ABOUT THE LIED

ABOUT THE LIED

Mission, Vision & Goals

Our mission is to educate, inspire and entertain the people of Nebraska through the performing arts.

    Goals

    • Building Artistic Programs 
    • Providing a Superior Venue and Patron Experience
    • Increasing Student Involvement
    • Enhancing Technology at Lied Center
    • Maximizing Success of Lied Center Staff
    • Enhancing Financial Health of Lied Center

      Our vision is to transform the lives of the people of Nebraska through the performing arts by:

      • Expanding the presentations of artists of great distinction representing all art forms and genres—both from Nebraska and around the world.
      • Engaging people and communities from across Nebraska with exceptional experiences
      • Providing first-hand experiences for youth and college students
      • Revitalizing our facility and investing in our human resources to take the Lied to new stages of excellence.
      • Creating new artistic works which contribute to the diverse culture of Nebraska and the world. 
      • Serving the state as an arts leader and collaborator to celebrate creativity, discovery and diversity.
      #000000
      light

      Rent A Space
      At The LIED

      Image of the empty Lied Center auditorium taken from the corner of the balcony
      top-left
      https://www.liedcenter.org/about-lied/lied-venues
      light

      Board Members
      & Staff

      Image of one of the members of Black Violin playing his violin
      bottom-right
      https://www.liedcenter.org/about-lied/board-staff
      light
      left-heavy
      center-heavy

      PRESS & NEWS

      Image of the press conference announcing the Firebird performance showing Bill Stephan at the podium in front of the Lied Center and University of Nebraska backdrop
      top-left
      light
      https://www.liedcenter.org/news
      Image of Bill Stephan sitting in the iconic red seats of the Lied Center auditorium

      Welcome to another spectacular season of music, theater, dance, and more at the Lied Center!

      When the Lied Center was founded 35 years ago, the vision was to bring the very best in performing arts to the people of Nebraska. Each new season, we honor that vision by bringing a lineup of top artists and events from all over the world to Nebraska’s Performing Arts Center. I hope you’ll find many things to be excited about in the historic 2024-2025 35th Anniversary Season.

      This season marks a personal milestone for me as I celebrate my 15th anniversary of becoming part of the Lied Center family. Since 2009 we have accomplished so much together in growing iconic performances on the stage and in classrooms! That time has also seen the addition of the Lied Commons and a remodel of the Carson Theater, and we are now on the verge of expanding the Lied Center with the largest physical update in our history. As I look back on highlights like creating the Glenn Korff Broadway Series, bringing the world’s greatest orchestras back to the Lied Center, the unforgettable events of Danny Elfman Week, producing the Lied’s largest single educational outreach program with Ajijaak on Turtle Island, seeing our efforts to keep the performing arts alive during the pandemic celebrated by USA Today, the NEA, and the NY Times, and showcasing artists like Yo-Yo Ma, Tony Bennett, Harry Connick Jr, Boston Pops, Wynton Marsalis, and Misty Copeland in Firebird with the St. Louis Symphony, it warms my heart to know that together, we can do anything we dream up for the arts in Nebraska.  Recent seasons have included the return of Les Misérables, Alvin Ailey American Dance Theatre and the record-shattering production of Hamilton which brought more than 33,000 enthusiastic patrons to the Lied Center.

      It's going to be a signature year for classical music at the Lied, with the return of the legendary Itzhak Perlman, the Lied premiere of the Czech National Orchestra with guest violinist Sandy Cameron (who last appeared on the Lied stage alongside Danny Elfman), the first performance of Academy of St Martin in the Fields at the Lied in nearly 20 years, and international sensation Van Cliburn Gold Medalist Yunchan Lim.

      In an exciting and eclectic season of dance, the thrilling Step Afrika! returns to bring its newest production to the Lied stage and more exceptional outreach to the Lincoln community. The season continues with the iconic Parsons Dance, and then the electrifying Syncopated Ladies (who recently returned from touring with Beyonce!).

      The holidays at the Lied are always an exciting time, and this year is truly bigger than ever with three major holiday shows: the Christmas musical stylings of The Midtown Men (the original stars of Jersey Boys!), the holiday-themed spectacle that is The Illusionists: The Magic of the Holidays, and the beloved family classic A Charlie Brown Christmas: Live on Stage! The best holiday gift is time spent together making unforgettable memories, and I invite you to make those memories at the Lied this holiday season.

      And we haven’t even talked about Broadway yet! This year’s Glenn Korff Broadway Series is the biggest in our history, including a full week of the Nebraska premiere of Back to the Future: The Musical, a full week of the hilarious Beetlejuice: The Musical, a full week of a gorgeous new production of Disney’s The Little Mermaid, Tony Award-winning Best Musical Dear Evan Hansen … and a two week run of the smash hit Broadway phenomenon Moulin Rouge! 

      Building your season package is easier than ever this year! Just select any five shows and get a 20% discount on all your tickets! It’s the perfect time to become part of the Lied Center family and celebrate a new year of excitement, inspiration, and entertainment. I look forward to seeing you many times at the Lied!

      Sincerely,
      Bill Stephan, CVE
      Executive Director, Lied Center for Performing Arts

      Background Color: 
      #d3d3d3
      Text Color: 
      Dark

      LAND ACKNOWLEDGMENT

      WE ACKNOWLEDGE that the University of Nebraska, with the Lied Center for Performing Arts, is a land-grant institution with campuses and programs on the past, present, and future homelands of the Pawnee, Usni Ponca, Juwere and Nutachi, Umon hon (or Omaha), Dakota, Lakota, Hinono’eino, Kaw, and Tsitsistas and So’taahe Peoples, as well as those of the relocated Ho-Chunk, Nemahahaki, and Báxoje Peoples.

      WE ACKNOWLEDGE that this land where the Lied Center currently sits, before it was part of the university, before it was part of the Nebraska State Fairgrounds, was a site of salt gathering and a shared resource of many of the peoples just named. The Lied Center is committed to continuing the practice of gathering and sharing with indigenous people and others.

      WE ACKNOWLEDGE that our coming together here does not usurp or counter any past, present, or future claims of Native peoples also to this space and that it behooves us to know whose lands we are about to temporarily share.

      Land acknowledgment adapted from a document created in conversation with UNL Native Studies, the Institute of Ethnic Studies, UNITE, and others. For more information or additional resources and support, please reference the following webpage entitled Recognizing the Land at: https://diversity.unl.edu/recognizing-land

      Information for this statement is courtesy of Dr. Margaret Huettl.

      Photo Credit: Ethan Freese

      Background Color: 
      #000000
      Text Color: 
      Light