This morning on Eight Forty-Eight, we circle up with WBEZ reporters Natalie Moore, Michael Puente and Becky Vevea to talk about the Illiniois budget crisis. Before the state legislature begins deliberations again in Springfield today, we hone in on the pension debacle, Medicaid cuts, and schools. 

Then, WBEZ theater bloggers Kelly Kleiman and Jonathan Abarbanel will join us for a review of Court Theater’s Angels in America. UIC professor and cultural historian Jennifer Brier will talk about the role the theater played in the AIDs crisis during the 1980s and 90s. 

Throughout the program, we will be joined live by Red Baraat, a Brooklyn band informed by South Asian bhangra music.