Experience
The World Unboxed
Community Events: October 7, 8 and 9, 2026
The World Unboxed: October 10, 2026
Location: Loos Center for the Arts
Join us for the inaugural Layālaya Global Arts Festival – a world-premiere event uniting Grammy-winning and renowned artists from six countries on one stage. Global musicians from Argentina, China, India, Japan, Mali, and the USA will come together to co-create and debut brand-new collaborative masterpieces, showing how different worlds can harmonize when we truly listen.
This spirit of connection is elevated by riveting spotlight conversations on teamwork and peak success, featuring the president of The Juilliard School alongside the Director of Sports Performance for the championship UConn Women’s Basketball team; student performances, a group of student artists with disabilities traveling from Korea, and a poetess creating an exclusive poem for the festival. Their voices embody why this event matters, proving that true artistic expression transcends discipline, ability, language, and geography to reveal our shared humanity.
Come curious, leave expanded.
Tickets on Sale NOW!
through Loos Center for the Arts ←
Festival Schedule
October 7-9, 2026
– Community Events TBA
October 10, 2026 (Afternoon Session)
1:30 PM – Welcome
1:45 PM – Music Presentation by Students of Sandeep Das
2:10 PM – Speaker Spotlight: Damian Woetzel, President, The Juilliard School
2:40 PM – Performance: Woodstock Academy Student Ensemble I
3:00 PM – Performance: Poetry x Music Collaboration
3:15 PM – Performance: Gaon Soloists, South Korea
3:40 PM – Speaker Spotlight: Dr. Andrea Hudy, Director of Sports Performance, UConn Women’s Basketball Team, assisted by Jui Shah
4:10 PM – Closing Performance, Woodstock Academy Student Ensemble II
4:30 PM – Dinner Break
October 10, 2026 (Evening Session)
7:30 PM – World Premier Concert featuring 7 renowned musicians from across the globe
Artistic
Director
Sandeep Das is a Grammy-winning tabla virtuoso, composer, educator, and cultural ambassador with a career spanning 30+ years of performing globally with luminaries such as Yo-Yo Ma, Paquito D’Rivera, and Bobby McFerrin. His cross-genre collaborations span five continents, from the BBC Proms to Carnegie Hall. He has performed for Pope John Paul II, Queen Elizabeth II, and the UN General Assembly. As a committed educator, Das has led learning initiatives at Harvard, Juilliard, Berklee, and beyond.
Das is the founder and Executive Artistic Director of the Layālaya Arts Initiative, as well as the founder of Harmony and Universality through Music (a nonprofit in India), and a founding member of the Silk Road Ensemble in the US.
“Today’s innovation
is tomorrow’s tradition.”
– Sandeep Das
Artist Lineup
Ensemble
Artists
Sandeep Das– Artistic Director, Tabla
Jake Charkey – (USA)
Rajib Karmakar – Sitar (India)
Balla Kouyate – Balafon (Mali)
Solange Merdinian – Voice (Argentina)
Kaoru Watanabe – Taiko / Fue (Japan)
Guo Yahzi- Suona (China)
Guest
Speakers
Damian Woetzel
President of The Juilliard School
Andrea Hudy
Director of Sports Performance
for UConn Women’s Basketball
Jui Shah
– Sports Performance Graduate Assistant,
UConn Women’s Basketball
Student
Ensembles
– Gaon Soloists, South Korea
– Woodstock Academy, Student Poet
– Kaylynn Cho, Student Poet
Layālaya's vision for the festival is to create a vibrant community experience that extends far beyond the final performance. In the days leading up to October 10, artists will engage in a multi-day residency, workshopping new music in open rehearsals that invite the public directly into the creative process. Local students will receive the opportunity to step into a once-in-a-lifetime mentorship space, working hand-in-hand with Grammy-winning and world-renowned artists through school visits, masterclasses, and a dedicated student showcase on October 10.
Stay tuned for details about community events.
Community Events
Thank you
to our supporters!
Layālaya is immensely grateful for federal, state, and community support of the festival.
The 2026 Layālaya Global Arts Festival is funded in part by the Connecticut Department of Economic & Community Development, Office of the Arts; CT Eastern Regional Tourism District; SBM Charitable Foundation; and the New England States Touring program of the New England Foundation for the Arts, made possible with funding from the National Endowment for the Arts and the six New England state arts agencies. Festival community partners include Loos Center for the Arts, The Woodstock Academy, and Green Valley Hospitality.
Interested in sponsorship opportunities?
