This past Monday (July 18th), Tom Robbins, Executive Director of the University of Dubuque Heritage Center, stopped by the studio to tease shows that will becoming to the venue starting in September. The upcoming season is the UD Heritage Center's 10th anniversary season. It's primed to be big.

Robbins returned today to formally announce that the schedule has been released, as of 8am today (July 21st). The schedule itself is packed to the gills with a variety of shows: performances for the family, adults, kids, and everyone in between!

Earlier this week, Robbins revealed that the Heritage Center would have a new rewards program called H-PALS (Heritage Performing Arts Loyalty System). For those who see multiple shows at UD every year, you need to jump on this rewards program. Some of the perks:

  • Earn rewards with most ticket purchases.
    For every $200 spent on eligible events, receive 1 FREE ticket (valued up to $50) to your choice of eligible event.
  • Reward points redeemable for Live at Heritage Center events only. Some exclusions apply.

Moreover, Robbins spoke about a couple of the shows that will be here in no time. Kicking off the 10th anniversary season on September 1st are the B2wins, two Brazilian brothers who use violins and engaging compositions to reimagine popular music classics.

Robbins spoke highly of the B2wins, who have performed at the UD Heritage Center in the past and have become an audience favorite:

They are as high-energy and as fun as you can get. One plays the electric plays violin, one plays ukulele [....] It's pretty much all cover tunes, it's all stuff you'll know and recognize [....] It's just a happy energy.

 

Tom Robbins, Executive Director of the Heritage Center. Photo credit: Steve Pulaski
Tom Robbins, Executive Director of the Heritage Center. Photo credit: Steve Pulaski
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The Heritage Center will also welcome a "Dueling Pianos" show on November 5th. The show, "Piano Fondue," will be the first of its kind at UD. Robbins mentioned there is unique twist with how people can try to get the pianists to play a song they want to hear:

This is a completely crowdsourced show where everybody's putting in requests with their smartphones from the audience. These two pianists go at it, dueling. It's a contest between the two of them.

Sure to provide a more intimate experience is the Babka Theatre, a smaller venue of the Heritage Center, which will be engulfed in music that November evening.

A reimagined Paddington Bear. Photo Credit: Rod Long, Unsplash
A reimagined Paddington Bear. Photo Credit: Rod Long, Unsplash
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One show that caught my eye immediately was Paddington Gets in a Jam, of course featuring the iconic Paddington Bear. Paddington was hugely popular in the United Kingdom, but became beloved in America after two beautiful movies starring the lovable bear hit theaters in 2014 and 2017, respectively.

Robbins couldn't conceal his own excitement for this show:

This is a stage production [featuring] puppets and real humans mixed together. The puppets are absolutely phenomenal. The set-production values are amazing. It's a two-level set [with an] upper and bottom floor of a house. It's just going to be a phenomenal family event.

These are just three of 20+ shows coming to the UD Heritage Center for the 2022-23 season. You can view the full schedule and get your tickets here!

You can also take a listen to my full interview with Tom Robbins below:

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