She’s won six Tonys, two Grammys and an Emmy for her work on stage and screen, but Audra McDonald still gets little flutters before stepping onstage. Her congregation will be worshipping her at Hancher Auditorium in Iowa City on Saturday night (9/14), as they gather to hear “Songs from the Americ
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The Gazette - Thursday, September 12, 2019
The Daily Iowan - Wednesday, September 11, 2019
Award-winning singer and actress Audra McDonald will be giving a performance at Hancher Auditorium this upcoming weekend. McDonald’s extensive career — which has included acting and singing — has earned her six Tonys, two Grammys, and an Emmy.
Little Village Magazine - Friday, September 6, 2019
Hair & Other Stories, which focuses in on the experiences of black women — including those of body image, gender identity, sexism and economic inequity — with spoken word, dance, movement and song.
The Gazette - Wednesday, September 4, 2019
Storm Large can’t be contained. After nearly blowing the roof off the intimate Club Hancher setting in October 2018, she’s coming back to the wide open spaces of Hancher’s front lawn, known as the Hancher Green.
The Gazette - Friday, July 19, 2019
Hancher launches its new season as part of a yearlong 2019 Diamond Diana Celebration, marking the 75th birthday of Diana Ross. From her early days leading The Supremes to her landmark solo career, she helped shape the sound of popular music, changing the landscape and paving the way for contemporary music. The singer, actress and record producer, born in Detroit on March 26, 1944, won Grammy’s Lifetime Achievement Award in 2012, and an Oscar nomination for her star turn in “Lady Sings the Blues.” Ain’t no mountain high enough for this superstar.
Iowa City Press-Citizen - Monday, June 10, 2019
You have to be pretty big time to get the schedulers at Hancher Auditorium to move shows around to accommodate your needs. They did it for Diana Ross. Then Kristin Chenoweth. And now, the Big Splash.
"It’s outside our standard practice to present during the summer for a variety of reasons," Rob Cline, Hancher's director of marketing and communication told the Press-Citizen for a previous article. "We like to present when there are as many students as possible here, but we didn’t want to pass up this opportunity."
Cline was referring to Diana Ross's upcoming July appearance, which was squeezed in on an atypical date, just like Kristin Chenoweth's New Year's Eve performance was.. A big time performance can make the theater more flexible with its booking, and though many haven't heard of it yet, the Big Splash is destined to become a big name.
The idea for The Big Splash has been years in the works, and there remains more than a year of preparation to come.
Iowa City Press-Citizen - Wednesday, June 5, 2019
Every Thursday through the month of June, Hancher will provide free activities aimed at entertaining kids and families for the second year in a row. The Hancher Family Fun Night will start for the year on June 6, running from 5:30 to 7 p.m. in the Smith Lobby of Hancher with a focus on music.
“It’s like a giant instrument petting zoo, there’s instruments all around," said Leslie Anstedt, Hancher's assistant box office manager. "It’s really loud but it's really fun.”
This event will give students of all ages a chance to experiment with a variety of instruments. Other activities such as ukulele lessons and "Kooky Karaoke" are also scheduled for the evening.
The idea for the series came from Tracy Kueter, a member of the Hancher Guild, the theater's volunteer group.
The Gazette - Tuesday, June 4, 2019
IOWA CITY — High divers will launch from 100 feet above their pool. The Flying Wallendas will perform 50 feet above the Iowa River. A fantastical flotilla will be on the river. Instruments will make music beneath the water. And dancers, bands and spectators will frolic on the dry land around Hancher Auditorium.
But we’ll have to wait more than a year to experience The Big Splash, a three-day celebration embracing the power of the Iowa River that sometimes rages, sometimes glides through the University of Iowa campus.
The Daily Iowan - Tuesday, June 4, 2019
Artists and engineers are coming together to make waves at a festival celebrating the river that is such a large part of the University of Iowa and Iowa City communities.
The Big Splash!, scheduled for August 14-16, 2020,will commemorate the Iowa River, along with the 100th anniversary of IIHR – Hydroscience & Engineering. Three days of events will take place along and on the Iowa River, and will be free to the public.
“One of the amazing aspects of this event is the capability of bringing the science and the arts together, not in a forced fashion but in a way that will integrate and complement each other perfectly,” IIHR – Hydroscience & Engineering Director Gabriele Villarinisaid at a press conference that unveiled the plans for the events.
OurQuadCities - Wednesday, May 22, 2019
Chuck Swanson, Executive Director of Hancher is in the studio to discuss the newly announced 2019-20 schedule of upcoming performances at Hancher! We get an inside look at what to expect from their upcoming season, what we can expect from Hancher in the future and a glimpse into the process Hancher goes through to select their performances!