Woody Guthrie’s Songs to Grow On is a 40‑minute interactive theater experience created especially for children ages 2–5—yet delightful for audiences of all ages. Presented by New York City Children’s Theater with The Village Trip, the production introduces young audiences to Guthrie’s music while exploring curiosity, empathy, and community through playful, hands-on engagement.  A brand-new show, it is based on an unpublished manuscript by Woody Guthrie and the 1956 album Songs to Grow On for Mother and Child. Original script by Frank Ruiz, with direction by Susanna Brock.

Two very special songwriting and performance workshops with award-winning singer-songwriters and storytellers! The events are specially created for children aged 6 - 12 years old, all of whom will be encouraged to dig deep into their hearts to explore, wonder, and write about "Who Are We?".

Classical Cool is the festival’s annual concert for children and families and this year, with Ich Bin Ein New Yorker, it honors the New York spirit and the East Village community at its heart. Hosted by Nina Bernstein Simmons, the program features excerpts from Leonard Bernstein's West Side Story, and his "Ode to Freedom" from Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, performed at his Christmas concert in Berlin in 1989, a year of hope and peaceful revolutions. Classical Cool also features premières by Shoko Suzuki, and William Kentner Anderson. Community African drummers under Amos Gabia and local choral ensembles join The Village Trip Festival Orchestra, conducted by Garrett Keast of the Berlin American Academy of Music. Featured soloists include the winner of our Concerto Competition, and soprano Curtlyn Ifill.