The University of Iowa's new Hancher Auditorium was officially dedicated Friday, Sept. 9. The celebration program, hosted by Lynette Marshall, president and chief executive officer of the UI Foundation, included performances by Iowa City natives Rinde Eckert and Conor Hanick, and the Community Mass Choir under the direction of Barbara Haack, and remarks from the honorable Terry Branstad, governor of the state of Iowa; UI President Bruce Harreld; Beth Freeman, regional director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency; Hancher Auditorium benefactors Dick and Mary Jo Stanley; UI alumnus and former Hancher performer Julius Carter; and Chuck Swanson, executive director of Hancher.
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Little Village - Monday, August 1, 2016
At long last, Hancher is back and they’ve unveiled a killer list of events for the 2016-17 season — the highlight for many being the irreverent Broadway musical The Book of Mormon. Those tickets go on sale to the public this Friday, Aug. 5, at 10 a.m.
The Gazette - Tuesday, July 26, 2016
After being moved by a musical performance at Hancher Auditorium, you might be moved to buy a necklace with a piano pendant to remember the experience. At least that’s the hope of Jane Downer, a longtime buyer for the Hancher Auditorium Showcase.
Benzinga - Tuesday, July 12, 2016
Emerging from historic 2008 floods that devastated much of the arts campus at the University of Iowa, a new Hancher Auditorium and Voxman Music Building are near completion on the University of Iowa campus in Iowa City. Mortenson Construction acted as Construction Manager for both replacement facilities, which will open to the public later this summer, with students expected to start classes and performances at the venues this fall.
The Gazette - Thursday, July 7, 2016
Sewing machines hum inside the Correctional Institution for Women in Mitchellville as inmates focus on the day’s work — taking 18 pieces of soft, smooth wool and turning them into uniform jackets. As thread from 3-inch-tall spools is spun into the fabric, the black-with-green-trim and green-with-black-trim blazers begin to take shape. Come September, they’ll be worn by the ushers at the University of Iowa’s Hancher Auditorium.
KGAN - Wednesday, July 6, 2016
Behind the walls of the Iowa Prison Industries building in Mitchellville, it might resemble a clothing manufacturing company. That's because the inmates from the Iowa Correctional Institution for Women who are involved with IPI are sewing brand new uniforms ushers will wear at the new Hancher Auditorium.
When the University of Iowa’s Hancher auditorium was devastated by the historic flooding of 2008, it was the beginning of an eight-year road to recovery that will culminate this fall in its grand re-opening. In the process, a new building was sited, designed, built and funded by the efforts of countless individuals.
For Chuck Swanson, the executive director of Hancher, it was a journey that proved the resiliency the center’s legacy, as well as the people who make it work.
The Hawk Eye - Sunday, June 19, 2016
Wow! As superlatives go, that’s the one that comes immediately to mind stepping into the performance hall last week at the new Hancher Auditorium in Iowa City.
The Daily Iowan - Wednesday, June 15, 2016
After nearly a decade of planning, design, and construction, the new Hancher is finally ready to assume its rightful place on the Iowa City horizon. Hancher Executive Director Chuck Swanson and his closely knit team never thought it would take this long. When the old Hancher was flooded in the catastrophic deluge of 2008, the crew expected the building would be in need of renovation, but they nonetheless held on to the idea that it ultimately could be salvaged.
Iowa City Press-Citizen - Wednesday, June 15, 2016
When University of Iowa officials chose Wednesday to hold an outdoor celebration of the university’s recovery since the flood of 2008, they really didn’t have to worry about the weather. “We figured we couldn’t lose today,” joked Rod Lehnertz, UI’s senior vice president. “If it would rain, we’d all say, 'Isn’t that fitting after the flood of 2008.'”