On Sept. 9, Hancher hosted its first open house since construction was completed on the three-year project. There was an opening ceremony and a ribbon-cutting, after which members of the public were turned loose to explore the rest of the building on their own.

It’s been eight long years since floodwater overtook the stage at Hancher Auditorium. After years of planning and construction, the University of Iowa’s new Hancher Auditorium has opened it’s doors. A grand opening was held to welcome the public to the new $176 million dollar performance space. Just before the ceremonial ribbon was cut there were speeches by University of Iowa President Bruce Harreld, Governor Terry Brandstad and Hancher benefactors Mary Jo and Dick Stanley, among others.

A new and improved Hancher Auditorium opens on the University of Iowa campus today.

The University of Iowa’s new Hancher Auditorium makes its debut on September 9. With a sculptural form composed of curving, cantilevered terraces clad in stainless steel and glass, the 1,800-seat performing arts facility is the result of intensive collaboration among design-team members from 17 organizations. Theater design is never simple, but a compressed schedule and atypical geometry added complexity to the design process. Thornton Tomasetti’s façade specialists, structural engineers and construction support professionals worked closely with one another and with all design and construction team members to develop sophisticated solutions to several significant engineering challenges.

Beautiful views and a building that is art itself are among the key features of the new Hancher Auditorium, rebuilt after flooding destroyed the University of Iowa performing arts center.

On Friday, the new version of the legendary performance hall will open its doors to the public after eight long years of discussion, planning, and construction. Beginning with a ribbon-cutting celebration at 3 p.m., the day’s events will also include a formal open house, welcoming the community inside Hancher’s new walls. For those that won’t be able to make the event on Friday — or for those who want to get another look at the space — there will also be a second open house on Sept. 11.

The University of Iowa’s largest classroom has created an eight-year learning curve the likes of which no one could have imagined in June 2008. That’s when raging floodwaters from the Iowa River engulfed Hancher Auditorium, the UI’s premiere performing arts center, sending staff scrambling to find other venues in which to present world-class artists until a new edifice could be financed, designed and built.

As Hancher Auditorium prepares to celebrate its grand opening, Executive Director Chuck Swanson reflects on the past eight years