Grammy Award-winning musician and folk-rock icon Ani DiFranco will headline the opening night of VersoFest 2026 with a special conversation at The Westport Library on Thursday, March 26, at 7 p.m.
The event, held in the Trefz Forum, will feature DiFranco in discussion with author and cultural anthropologist Lauren Coyle Rosen, co-author of their new book, The Spirit of Ani: Reflections on Spirituality, Feminism, Music, and Freedom. Tickets are $35 and include a copy of the book.
The conversation will explore DiFranco’s creative process, spirituality and evolving consciousness, offering an intimate look at the artist behind more than three decades of influential music and activism.
VersoFest, a four-day celebration of music, media and creativity, returns this spring with a lineup that blends performances, keynote conversations and interactive art experiences. Additional highlights include a Feb. 27 performance by rising rock band The Thing and a March 27 concert by Wyclef Jean, the former Fugees member and multiple Grammy Award winner.
DiFranco, widely regarded as a feminist icon, has released 23 albums spanning folk, rock, jazz and spoken word. She founded her own label, Righteous Babe Records, in 1990, helping pave the way for independent artists. Beyond music, she is the author of the memoir No Walls and the Recurring Dream, a New York Times bestseller, and several books of poetry and children’s literature. In 2024, she completed a five-month Broadway run in Hadestown, portraying Persephone.
Rosen brings a multidisciplinary background to the project as an award-winning author, artist and singer-songwriter. A former Princeton University professor and current Harvard fellow, she has written extensively on spirituality, culture and social change, and released her debut music album, Purify Flame, in 2025.
The Spirit of Ani expands on themes from DiFranco’s memoir, weaving together reflections on creativity, feminism, queer politics, the modern music industry and climate change. The book includes previously unpublished photographs, journal entries, paintings and song lyrics, offering readers a rare window into DiFranco’s artistic life.
With its blend of literary conversation and musical legacy, VersoFest’s opening night promises to be a centerpiece event for Westport’s cultural calendar this spring.
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