Thank you for your interest in participating in the 2026 Block Party, which is scheduled for Saturday, October 10th. We invite local nonprofits and vendors to join us. Please fill out the questions below, and we will follow up with you shortly.

Please note that vendors will be expected to complete a vendor application, provide a COI, and will need to provide payment to O+ to cover the application fee for the city along with a nominal donation to the organization.  

O+ FESTIVAL KINGSTON

October 9-11, 2026

Submissions for our 16th Annual O+ Festival are now open!

Applications Open March 18th, 2026 All submissions due by Friday, May 1st, 2026 at 11:59p.m.

The O+ Festival is a celebration of art, music and wellness that provides health care for its participating artists while offering the community access to the transformative power of art in all forms. O+ (pronounced Oh Positive) fosters physical, mental and social well-being by connecting artists directly to a coalition of healthcare providers and wellness practitioners, of all disciplines, with a shared vision to nurture the individual and the community. By exchanging the art of medicine for the medicine of art, O+ empowers communities to take control of their collective wellbeing. Click HERE for detailed information on our mission. 

We welcome folks of all ages and levels of experience to read, recite, perform, sign, or speak words of all genres, languages and forms. This annual gathering around the WO+rd is not just a showcase of written work but also a meeting of minds, voices and perspectives in a supportive, celebratory environment of diverse expression. The WO+rd Committee prioritizes original work but is also open to found text, dramatic interpretations, and other linguistic innovations. We expect those submitting to provide appropriate and thorough credit for all text that is not your own.

O+ aims to curate work that contributes to or reflects the meaningful juxtaposition between Kingston’s dynamic, multicultural local community and a range of compelling, radical, relevant contemporary work in all forms. 

O+ Festival builds its program around a new theme each year and we ask writers to consider the theme in their proposals. In a time marked by political turbulence and division, art emerges as a potent instrument of the people—a medium through which voices are amplified, dissent is visualized, and collective resilience is forged.

The 2026 O+ Festival theme is MONUMENTS.

O+ Festival 2026 welcomes artists, musicians and writers who approach the theme of monuments as both a question and a form. They resist the singular, the simply heroic, or the permanent. Their work turns toward the work done, sometimes at the margins, that moves everyone forward. The labor of everyday heroes, the persistence of communities often excluded from dominant narratives, the culture of care that sustains life, one person at a time. These are monuments that breathe—temporary, participatory, and permeable–and connect us to the collective.

Learn more about this year’s theme HERE.

All submissions will be reviewed, and the festival program will be curated, by the O+ WO+rd Committee - a group of O+ alumni and industry professionals representing different creative practices, identities and perspectives. Accepted submissions will be invited to participate at this year’s festival in exchange for access to care in the O+ Artists’ Clinic.

You can expect to be notified regarding your submission by mid-June. This year, we expect to receive dozens of submissions for a finite number of performance slots (typically 8-12). WO+rd at O+ Festival is a 2 hour performance on Sunday afternoon of the festival weekend within the broader schedule. Each writer/performer selected for the WO+rd program with receive approximately 10-15min to present their work during the event. On occasion, the committee may approach an applicant with an interest in providing them with a longer form opportunity at the festival but please submit with a shorter form performance in mind. We ask for your patience and understanding should your submission not be accepted for this year and encourage all who are not chosen for O+ Festival 2026 to reapply next year.

A note to O+ Alum: Lower priority may be given to those who participated in one of the previous three O+ Kingston Festivals (O+ 2025, 2024, or 2023), though we encourage all to apply. As our mission is centered in cultivating a diverse community of artists to whom we are offering access to healthcare, we want to make sure we reach those who have yet to participate and may have a need to acquire care.

We continue to expand our model of care through the year round O+ Exchange Clinic. Through art and wellness programming in that space, we are constantly looking for new ways provide care and opportunities to artists. If you aren’t accepted for this year’s festival, you may be contacted over the year ahead with additional ways to connect you and your work with O+. We thank you in advance for your understanding. 

Thank you for your interest in O+ Festival and our mission. 

We look forward to the opportunity to review your submission!

