Due to the flooding in Iowa City, which has forced the closure of the UI Theatre Building, Iowa Summer Rep’s 2013 season has changed.

The newly updated UI summer arts season is as follows:

• Iowa Summer Rep’s performances of Bad Seed, the over-the-top comic portrayal of an 8-year-old murderess, will now be held at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts with a reduced schedule, running Thursday-Saturday, June 27-29.
• Iowa Summer Rep’s planned production of The Who’s Tommy will be moved to September, when it will be performed in the Theatre Building as part of the 2013-14 UI Theatre Mainstage season.
• All performances of the UI Summer Opera, Iolanthe, scheduled for July 11-14, will go on as planned at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts.
• The free performances of the special UI Theatre summer production No Fish in the House at the UI Theatre Building have been canceled. No Fish in the House will still offer its free performance at 12:30 p.m. Saturday, June 8, at the Iowa Arts Festival. The show will be held at the Weatherdance Fountain Stage outside the Sheraton Hotel. The production also will continue its planned tour across Iowa.

Patrons who have already purchased tickets for the June 28 and 29 performances of Bad Seed will have the option to either attend the performances at the Coralville Center for the Performing Arts or obtain a refund. Patrons who desire refunds or have ticket questions should contact the Hancher Box Office, 319-335-1160 or 800-426-2437.

Patrons who have already purchased tickets for the other performances of Bad Seed or for Tommy will be eligible for a refund, or may choose to apply prior ticket payments to obtaining tickets for Bad Seed.

Ticket prices for the updated season are as follows:

• Bad Seed: $26 ($23 for seniors 65 and up; $13 for youth 17 and younger; $5 for UI students with valid UI ID)
• Iolanthe: $20 ($15 for seniors 65 and up; $10 for youth 17 and younger; $5 for UI students with valid UI ID)
• Summer Arts Package (both shows): $36 ($30 for seniors 65 and up; $18 for youth 17 and younger; UI students not eligible for package discount)

Tickets are on sale at the Hancher Box Office in the Old Capitol Town Center. Tickets are available at www.hancher.uiowa.edu/tickets. Hancher Box Office summer business hours, for walk-up and phone sales, are 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. weekdays. Call 319-335-1160 or 800-426-2437. People with special needs for access, seating, and auxiliary services should dial 319-335-1158, which is equipped with TDD for people with hearing impairment.

Bad Seed, directed by Eric Forsythe, Iowa Summer Rep artistic director, takes place in the South not long after World War II, and mainly concerns a seemingly perfect little 8-year old girl who, because of a hereditary “bad seed,” is actually a scheming murderess. Did little Rhoda actually drown one of her schoolmates who won the coveted penmanship medal that Rhoda feels she deserved? Does her mother go insane with suicidal guilt? Does everybody deny everything? And how can the neighbors, friends, even a mystery writer and a psychologist not see what anyone with a lick of sense can see?

And the zany world of Gilbert and Sullivan is back with the enchanting tale of Iolanthe, the fairy who fell in love with a mortal. Twenty-five years after her exile, the Fairy Queen let Iolanthe return, bringing a mingling of the fairy world and the fallible mortal world of the House of Lords. The mix of comic and romantic stories, with Sullivan’s sublime music, is classic Gilbert and Sullivan: a whimsical and romantic yet sharp–toothed political satire that promises to delight audiences young and old.

Iowa Summer Rep represents a rich tradition of nearly a century of summer theatre at UI. Beginning with Edward C. Mabie’s arrival on campus in 1920, summer play production became a regular feature at the UI. Summer Repertory Theatre was established in 1961. In 1984, Iowa Summer Rep presented its first single-playwright season, offering a unique focus in American summer theatre. In 2000, Summer Rep also became an Actors’ Equity Company, elevating its status as a professional theater company.

While many things have changed in the 92-year history of summer play production at Iowa, Iowa Summer Rep has provided a unique and exciting gathering place for the community, whose continued presence and support has inspired a tradition of excellence. Iowa Summer Rep is sponsored, in part, by the UI Office of Summer Session.

The Department of Theatre Arts is part of the Division of Performing Arts in the UI College of Liberal Arts and Sciences.

Individuals with disabilities are encouraged to attend all UI-sponsored events. If you are a person with a disability who requires a reasonable accommodation in order to participate in this program, contact the Department of Theatre Arts in advance at 319-335-2700.

For a UI arts calendar and details about upcoming events visit the new Arts Iowa website.