By Tom Ayres, Senior Staff Writer
After three successful years at Billings Farm & Museum under the TEDx Hartland Hill banner, TEDx Woodstock will launch its inaugural, rebranded and expanded edition of the celebrated, one-day community gathering via Pentangle Arts at the Town Hall Theatre in Woodstock Village on Saturday, June 27.
The theme for the 2026 TEDx Woodstock confab is “Art Is…” It is a particularly timely topic in a period when the arts and artists are under siege from the highest levels of the federal government. The independently organized event, produced by longtime Woodstock community activist, arts presenter, and filmmaker Deborah Greene, will bring together artists, thinkers, cultural leaders, and community members for a day of ideas exploring the role of creativity in contemporary life. Distinguished choreographer and author Twyla Tharp will deliver the keynote address. Internationally renowned jazz and classical trumpeter Rodney Marsalis; installation artist John Ewing; craftsman Robert DuGrunier; Harlem-based Scottish artist Debbie Taylor-Kerman; local painter and storyteller Mica Celeste; and Woodstock Union High School junior Orly Agin will round out the speakers on the Woodstock Town Hall stage on June 27.
World-renowned choreographer, dancer, and author Twyla Tharp is the keynote speaker at TEDx Woodstock 2026. Photo Provided by Twyla Tharp
During a phone conversation with the Standard this week, Greene spoke about the artists presenting at this year’s TEDx and also detailed the process of moving from a smaller venue with limited capacity to a larger theater with significantly more room for attendees. The annual TEDx gathering in Woodstock is now fully licensed by the international TEDx organization.
“TEDx owns all of the rights [to the name],” Greene explained. “When I first spoke with them [a couple of years ago], I said that Woodstock is such a wonderful brand — it elevates [TEDx] because of the history of Woodstock and because this town has meant so much to so many people. At the time, they didn’t know me or what I was capable of — what I could do. They said I had to come up with another name that had to do with the town, but not the name of the town itself. We had to kind of earn that. Over the [first] three years, our reviews were really good, and the actual [TEDx] videos that we created were really beautiful — they saw that we were able to create really good content,” the TEDx Woodstock executive producer continued. “I then had to go to a TED seminar to learn more about producing a larger event with a bigger organization. Following that, I applied for a new license and got it.”
One result of all that effort on Greene’s part, in addition to the expanded roster of speakers, is the move of the local TEDx event from Billings Farm & Museum, which had a capacity of 100 attendees — including those who watched the proceedings via a video feed – to the 366-seat Town Hall Theatre. “The big difference for me is that if you have more seats, it allows you to do more for the community,” Greene enthused. ‘I’m able to give discounts to the community, thanks to a Rauch Foundation [grant]. That allows for more tickets for teachers, half-price tickets for students, and special prices for others who live and work in the area. We just couldn’t make that happen when we had the license as TEDx Hartland Hill. It’s really exciting for me that now I’m able to do these things.”
Greene has produced all four years of the TEDx gatherings in Woodstock. Presenters at the inaugural event, which occurred immediately post-pandemic in 2022, examined concepts of humanity, home, heart, and health under the rubric, “What is Community?” Year two tackled “The Art of Living,” exploring means of finding balance and purpose in life. In its third year, 2024, the TEDx Hartland Hill event addressed the topic of “AWE,” noting how we as a people can still experience transcendence in the arts and culture, science, and the natural world, even as we struggle to rise above the day-to-day traumas of today’s world. After skipping a year in 2025 due to Greene’s being absorbed in her now former role as the executive director of Pentangle Arts, TEDx is back in Woodstock with a new name, broadened vision, and expanded programming.
Registration and Social Time
Top row from left: Rodney Marsalis, Mica Celeste, Robert duGrenier, and Orly Agin. Bottom row from left: Debby Taylor-Kerman and John Ewig.
The lobby at the Town Hall Theatre will open for TEDx Woodstock registration at 1 p.m. on Saturday, June 27. Arrive early, settle in, enjoy a tasting of localvore food and beverages, and strike up a conversation with your fellow TEDx attendees.
TEDx Session 1
The opening session of the 2026 TEDx Woodstock gathering will run from 2-3:30 p.m., following welcoming remarks from Susan Evans McClure, the executive director of the Vermont Arts Council, and Deborah Greene, the TEDx Woodstock executive producer.
