Jazz giant Herbie Hancock, Broadway star Sutton Foster set for GPAC's 31st season

Jazz icon Herbie Hancock, Tony-award winner Sutton Foster and Grammy-nominated folk-bluegrass outfit Yonder Mountain String Band are among the acts set to appear as part of  Germantown Performing Arts Center's  2025-26 season.

GPAC's 31st season will feature 13 shows: seven as a part of the Center Stage Series and six in the Jazz Series.

The season will kick off Sept. 27 with a performance by Broadway star Foster as part of the Center Stage Series. That program will continue with shows by pop-classical outfit Vitamin String Quartet (Nov. 1) and  "America's Got Talent" finalists Catapult (Nov. 25).

The Center Stage series will move into 2026 with "Withers to Wonder: Celebrating the Songs of Bill Withers and Stevie Wonder," featuring Take 6, Clint Holmes and Nnenna Freelon (Jan. 31), Yonder Mountain String Band (Feb. 13), Japanese music ensemble Drum Tao (March 1) and will close with a show by world music institution Ladysmith Black Mambazo (March 20).

The Jazz Series will launch on Oct. 4 with a concert by Brazilian pianist and singer Elaine Elias. That series will continue with a rare show and second-ever GPAC appearance by 14-time Grammy winner Herbie Hancock (Oct. 18), and performance by acclaimed bassist Marcus Miller (Nov. 15).

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The jazz shows will resume in 2026 with concerts by Nashville jazz-soul artist Kandace Springs (Feb. 21), New York City swing group The Hot Sardines (March 14), and will conclude with a set by trombonist and vocalist Wycliffe Gordon (April 25).

GPAC Executive Director Paul Chandler noted that Foster's return to the GPAC stage is a homecoming of sorts. "Sutton came and performed at GPAC pre-pandemic in 2019, as part of season 26," said Chandler. "But she actually has long-standing ties to our organization, as she lived in Germantown and worked teaching as part of our children's program, so it's always great to have her back."

Chandler said the venue's Jazz Series has become a major force in the genre in the Mid-South. "In terms of the jazz programming, we've become the premiere jazz presenters in the region — that's what all the agents have told us. So bringing in an icon like Herbie, it felt like the timing is right. Particularly after seeing him on the Grammy [awards] this year, that inspired us to pursue him for the series."  

Season subscriptions for the Center Stage and Jazz Series are available, as are Full Series subscriptions to both. Season subscriptions and individual tickets are on sale now at  GPACweb.com , or by calling the box office at (901) 751-7500.

GPAC's 2025-26 season

Center Stage Series

• Sept. 27: Sutton Foster

• Nov. 1: Vitamin String Quartet

• Nov. 25: Catapult

• Jan. 31: "Withers to Wonder: Celebrating the Songs of Bill Withers and Stevie Wonder"

• Feb. 13: Yonder Mountain String Band

• March 1: Drum Tao

• March 20: Ladysmith Black Mambazo

Jazz Series

• Oct. 4: Elaine Elias

• Oct. 18: Herbie Hancock

• Nov. 15: Marcus Miller

• Feb. 21: Kandace Springs

• March 14: The Hot Sardines

• April 25: Wycliffe Gordon.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Herbie Hancock and Sutton Foster part of GPAC's new season: The lineup