James Merrill House Presents:
THE STONINGTON LITERARY FESTIVAL
STONINGTON, CT – In celebration of the centennial of 20th-century poet James Merrill’s birth, the James Merrill House will present the first Stonington Literary Festival, October 2–4, 2026. The three-day celebration of Merrill’s life, work, and legacy will feature renowned writers, scholars, and musicians — including many former Merrill Fellows — in venues throughout the Borough of Stonington, the coastal village where Merrill lived and wrote for more than four decades.
The festival reflects the James Merrill House’s ongoing mission to support writers, foster a vibrant literary community in Stonington and carry forward the legacy of one of America’s most celebrated 20th-century poets. Several festival events are already sold out, including the opening-night concert featuring Matthew Aucoin and Nicholas Phan, and Saturday evening’s keynote address by Henri Cole. A waitlist is available for sold-out events. Tickets and information can be found at jamesmerrillhouse.org/festival.
THE SCHEDULE
The festival opens Friday, October 2, with a sold-out concert at La Grua Center featuring composer and pianist Matthew Aucoin, a 2018 MacArthur Fellow, and Grammy Award-winning tenor Nicholas Phan performing Merrill Songs, Aucoin’s song cycle setting six Merrill poems to music, followed by a reception.
On Saturday, October 3, attendees can choose from a full day of sessions, seminars, and workshops on topics including Merrill’s years in Stonington, queer life in the 20th century, Merrill’s engagement with the Ouija board and the occult, poetry of place, wordplay and crosswords, and a celebration of the Yale Series of Younger Poets, along with an object-based writing workshop led by Timothy Donnelly and a free “Emerging Voices” open mic featuring students and new writers hosted by Stonington Poet Laureate Christie Max Williams. That evening, distinguished poet and former Merrill Fellow Henri Cole will deliver the sold-out keynote address at La Grua Center, followed by a Centennial Celebration Dinner honoring the Merrill family at The Hounds.
For those who were unable to secure tickets to the keynote or who are not in the area, the address will be livestreamed. In total, six festival events will be livestreamed on the James Merrill Centennial Facebook page, making these programs accessible to audiences beyond Stonington. On Sunday, October 4, Stephen Yenser, Merrill’s literary executor, and Langdon Hammer, author of the definitive Merrill biography, will host “James Merrill and His World,” a two-part panel bringing together poets, scholars, and friends who knew Merrill or have devoted themselves to his work. In the afternoon, writer and critic Hilton Als will read from his new introduction to Merrill’s recently reissued memoir A Different Person, and former Fellows will close the festival with a reading of Merrill’s Water Street.
At several times throughout the weekend, visitors can tour the James Merrill Apartment at 107 Water Street — the National Historic Landmark occasionally open to the public — join literary walking tours of Stonington village with Historic Stonington, visit Poets Corner at Stonington Cemetery, and view the free Textures exhibition at La Grua Center, featuring visual representations of texts by former Merrill Fellows.
Cynthia Elliott, who is co-chairing the Festival along with fellow James Merrill House board members Jenny Dixon and Joanna Scott, said “Stonington has always been a destination and home for writers and artists, and we are gratified to be able to contribute with this Festival to its literary legacy. It’s also a fitting tribute to James Merrill, through whose generosity to the Town of Stonington the James Merrill House has become ‘A Writer’s Home – A Home for Writers.’”
Individual sessions are $25, and several events — including the keynote, the open mics, the Yale Younger Poets panel, and the Water Street reading — are free; select events at the La Grua Center will also be livestreamed and registration is encouraged. Students also receive complimentary admission to all Saturday and Sunday daytime events with promo code STUDENT.
Tickets and information can be found at jamesmerrillhouse.org/festival.