The wait is almost over. On Monday, Hancher will announce the inaugural season for the new $113 million performing arts center that points in a new direction, uphill from the 1972 structure ruined in the 2008 floods.
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The Little Hawk (City High School) - Friday, April 22, 2016
This December, the brand-new Hancher stage–facing 1,800 seats–will host The Joffrey Ballet Company’s The Nutcracker, directed by Christopher Wheeldon. Wheeldon is a well known choreographer throughout the theater community. He most recently won a Tony Award for choreographing An American in Paris.
West Side Story (West High School) - Thursday, April 14, 2016
This December, citizens of Iowa City will be able to see a preview of the Joffrey Ballet’s new “The Nutcracker” spectacle before the world premiere in Chicago. This $4 million production is co-commissioned by Hancher, whose new auditorium is set to open in fall of 2016.
Little Village - Wednesday, April 13, 2016
In 1987, Robert Joffrey’s Chicago-based ballet company held the world premier of their production of Tchaikovsky’s The Nutcracker at The University of Iowa’s Hancher Auditorium. At a press conference held Tuesday on stage at the nearly completed Hancher Auditorium — nearly eight years after the original facility was destroyed by historic floods — Hancher Executive Director Chuck Swanson announced that the facility will host the debut of a newly imagined Joffrey Nutcracker for the 2016 holiday season. “We’re creating history today,” Swanson said.
Iowa Now - Wednesday, April 13, 2016
Hancher will be a producing sponsor of the Joffrey’s new production of The Nutcracker, choreographed by the acclaimed Christopher Wheeldon. Five preview performances of the new Nutcracker will be presented at the new Hancher Auditorium, Dec. 1–4, 2016. The Nutcracker will then be performed in the historic Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University in downtown Chicago for 27 performances, Dec. 10–30.
The Gazette - Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Hancher Auditorium audiences will see the Joffrey’s new Chicago World’s Fair-themed re-imagining of “The Nutcracker” ballet before anyone else in the world. The lavish, $4 million production, helmed by Tony-winning choreographer Christopher Wheeldon, will have five “preview” performances in Iowa City from Dec. 1 to 4 before moving to Chicago’s Auditorium Theatre from Dec. 10 to 30.
KCRG - Tuesday, April 12, 2016
The University announced a new choreographed version of the Nutcracker will be performed at Hancher Auditorium this December. Five performances of the new Nutcracker will take place from Dec. 1 through 4. After, the Nutcracker will be performed in downtown Chicago at the Auditorium Theatre of Roosevelt University for its "World Premiere."
KGAN - Tuesday, April 12, 2016
On Tuesday, Hancher announced one of the biggest collaborations for their first season to take the stage. The Joffrey Ballet and Hancher have a long history of working together. This year, Joffrey Ballet and Hancher announced a collaboration for the new production of The Nutcracker. Hancher and the UI were first to commit to this project.
Daily Iowan - Tuesday, April 12, 2016
The year’s first event on Hancher Auditorium’s new stage lacked showy lights, glitzy costumes, and staggering production value, but it made up for that in significance. The Joffrey Ballet will debut a new production of The Nutcracker this December, choreographed by Tony Award-winner Christopher Wheeldon. Hancher will serve as a producing sponsor and host five preview productions of the ballet December 1-4 before its world premiere in Chicago on December 10.
Iowa Theatre Blog - Tuesday, April 12, 2016
Hancher Auditorium commissioned Robert Joffrey’s The Nutcracker in 1987, fulfilling Joffrey’s dream of creating a distinctly American Nutcracker. Twenty nine years later, Hancher and the Joffrey Ballet will partner to create an all new Nutcracker, previewing it in the newly built Hancher Auditorium in December, which replaces the building destroyed in the 2008 flood.