After a six-year hiatus, Guild Hall’s Hamptons Institute, a forum for ideas that shape both our community and the world, relaunches in July. Hamptons Institute is a compelling series of dynamic conversations, with each session featuring world-renown experts from diverse fields exploring a single topic through multiple perspectives, followed by an audience Q&A.
Principal Sponsor: Lisa Rosenblum
2025 LINEUP
GUARDRAILS ON DEMOCRACY
MONDAY, JULY 7, 7 PM
TICKETS
SNL: 50 YEARS OF AMERICAN SATIRE
MONDAY, JULY 14, 7 PM
TICKETS
POST-PLAY CHILDHOOD
MONDAY, JULY 21, 7 PM
TICKETS
ORDER OR CHAOS: THE ECONOMY UNDER TRUMP
MONDAY, JULY 28, 7 PM
TICKETS
The Hamptons Institute’s 2025 installment is guest-curated by Ellen Chesler—author and Hamptons Institute co-founder (alongside Guild Hall’s late Chair, Mickey Straus)—and Patricia Duff, founder of the nonpartisan nonprofit The Common Good, dedicated to civic participation, civil dialogue, and finding solutions through common ground.
Founded in 1931 by Mary Woodhouse and her husband Lorenzo, Guild Hall began as a civic institution anchored by a museum and theater. The multidisciplinary arts institution has long been driven by the conviction that engaging with the arts—through exhibitions, performances, and meaningful dialogue—sparks connection, deepens understanding, and inspires people to participate more actively in the world beyond the boundaries of the East End.
This mission expanded in the 1980s with the launch of Hot Topics, a series designed to spark civic discourse, featuring notable panelists like Peter Jennings, recognized for his commitment to democratic journalism. Today, alongside its rich offerings in performing and visual arts, Guild Hall continues to foster thoughtful dialogue with leading luminaries across diverse fields.
“For nearly a century—through depressions, wars, and countless moments of change—Guild Hall has served the community as a gathering place for creative thinkers across disciplines,” says Executive Director Andrea Grover. “Art mirrors the political and social forces of the times we live in—it never exists in isolation, and neither do we as a community. Bringing back the Hamptons Institute at this moment—offering a space to gather with extraordinary leaders discussing timely topics—feels both urgent and essential.”
The Hamptons Institute, established in 2010, features leaders in their fields discussing ideas that shape our community and the world. The 2025 installment is guest-curated by Ellen Chesler, author and Hamptons Institute co-founder (with Guild Hall late Chair, Mickey Straus), and Patricia Duff, founder of the nonpartisan non-profit, The Common Good, dedicated to civic participation, civil dialogue, and finding solutions and common ground. Each evening explores a single topic from the perspective of multiple professionals, followed by a Q&A.
Past moderators and panelists have included Jacqueline Adams, Cyrus Amir-Mokri, Kurt Anderson, Ken Auletta, Kahlil Byrd, Robert Caro, Katie Couric, Howard Dean, Lisa Dennison, Paul Farmer, Leymah Gbowee, Kirsten Gillibrand, Kathy Hochul, Van Jones, Steven Kroft, Ken Miller, Cecile Richards, Jerry Saltz, Lynn Sherr, George Soros, Elizabeth Warren, and Jeff Zucker, among others.
Today, Hamptons Institute talks are programmed as single panel discussions throughout the season. The series features academics, creatives, journalists, and political leaders, and each conversation addresses a socially relevant subject from multiple points of view to cultivate purpose-driven civic participation.
Visit the Hamptons Institute archive of programs HERE.