The first of the afternoon speakers will be Vermont-based craftsman Robert duGrenier, with a presentation entitled “A Journey with a Flame.” DuGrenier is a world-class artist, community architect, and farmer. He’ll take TEDx listeners through a journey of creation and recreation — from the restoration of the flame on the top of the Statue of Liberty to the community pizza oven at his home in Vermont.
Woodstock Union High School (WUHS) junior Orly Agin will share an insightful, youthful perspective on the subject of what “Art Is . . .” A veteran of Yoh Theatre productions at WUHS, 16-year-old Agin was born in Vermont. From a young age, she quickly fell in love with all forms of art, whether it’s picking up a paintbrush, listening to music, or acting in a performance.
Local artist and community organizer Mica Celeste will speak next in the first session. The title of her presentation is “It Counts: The Things You Make When No One is Watching.” Celeste is a painter whose work centers on bold composition, color, and large-scale form. Her work draws from personal experience, often exploring subject matter that feels both intimate and weighty. Alongside her studio practice, she has spent more than a decade building partnerships and leading community-based initiatives.
A world-renowned choreographer, dancer, and author of books about all things creative, Twyla Tharp will close out Session 1 of the Woodstock TEDx event with a keynote address entitled “The Creative Habit — Revisited.” Tharp has choreographed more than 160 works: 129 dances, 12 television specials, six Hollywood movies, four full-length ballets, four Broadway shows and two figure skating routines. She has received a Tony Award, two Emmy Awards, nineteen honorary doctorates, the Vietnam Veterans of America President’s Award, the 2004 National Medal of the Arts, the 2008 Jerome Robbins Prize, and a 2008 Kennedy Center Honor. Tharp was awarded the Golden Lion for Lifetime Achievement last year. She founded her acclaimed dance company, Twyla Tharp Dance, in 1965, just two years after graduating from Barnard College.
An afternoon tasting of “The Best of Vermont”
During a 3:30 to 4:30 p.m. break between the two TEDx sessions, audience members are invited to meet the speakers and enjoy a taste of Vermont through a selection of locally sourced food and beverages, available in the Town Hall Theatre lobby.
TEDx Session 2
The second TEDx session of the day will begin at 4:30 p.m. and last for an hour. Installation artist and self-described “diplomat” John Ewing will talk about his impactful “Experiments in Dialogue.” Ewing is a “dialogic artist” specializing in participatory installations, with an emphasis on cross-cultural exchange. He co-founded the artist collective Ghana ThinkTank, known for its unconventional approach to negotiating social conflicts.
Debbie Kerman-Taylor, a native of Scotland, moved to New York City to work as a textile designer. She fell in love with the city and with her husband, Elliott, and together they moved to Harlem, where they raised two children. At TEDx, Kerman-Taylor will present a talk entitled “It’s the Role of Intuition.” During the pandemic, Debbie decided to paint fine art full-time, leaving a successful commercial art career spanning more than three decades. Her work can be found in private collections throughout the United States and the world.
In a speech entitled “If Art Isn’t Essential, Why Is It Everywhere: The Survival Value of Beauty,” famed classical and jazz trumpeter Rodney Marsalis will bookend his TEDx remarks with musical selections from his expansive repertoire. Whether playing baroque piccolo trumpet or interpreting works commissioned especially for him, Marsalis’ artistry has been enthusiastically received in the United States and throughout the world in countries such as France, Spain, Germany, England, Greece, Romania, Japan, Taiwan, and Korea.
Panel Discussion/Q&A
Following Marsalis’ presentation, all of the day’s TEDx speakers will gather for a half-hour panel discussion and Q-&-A session at 5:30 p.m.
Riverside dinner with the speakers
For those wishing to linger a little longer, the 2026 TEDx Woodstock will conclude with an intimate riverside dinner on the banks of the Ottauquechee River, where master chef Blaise Biller and sommelier Lauren Biller will bring together exceptional food, wine, conversation, and community around a shared table. This once-in-a-blue-moon opportunity to mingle and dine with a distinguished group of creative artists is available through a special, all-encompassing TEDx ticket.
A variety of ticket packages are available, including student- and specially priced tickets, as well as admission to the intimate, riverside dinner with all of the speakers. For more information about all aspects of TEDx Woodstock 2026, visit tedxwoodstock.com.