THE VILLAGE TRIP Festival to Return with Theater, Comedy, Music Walking Tours
Now in its eighth year, the festival will feature events from a Slambovian Circus of Dreams concert to a Dorothy Day lecture.
The Village Trip Festival 2026 will take place September 25 through October 4, 2026, across Greenwich Village, the East Village, and the Lower East Side.
This year's theme, Revolutionary Voices, honors the songwriters, composers, authors, actors, artists, and activists whose work began in the Village and rippled out to reshape how the world understands art, freedom, and the human condition—from Woody Guthrie to Leonard Bernstein, Paul Robeson to Bob Dylan, and Eugene O'Neill to Dorothy Day. At a moment when so much of the progress made in the past is now under attack and our shared values are being undermined, The Village Trip calls attention to the people who raised their voices to support those in need and stood up to those in power.
Now in its eighth edition, the annual festival brings together music, theater, comedy, visual art, cabaret, talks, and walking tours across the neighborhoods that have long served as a forge for artistic and political activism.
The Village Trip is designed to appeal to a broad range of audiences, including classical and new music aficionados, jazz and folk fans, history buffs, families, children, and members of the LGBTQIA+ communities. Many events are free, with ticketed events ranging from $10 to $60.
Key events at this year's festival include:
Free outdoor concert on Gansevoort Plaza in the Meatpacking District – Headliner: The Slambovian Circus of Dreams
Greenwich Village Folk Festival at 40 – A star-studded concert presented at the Great Hall of Cooper Union
Let Freedom Sing: Paul Robeson—His Words, His Music
Dorothy Day: A Radical Saint of the City, lecture by Robert Ellsberg
Miles and Trane at 100: A Celebration with David Amram and Friends
Woody Guthrie's Songs to Grow On presented by the NYC Children's Theater
The Ahn Trio with James Moore – The Art of Collaboration: Sting, Jobim and Baechle
America Sings a Siren's Song: New music by Nehemiah Luckett, Victoria Bond, and Samuel Adler
Village Voices: Featuring world premiere works by Ella Milch-Sheriff and Scott Wheeler
Classical Cool: Ich Bin Ein New Yorker – Orchestral concert for all ages, hosted by Nina Bernstein Simmons
Who Are We? Songwriting Workshops for Kids led by David Massingell and Liz Queler
Stand Up & Be Counted: The Village Trip Comedy Night
Walking tours exploring Thomas Paine, Aaron Burr, Eugene O'Neill, the Beat Poets, Wild Women of the Village, and Dylan and Springsteen
