Stanford Live announced its 2026-2027 season, with more than 70 performances featuring rising artists, a celebration of America’s 250th, and a focus on the guitar as a symbol of unity and change.

The season runs Sept. 28, 2026, to May 9, 2027, at venues across campus and spans music, dance, comedy, and theater. Thirty acts are making their Stanford Live debut, including stand-up comedian W. Kamau Bell (Oct. 1), singer Camila Fernández (Dec. 10), and The Hot Club of San Francisco (Dec. 3).

“I’m continually inspired by the way the performing arts bring us together, expanding our perspectives and deepening our sense of empathy, creativity, and connection,” said Iris Nemani, McMurtry Family Director at Stanford Live. “This season feels especially meaningful as we highlight artists who are shaping the cultural landscape of today. What better place to explore the future of culture than at Stanford.”

Embracing the future

One of the season’s central themes is the future of live performance – embodied by artists under 35 who are reshaping their fields, including blues singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Jontavious Willis (Oct. 23), pianist Isata Kanneh-Mason in performance with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra (Nov. 8), and South Korean cellist Jaemin Han (March 10).

“Sometimes we may feel like there’s not a lot of hope, and yet the sun comes up, trees are growing, and each generation is doing new things in the world and in their fields,” Nemani said. “So we’re really celebrating young artists who are at the top of their game, doing incredible things, and making the future their own.”

America 250

Marking America’s 250th anniversary, the season also celebrates artists and composers who immigrated to the U.S., became naturalized American citizens, and chose to make it their creative home.

Performances under this theme include a concert featuring Kronos Quartet with Iranian-born, San Francisco-based singing sisters Mahsa and Marjan Vahdat (Oct. 11); American composer Rob Kapilow’s What Makes it Great?: The Music of Lerner and Loewe (Oct. 25), featuring songs by Jewish American lyricist Alan Jay Lerner and Fritz Loewe, a piano prodigy born and raised in Berlin who later immigrated to the U.S.; and Dutch piano duo Lucas and Arthur Jussen (May 2), whose performance will include works by Russian American composer Igor Stravinsky.

An ode to the guitar

Stanford Live centers an instrument each season. This year it’s the guitar – a choice with particular resonance to the America 250 theme.

“Throughout the season, the guitar serves as both an instrument and a symbol of an enduring thread in American life that has carried the voices of everyday people, fueled movements for change, and connected communities across generations,” Nemani said.

Drawing on that breadth, artists across classical, folk, blues, and rock music will be featured in the coming months, including Mexican ensemble Los Vega Son Jarocho (Oct. 24), Montenegrin classical guitarist Miloš Karadaglić, and guitarist Jack West, who will be joined by Walter Strauss for his performance on April 3.

Other season highlights

Audiences can also expect dance performances such as I AM by Camille A. Brown & Dancers (March 17); an acrobatic show called Ten Thousand Hours by Australian circus company Gravity and Other Myths (April 22), and a multidisciplinary show from the Fringe series called 300 paintings, by Sam Kissajukian, that blends comedy, creativity, and mental health (March 3-6).

Stanford students will interact with multiple artists via masterclasses throughout the season, including a vocal masterclass with Rachel Willis-Sørensen, soprano (Nov. 17); a piano masterclass with Isata Kanneh-Mason (Nov. 9); and a cello masterclass with Sheku Kanneh-Mason (May 4).

Stanford Live will also offer free guitar workshops to the public, featuring some of the season’s artists, including Los Vega Son Jarocho (Oct. 24), Don Ross & Julie Malia (Jan. 16), and Jack West (April 4).