Cedar Rapids, IA – Orchestra Iowa’s 2012-2013 season will be nothing short of monumental as it celebrates its return to the Paramount Theatre, debuts the world-premiere of Michael Daugherty’s American Gothic, and embarks on important artistic partnerships with three major institutions.

Orchestra Iowa’s 91st season includes masterworks of the symphonic, operatic, and ballet repertoire as they team up with Ballet Quad Cities and the Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre to form the Paramount’s Fine Arts Series. 14 performances of eight productions will be performed at the Paramount Theatre during its grand reopening season.

In addition to performances at Cedar Rapids’ Paramount Theatre, Orchestra Iowa will present Brucemorchestra!—its famed season-opening performance on the lawn of Brucemore, a symphonic series at Iowa City’s West High School, and an expanded chamber series both at the Opus Concert Café in Cedar Rapids and at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts. Orchestra Iowa will make its debut at Davenport, Iowa’s Adler Theatre as it performs with Ballet Quad Cities in their home venue.

The historic season opens with Brucemorchestra! on Sunday, September 9 on the lawn at Brucemore. The concert features an all-American program including Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and American Paris, Grofé’s Grand Canyon Suite, and Copland’s The Promise of Living. University of Iowa piano faculty member Alan Huckleberry will be the featured soloist for Rhapsody in Blue. Audiences are encouraged to bring blankets and picnics to celebrate the official start of the annual cultural season.

Following a four-year, $35 million dollar restoration, Orchestra Iowa makes its triumphant returns to the Paramount Theatre for a homecoming performance featuring Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition, Richard Strauss’ Der Rosenkavalier Suite, Gunther Schullers’ Seven Studies on Themes of Paul Klee, and Iowa’s own Jerry Owen’s Glee.

2012-2013 marks the beginning of an exciting cultural partnership between Orchestra Iowa and Ballet Quad Cities. The two premier state arts organizations in their respective fields team up for two classic productions. In December, they present Tchaikovsky’s famous Nutcracker ballet and in April, Prokofiev’s touching, yet spine-tingling masterpiece, Cinderella. Both productions will be staged at both the Paramount Theatre in Cedar Rapids and the Adler Theatre in Davenport. Local auditions will be held for supplemental dance roles for both productions.

In January, the Orchestra joins the Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre for their inaugural Paramount Theatre production - La Bohème. This production marks the fourth year of the Opera/Orchestra collaboration and is a perfect showcase for one of the most significant improvements of the newly restored theatre—its expanded orchestra pit that seats fifty musicians (up from 15).

February will showcase the Orchestra in its full splendor as it presents five musical interpretations of the star crossed lovers Romeo and Juliet with famous works by Prokofiev, Tchaikovsky, and Bernstein, as well as less familiar works by Iowa composer Eric McIntyre and actor/beat poet Frank Oden. In March, Maestro Hankewich is thrilled to present his favorite of the Brahms’ symphonies, the Third. This performance completes Maestro Hankewich’s Brahms Symphony Cycle with Orchestra Iowa, first began in 2007.

The symphonic season concludes with the world–premiere of Michael Daugherty’s American Gothic. Commissioned by Orchestra Iowa, this creation by the Cedar Rapids native and multiple Grammy award winner is inspired by such famous Iowan as Grant Wood and Carl Van Vechten Joining the program will be the seventh symphony of Antonin Dvořák – himself tied to Iowa.

Having seen great success in the past two years, the Orchestra’s Chamber Series expands in 2012-2013 to include two nights of performances at the Opus Concert Café in Cedar Rapids, as well as a Sunday matinee performance at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts. Performances will be held in September, October, January and April.

In addition to Brucemorchestra, popular concerts for 2012-2013 include a July 1, 2012 Patriotic Pops performance presented by the Cedar Rapids Freedom Festival, as well as three performances of Holiday Spectacular presented in December at the Paramount Theatre.

Subscription renewals for the 2012-2013 season are currently underway. Beginning Monday, April 30, season subscriptions will be available to the general public for purchase online at www.orchestraiowa.org or by calling 319.366.8203 or 800.369.TUNE (8863). Tickets will also be available through the Orchestra Iowa Ticket Office, 119 Third Avenue SE, Monday through Friday, 9 a.m. – 5 p.m. Season ticket package options range from $39 - $329. For more information, please contact the Ticket Office at the numbers above or via email at ticketoffice@orchestraiowa.org .


ORCHESTRA IOWA 2012-2013 SEASON SCEHDULE

Brucemorchestra!
Sunday, September 9, 2012
On the lawn at Brucemore, Cedar Rapids 
    Gershwin     An American in Paris 
    Gershwin     Rhapsody in Blue 
    Grofé            Grand Canyon Suite 
    Copland       The Promise of Living

Homecoming
Saturday, November 10, 2012 – Paramount Theatre
Sunday, November 11, 2012 – Iowa Memorial Union
    Owen            Glee 
    Strauss         Der Rosenkavalier Suite 
    Schuller        Seven Studies on Themes of Paul Klee 
    Mussorgsky  Pictures at an Exhibition

The Nutcracker
Featuring Ballet Quad Cities
Saturday, December 1 & Sunday, December 2, 2012
Paramount Theatre 
    Tchaikovsky     The Nutcracker

La Bohème
Presented by The Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre
Friday, January 18 & Sunday, January 20, 2013
Paramount Theatre 
    Puccini         La Bohème

Star-Crossed Lovers
Saturday, February 9, 2013 – Paramount Theatre
Sunday, February 10, 2013 – West High School 
    Prokofiev          Romeo and Juliet 
    Tchaikovsky     Romeo and Juliet 
    McIntyre            Drive By 
    Oden                Romeo and Juliet – A Beat Poem (Frank Oden, actor) 
    Bernstein        Symphonic Dances from West Side Story

Brahms’ Third
Saturday, March 9, 2013 – Paramount Theatre
Sunday, March 10, 2013 – West High School 
    Elgar          Enigma Variations 
    Weber       Concertino (Roger Oyster, euphonium) 
    Brahms     Symphony No. 3

Cinderella
Featuring Ballet Quad Cities
Saturday, April 13 & Sunday, April 14, 2013
Paramount Theatre 
    Prokofiev     Cinderella

American Gothic
Saturday, May 4, 2013 – Paramount Theatre
Sunday, May 5, 2013 – West High School 
    Willson         Symphonic Variations on an American Theme 
    Daugherty    American Gothic (World Premiere – Commissioned by Orchestra Iowa) 
    Dvořák          Symphony No. 7


Additional Performances

Patriotic Pops
Sunday, July 1, 2012
Kirkwood Community College Campus

Holiday Spectacular
Saturday, December 15 & Sunday, December 16, 2012
Paramount Theatre

Opus Chamber Series
September 21-23, 2012
October 12-14, 2012
January 11-13, 2013
April 5-7, 2013
Friday & Saturday performances – Opus Concert Café
Sunday performances – Coralville Center for the Performing Arts