (both indoor and outdoor) spanning the Doudna Fine Arts Center into Buzzard Hall. Vendors will be selling a variety of art and goods, including ceramics, clothing, jewelry, metal works, paintings, plants, sculptures and soaps.
The Doudna Fine Arts Center will have a stage near its circle drive for live music performances.