Whirlwind: The Hudson Valley New Year’s Day Spoken Word/Performance Extravaganza

Whirlwind, this year’s New Year’s Day Spoken Word/Performance Extravaganza is sponsored by the Saugerties Arts Commission and presented by the Hudson Valley New Years Day Spoken Word/Performance Extravaganza and The Local in Saugerties.

The six-hour event will feature more than 110 poets, writers and musicians drawn from the Hudson Valley region. In the spirit of democracy, the event will include open mic performances.

Among the many notables scheduled to perform are Michael Bisio, Katherine Burger, Lawrence Carr, Beverly D’Onofrio, Steve Gorn, Mike Jurkovic, Phillip X Levine, Carolyn Marosy, Linda Montano, George Quasha, and Daniel Villegas.

The annual Hudson Valley New Year’s Day Extravaganza is produced by poet Bruce Weber, who brought it to the Hudson Valley from Manhattan seven years ago.
This year’s event has been made possible by a 2024 Gratitude Grant from the Saugerties Arts Commission, which gives the award to organizations that offer free art in Saugerties through its grants program.

Admission is free. Wine and beer will be available for purchase.

The organizers will gratefully accept donations of books, new and used, fiction and nonfiction, hardcover and paperback for the Greene Correctional Facility in Greene County, NY, and non-perishable food, beverages, toothbrushes or toothpaste for the Saugerties Food Pantry, which provides food for nearly 250 men, women and children in the area each month.

Stage set by Saugerties artist Joanne Pagano Weber will reflect the Whirlwind theme.