Positively, 

The 2026 O+ KINGSTON WO+rd Committee

Please do not let any barriers, personal, perceived or technical, get in the way of submitting your work. Reach out to us for assistance in applying if you need support of any kind at info@opositivefestival.org or by phone at (845) 399-5343.

The O+ Festival is a celebration of art, music and wellness that creates a bridge to access health care for its participating artists/musicians while providing the community with access to the healing and transformative power of art in all forms. O+ (pronounced Oh Positive) fosters complete physical, mental and social well-being by connecting visual artists and musicians directly with a coalition of healthcare and wellness providers + resources in a shared vision to nurture the individual and the community. By exchanging the art of medicine for the medicine of art, O+ empowers communities to take control of their collective wellbeing.

Volunteers are essential to the success of the festival and yearround programming through which that exchange is made possible.

We do what we do because we see vividly the inequity of the healthcare system in our country, and because we are able to creatively support our musicians and artists in this way so they can keep doing what they do best -- make music and art. In recognition of your service, we offer volunteers the opportunity to receive healthcare services in our clinic during the festival. For 8 hours of volunteer service, you will receive the annual festival volunteer T-shirt as well as (1) clinic visit of your choice. For 4 hours of volunteer service, you will receive an annual festival volunteer T-shirt. 

We expect our volunteers to show up on time and participate for the duration of their shift. All volunteers are required to attend a volunteer orientation prior to the festival (date options coming soon) and there will be an additional training for any volunteers managing financial transactions/handling money. When filling out the form, please select the types of work you are interested in and we will do our best to accommodate your requests! 

Thank you for volunteering with us and for your support of the exchange of art, music and wellness at the center of our mission. 

HO+USING for the 2026 O+ FESTIVAL KINGSTON 

HO+using for artists and musicians is needed to support the 16th Annual O+ Festival returning to Kingston October 9-11th, 2026. 

Do you have a spare room in your home? Do you have a second home or apartment in town? Or a really comfortable couch, a finished basement, a yard that is perfect for camping in, or an RV in your driveway? Are you a hotel, B&B or apartment building manager who would like to offer a room or two or ten to support a local arts non-profit organization through an in-kind donation? 

The O+ Festival is seeking accommodations for artists and musicians who will be performing, exhibiting, producing and activating the City of Kingston during the 16th Annual O+ Festival October 9-11th, 2026. O+ Festival is a celebration of art, music and wellness that creates a bridge to access health care for its participating artists/musicians while providing the community with access to the healing and transformative power of art in all forms. O+ (pronounced Oh Positive) fosters complete physical, mental and social well-being by connecting visual artists and musicians directly with a coalition of healthcare and wellness providers & resources in a shared vision to nurture the individual and the community. By exchanging the art of medicine for the medicine of art, O+ empowers communities to take control of their collective wellbeing.

The ability to provide safe, welcoming, local housing for participating artists and musicians, at low to no cost, is essential to the success of O+ Festival Kingston. Artists and musicians may need one night of accommodation following their performance, activation or installation of their work. They may need two to three nights of housing to allow them to participate and also attend the festival. And we also have mural artists who will need to be housed for 5-14 days depending on the scale and complexity of the mural they are producing. 

By providing artists/musicians with a place to stay while they offer their talents and that joy to our community, you contribute to the health of the festival but also their sense of connection to our community. That said, providing housing for O+ Festival participants does not mean that you need to "host" them. We do not have the expectation that artists and musicians would be fed or entertained through housing that is offered. We do expect that both you and the person/people staying in your home are respectful of each other, safe during their stay and are in communication about any issues or concerns. 

All housing offers will be reviewed and a staff member will follow up with any further questions or concerns to ensure that any placement in your home is in-line with the accommodation offered, needs of the artist/musician and will be as positive of a fit as possible. 

Click HERE to learn more about O+ Festival. You can expect to be notified regarding your accommodation by early September. If you are also interested in volunteering in exchange for a clinic visit (minimum 8 hour requirement) please click HERE.

Thank you for your interest in O+ Festival, our mission and for your willingness to open your home to artists and musicians. 

