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Hancher announces 2008-09 season

04-25-2008 | Fine Arts

By Loren Keller

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Hancher Auditorium’s 2008-09 season will feature something for everyone -- including two Broadway musicals and performances of jazz, comedy, dance and even Chinese acrobats.

And there’s good news for Corridor college students: University of Iowa student discount ticket prices have been extended to all Corridor-area colleges and universities, says Hancher’s artistic director, Judy Hurtig.

“There are a lot of events designed for families," Hurtig says. "There are prices below $20 for all of our family events for youth.”

Hancher’s calendar for the upcoming year includes a full week run of “Monty Python’s Spamalot” and “Avenue Q.”

“They’re national tours, and very recent Tony-award winning shows with really wide appeal. We expect both of them to do well,” she says.

Hurtig says she expects Kathy Griffin (Oct. 4) and “An Evening with Judy Collins”will also sell out soon.

Collins will make her Hancher debut on Oct. 17

“She had definitely fallen off at least my radar screen until maybe six months ago. She had a run in a cabaret in New York and the review in the New York Times was sublime,” Hurtig said.

"She had done a concert in Omaha, so I talked to the presenter there who said she was in excellent voice, she was gracious, she was lovely. She’s just gotten older like everyone else. But she’s still the same purity of voice.”

The Joffrey Ballet will return Feb. 7-8.

“It feels like while there are so many connections between Iowa and the Joffrey – which really came to a culmination last summer with the river-to-river tour with the five free outdoor performances," she says. "Since then the company has a new artistic director and the program that they will do really is pretty new and sort of charts a new direction for the company. So we’re hoping that many of those people who were introduced to the Joffrey last summer will come for these performances in Hancher."

The program will feature choreography by Lar Lubovitch, who was introduced to dance here at the UI. He didn't graduate from the university but went on the Julliard for dance training. He will choreograph a piece called 'Smile With My Heart’ with a live performance of music by Richard Rogers.

The Hancher 2008-09 season:

ScrapArtsMusic • Sept. 28

Diavolo • Oct. 3

Kathy Griffin • Oct. 4

Global Drum Project • Oct. 15

An Evening with Judy Collins • Oct. 17

Chiara String Quartet • Oct. 23

An Irish Homecoming • Nov. 7

Rob Kapilow, Green Eggs and Hamadeus • Nov. 9

Takács Quartet, Muzsikás, Marta Sebestyen • Nov. 12

Brad Mehldau Trio • Nov. 13

Rinde Eckert, Eye Piece • Nov. 14–22