CHICAGO Kicks Off Lied Center's 2012-13 Season Tonight, 10/19

The Lied Center for Performing Arts at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln has announced its 23nd season of world-class performing artists. The 2012-13 season includes 52 performances of 36 shows from a wide range of categories including Broadway, popular music, comedy, dance, classical music, world music and jazz, family offerings and theater. More than half of the 36 scheduled shows will make their first appearance at the Lied Center.

The Lied’s Broadway lineup for 2012-13 features the return of “Chicago” (tonight, Oct. 19-21) and “Peter Pan” starring Cathy Rigby (Feb. 12-13), Green Day’s “American Idiot” (March 29-30), and Broadway revue “Broadway Today!” (Jan. 18), which showcases hit music from recent Broadway seasons.

Internationally renowned conductor of the Boston Pops Keith Lockhart leads the BBC Concert Orchestra in its Nebraska premiere (Feb. 7) and the Joffrey Ballet celebrates the 100th anniversary of “The Rite of Spring” on March 2.

Additional highlights include iconic pop idol and original Jersey Boy, Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons, as the season-opening performance on Sept. 21; William Shatner in a hilarious one-man-show “Shatner’s World” (Jan. 26), acclaimed jazz/pop trumpeter Chris Botti (Feb. 21) and the world premiere of “What the Wind Taught Me,” a new play commissioned by the Lied through a partnership with the Angels Theatre Company (March 15-16, 21-23).

Lincoln will have the opportunity to experience diverse world cultures through the performances of Mexico’s most celebrated dance company Ballet Folklórico de México (Oct. 13), acclaimed Haitian dance company Campagnie de Danse Jean-René Delsoin (Nov. 7), and Celtic ensemble Danu (March 9), and a Mardi Gras celebration with Terrance Simien and the Zydeco Experience (Feb. 1).

Lied Center Artistic Director Ann Chang said she is especially excited to present one of the world’s premier pianists, Emanuel Ax, to Lincoln audiences as part of the Lied’s opening weekend on Sept. 23.

The Lied will also welcome back the Vienna Boys Choir (Nov. 13) and violinist Philippe Quint (Oct. 25), who Chang said “astounded Lied audiences with his performance with the Cape Town Philharmonic in 2011.”

The 2012-13 season features a wide array of family-friendly programming. An interactive juggling circus and live jazz music takes the Lied stage for “Jugglemania with Shoehorn” and is the first FamFest of the season on Nov. 1. The Spencers Theatre of Illusion returns April 19 after a performance that wowed Lied audiences in 2009. The second FamFest event is March 15 with black lights filling the stage for John Tartaglia’s “ImaginOcean,” a musical, magical undersea adventure.

Season brochures and order forms are available now at www.liedcenter.org or by visiting the Lied Center Ticket Office. A season subscription is a ticket purchase of four or more events. The more events ordered, the larger the discount, up to 20 percent off. The Lied also offers a payment plan called Lied Layaway as well as a payroll deduction option for UNL employees. This service is free of charge.

Members of the Friends of Lied who annually donate $100 or more receive advanced processing privileges through May 25. Season ticket seating assignments are made in the order received. Single tickets will go on sale Aug. 14. For more information, call the Lied Center Ticket Office at 402-472-4747 or 800-432-3231 or visit www.liedcenter.org. Visit the website for a detailed list of performances, dates and ticket prices.

The Lied Center for Performing Arts is a state-of-the-art performing arts facility. The Lied Center, opened in 1990, is Nebraska’s “Home for the Arts.” The facility offers major regional, national and international events designed to attract, entertain and inspire a statewide audience.

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