Positively,  The O+ Team

Please do not let any barriers, personal, perceived or technical, get in the way of connecting to O+. Please reach out to us for assistance if you need support of any kind. Contact info@opositivefestival.org for assistance or call/text 845-481-9146.

If you are a practitioner and are interested exchanging the art of medicine for the medicine of art, please join the team of providers in the O+ Festival Clinic. In exchange for 4 hours of service in our Artists' Clinic, you'll have access to the entire festival- a weekend full of art, music, wellness classes in our ExplO+re series, a public health ExpO+, and more! This year, as a part of the exchange you'll receive a clinic shirt, a wellness bag, a wristband for the weekend's festivities, access to the Greenroom, a meaningful connection with our creative community and our gratitude forever.

By offering your services in the O+ Clinic, you will be caring for artists and musicians who are chronically un- and under-insured in a friendly and casual setting free of the bureaucracy of institutions. We welcome folks who value the healing power of art and music as well as the power of working in community. 

The O+ Clinic welcomes ALL health and wellness providers from all schools of thought, areas of medicine and all alternative and complimentary care practices. We believe that wellness includes mind, body, spirit and connectedness. The O+ Artists’ Clinic is curated each year by the Wellness Team to ensure diverse, expansive offerings to meet as many needs as possible. Providers will be accepted on a rolling basis throughout the open submission period. Please indicate your preferred shifts by checking the boxes next to the days we have listed. Assigned work shifts, orientation sessions and information will be communicated upon invitation to participate. 

If you have any questions about this process, please e-mail jesse.scherer@opositivefestival.org. Stay PO+sitive, The KingstO+n Wellness Team

O+ FESTIVAL KINGSTON 2026

October 9-11, 2026

Submissions to lead ExplO+re Wellness Workshops are now open! Applications open May 11th through June 21st, 2026 at 11:59p.m.

The O+ Festival is a celebration of art, music and wellness that creates a bridge to access health care for its participating artists/musicians while providing the community with access to the healing and transformative power of art in all forms. The O+ Festival will return to Kingston, NY October 9th-11th for the 16th annual celebration of the exchange at the heart of what we do: exchanging the art of medicine for the medicine of art. O+ (pronounced Oh Positive) fosters complete physical, mental and social well-being by connecting visual artists and musicians directly with a coalition of healthcare and wellness providers and resources in a shared vision to nurture the individual and the community. Click HERE for detailed information on our mission. 

ExplO+re is the public facing wellness component of the festival. It’s a chance for our community to experience different modalities, meet new teachers, explore what type of wellness practices work for them and get inspired. Explore group workshops are one hour long on average and include movement, mindfulness, nutrition and any other approach that supports health and wellbeing. For example, we have held sessions ranging from a gong bath to medical marijuana 101, a somatic movement workshop or even a class based on financial health for creative professionals. *Please note that workshops will take place in both indoor and outdoor and/or non-conventional venues throughout the festival footprint.

Submissions close June 21st at 11:59pm. You can expect to be notified regarding your submission by early August.  Everyone who offers an ExplO+re Wellness Session during the 2026 O+ Festival weekend, will receive a complimentary wristband to enjoy the weekend of art, music and wellness at no cost, a t-shirt, and each class offering will receive access to the Clinic. Preference will be given to those who did not present in the previous year's festival. If you aren’t accepted for this year’s festival, due to capacity or curation, you may be contacted over the next year if there are other ways to connect with O+ and our year-round clinic, and we encourage you to apply again next year. PLEASE NOTE, solicitation of business or the selling of products are strictly forbidden during your ExplO+re session. You may place business cards or other materials for attendees to take should they wish to learn more or stay connected with you. Should you wish to vend or solicit business directly, you may apply to be a part of the Wellness EXPO+. 

If you are also interested in providing services in the Artists' Clinic please fill out the form HERE. 

If you're also interested in volunteering for the general festival operations please click HERE.

Thank you for your interest in O+ Festival and our mission. We look forward to reviewing your submission!  

Positively,         The 2026 O+ ExplO+re Coordinator

Please do not let any barriers, personal, perceived or technical, get in the way of submitting your work. Please reach out to us for assistance in applying if you need support of any kind. 

Contact info@opositivefestival.org for assistance.