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The grand opening of the new Hancher Auditorium is just over a year away, but getting closer every day. So why not celebrate now? Hancher host a free family event titled Drawing Closer: Celebrating Hancher’s Upcoming Opening on Saturday, Aug. 22, which included chalk artists, games, food, and a fantastic performance by Squonk Opera.

Hancher Auditorium served as the background to street art, music and family fun Saturday afternoon in Iowa City. Hancher held a Drawing Closer event Saturday at the site of the soon-to-be-finished auditorium to let the community know that the University of Iowa performing venue is a year from being finished.

Heavy metal soaring into the sky makes a perfect backdrop for heavy metal pouring over the masses. Pittsburgh’s Squonk Opera brought its air-powered sight and sound explosion to more than 1,000 people gathered Saturday on the grounds adjacent to the new Hancher Auditorium, which sports 4,400 tons of structural steel and, eventually, 14,000 stainless steel panels covering its exterior.

In anticipation of a new grand opening in 2016, Hancher Auditorium will begin its 2015 campaign with a free event packed with art, food, games and more this Saturday, August 22 from 11 a.m. – 3 p.m. “Drawing Closer: Celebrating Hancher’s Upcoming Opening” is a family festival that will feature professional chalk artists, a STEAM workshop, and the band Squonk Opera.

City officials say they are working closely with directors of the new Hancher Auditorium to minimize the impact Iowa City’s $51 million Gateway Project will have on the building’s 2016 grand opening.

Hancher is celebrating its new season with an event - "Drawing Closer" - that has multiple meanings. With just one more year before the University of Iowa's new flagship opens, Hancher launches its season Saturday (8/22/15) in the street and green space adjacent to the new structure. Festivities will incorporate chalk drawings by pros and participants and is aimed at drawing all ages to the massive $176 million performing arts complex rising like a phoenix after the floods ruined Hancher's previous home.

Rob Cline from Hancher says you should not miss the free performance of Squonk Opera Saturday in the parking lot where the new Hancher Auditorium is going up. "Drawing Closer" will feature sidewalk chalk art, kids' activities, and a musical performance featuring the giant "Lady Pneumatica."

The University of Iowa's largest flood recovery project, Hancher, is getting comfortable within its own skin. The final covering has been applied to some parts of the building, and other preparations are well underway. Iowa Now provides you with intimate glimpses of the work done over the past few months.

In a little more than a year, one of campus’s crown jewels will open its doors to welcome patrons as it casts its gleaming reflection on the river below. Construction on the new Hancher Auditorium is on track and on schedule to be mostly completed in March 2016, said Kim Zwald, an engineer with Mortenson Construction.

While the Iowa River was flirting with its low-lying riverbanks Thursday afternoon, 200 workers were high and dry, continuing their quest to shape the new Hancher Auditorium inside and out. About 70 percent of the work is done, keeping the site on-track for its September 2016 grand opening.