The University of Iowa

Past Season Events

ABT Across America (Photo: Todd Rosenberg Photography)
Dance

American Ballet Theatre

ABT Across America

Sunday, July 4, 2021
Dance

American Ballet Theatre

ABT Across America

Sunday, July 4, 2021
The wonderful dancers of American Ballet Theatre are hopping on a bus and touring America—and they’ll stop at Hancher on the Fourth of July! Gather up your friends and family (and lawn chairs!) for a performance by one of the world’s greatest ballet companies.

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Hancher Illuminated: Student Night
Visual Art

Hancher Illuminated: Student Night

For University of Iowa students

Friday, August 27, 2021
Visual Art

Hancher Illuminated: Student Night

For University of Iowa students

Friday, August 27, 2021
To celebrate the start of a new school year, we invite UI students to experience Hancher Illuminated for just $5. Journey around the outside of Hancher to take in wondrous sights created by the artists of Quixotic.

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Hancher Illuminated (Photo: Justin Torner)
Visual Art

Hancher Illuminated

Quixotic

Friday–Saturday, August 27–28, 2021
Visual Art

Hancher Illuminated

Quixotic

Friday–Saturday, August 27–28, 2021
Our friends from Quixotic return to light up the exterior of Hancher and create beautiful spaces for captivating performances.

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Step Afrika!, Drumfolk
Dance

Step Afrika!

Drumfolk

Saturday, September 11, 2021
Dance

Step Afrika!

Drumfolk

Saturday, September 11, 2021
Step Afrika! returns with a tale of resistance, resilience, and reclamation. Grounded in the Stono Rebellion of 1739, which led to the banning of drums among enslaved Africans, Drumfolk celebrates the beat entering the very bodies of persecuted people.

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Gretchen Rubin
Lecture

Gretchen Rubin

The Happiness Project

Wednesday, September 29, 2021
Lecture

Gretchen Rubin

The Happiness Project

Wednesday, September 29, 2021
An influential, thought-provoking observer of happiness and human nature, Gretchen Rubin will deliver a talk drawn from her runaway bestseller The Happiness Project.

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Waitress - Music by Sara Bareilles (“Love Song,” “Brave”)
Broadway

Waitress

Friday–Saturday, October 22–23, 2021
Broadway

Waitress

Friday–Saturday, October 22–23, 2021
Waitress tells the story of Jenna, an expert pie maker who dreams of a way out of her small town. Don’t miss this uplifting celebration of friendship, motherhood, and the magic of a well-made pie.

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Cancelled
Boston Pops on Tour
Music

CANCELLED: Boston Pops On Tour

Lights, Camera…Music! Six Decades of John Williams
Keith Lockhart, Conductor

Wednesday, October 27, 2021
Music

CANCELLED: Boston Pops On Tour

Lights, Camera…Music! Six Decades of John Williams
Keith Lockhart, Conductor

Wednesday, October 27, 2021
The Boston Pops celebrate a nearly forty-year association with John Williams in an evening featuring excerpts from his best-loved scores—as well as some lesser-known gems.

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Cancelled
Bill Irwin, "On Beckett"
Theater

CANCELLED: Bill Irwin

On Beckett

Friday, November 5, 2021
Theater

CANCELLED: Bill Irwin

On Beckett

Friday, November 5, 2021

Beloved clown and Tony award-winner Bill Irwin applies his sensibility to the words of Samuel Beckett.

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Hermitage Piano Trio
Music

Hermitage Piano Trio

Friday, November 12, 2021
Music

Hermitage Piano Trio

Friday, November 12, 2021
The Washington Post praises the Hermitage Piano Trio for performing with “…such power and sweeping passion it [leaves] you nearly out of breath.”

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Storm Large
Music

Storm Large

Holiday Ordeal

Saturday, December 4, 2021
Music

Storm Large

Holiday Ordeal

Saturday, December 4, 2021
Hear Storm Large take on the holidays in her third Hancher performance. An undeniable force of nature, she’ll light up the holidays with a tempest of seasonal favorites.

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Straight No Chaser
Music

Straight No Chaser

Thursday, December 9, 2021
Music

Straight No Chaser

Thursday, December 9, 2021
Unwrap the gift of impeccable a cappella as the men of Straight No Chaser sing not only holiday favorites but their beautifully blended arrangements of popular hits.

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Brunch with Santa

Brunch with Santa

Saturday–Sunday, December 11–12, 2021

Brunch with Santa

Saturday–Sunday, December 11–12, 2021

Hancher’s holiday tradition—and Santa himself!—returns with a festive brunch for the whole family.

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Cancelled
Roomful of Teeth
Music

CANCELLED: Roomful of Teeth

Wednesday, February 16, 2022
Music

CANCELLED: Roomful of Teeth

Wednesday, February 16, 2022
Roomful of Teeth can fit just about any musical tradition into its collective mouth. The Grammy-winning vocal project is versed in every sort of singing you can imagine.

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Castalian String Quartet
Music

Castalian String Quartet

Sunday, February 20, 2022
Music

Castalian String Quartet

Sunday, February 20, 2022
In 2018, the Castalian String Quartet was the recipient of the inaugural Merito String Quartet Award & Valentin Erben Prize and a Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship Award. The quartet followed that up by being named the 2019 Royal Philharmonic Society Young Artist of the Year.

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The Philadelphia Orchestra
Music

The Philadelphia Orchestra

Nathalie Stutzmann, principal guest conductor
David Kim, violin

Wednesday, March 9, 2022
Music

The Philadelphia Orchestra

Nathalie Stutzmann, principal guest conductor
David Kim, violin

Wednesday, March 9, 2022

The Philadelphia Orchestra is among the world’s preeminent ensembles—and a Hancher favorite as well.

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A Tribute to Aretha Franklin: The Queen of Soul Featuring Damien Sneed and special guest Karen Clark Sheard
Music

A Tribute to Aretha Franklin: The Queen of Soul

Featuring Damien Sneed and special guest Karen Clark Sheard

Thursday, March 10, 2022
Music

A Tribute to Aretha Franklin: The Queen of Soul

Featuring Damien Sneed and special guest Karen Clark Sheard

Thursday, March 10, 2022
In 2004, Aretha Franklin brought the house down in the original Hancher Auditorium. Now, we invite her towering spirit into the new Hancher with a multi-media tribute performance by created by Damien Sneed and featuring legendary vocalist Karen Clark Sheard.

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The Band's Visit
Broadway

The Band's Visit

Wednesday–Thursday, April 6–7, 2022
Broadway

The Band's Visit

Wednesday–Thursday, April 6–7, 2022
The winner of the 2018 Tony Award winner for Best Musical (along with nine additional Tonys), The Band’s Visit is set in a town way off the beaten path where a band of musicians arrive lost, out of the blue.

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Steve Kroft
Lecture

Steve Kroft

60 Minutes with Steve Kroft

Wednesday, April 13, 2022
Lecture

Steve Kroft

60 Minutes with Steve Kroft

Wednesday, April 13, 2022
Steve Kroft joined 60 Minutes in May 1989 and delivered his first report that fall. Few journalists have achieved the impact and recognition that Kroft’s work has generated on the most watched news program on television.

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Sold Out
Bill Nye
Lecture

Bill Nye

Tuesday, April 26, 2022
Lecture

Bill Nye

Tuesday, April 26, 2022
Engineer, comedian, author, inventor—and best known for his Emmy-winning run as Bill Nye the Science Guy—Bill Nye blends humor, intellectual curiosity, and devotion to solving some of the world’s most complex challenges through science.

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Las Cafeteras
Music

Las Cafeteras

Saturday, May 7, 2022
Music

Las Cafeteras

Saturday, May 7, 2022
Committed to a creative combination of musical heritages—and to social justice—this band from East LA is a Hancher favorite of the first order. Their performances are always a joyous celebration.

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Swing University: Wynton Marsalis, "All Rise" - Part 1 of 4
Lecture | Music

Swing University: All Rise, Part 1

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, May 19, 2022
Lecture | Music

Swing University: All Rise, Part 1

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, May 19, 2022
All Rise, a composition by Wynton Marsalis, will be a centerpiece of Hancher’s 50th anniversary season. Taught by Seton Hawkins, Director of Public Programs and Education Resources at Jazz at Lincoln Center, this free four-week online course will introduce All Rise and explore its many joys and influences.

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Swing University: Wynton Marsalis, "All Rise" - Part 2 of 4

Swing University: All Rise, Part 2

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, May 26, 2022

Swing University: All Rise, Part 2

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, May 26, 2022
All Rise, a composition by Wynton Marsalis, will be a centerpiece of Hancher’s 50th anniversary season. Taught by Seton Hawkins, Director of Public Programs and Education Resources at Jazz at Lincoln Center, this free four-week online course will introduce All Rise and explore its many joys and influences.

More Info

Swing University: Wynton Marsalis, "All Rise" - Part 3 of 4

Swing University: All Rise, Part 3

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, June 2, 2022

Swing University: All Rise, Part 3

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, June 2, 2022
All Rise, a composition by Wynton Marsalis, will be a centerpiece of Hancher’s 50th anniversary season. Taught by Seton Hawkins, Director of Public Programs and Education Resources at Jazz at Lincoln Center, this free four-week online course will introduce All Rise and explore its many joys and influences.

More Info

Swing University: Wynton Marsalis, "All Rise" - Part 4 of 4

Swing University: All Rise, Part 4

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, June 9, 2022

Swing University: All Rise, Part 4

A Four Part Series with Seton Hawkins

Thursday, June 9, 2022
All Rise, a composition by Wynton Marsalis, will be a centerpiece of Hancher’s 50th anniversary season. Taught by Seton Hawkins, Director of Public Programs and Education Resources at Jazz at Lincoln Center, this free four-week online course will introduce All Rise and explore its many joys and influences.

More Info