Trevor Noah opened The Connecticut Forum's 35th season with a sold-out conversation at the Bushnell in Hartford, trading stories about his childhood in Soweto for an unexpected singalong by night's end. The comedian, author and podcaster sat down for a wide-ranging discussion that organizers say drew an overwhelmingly strong response from the packed house, including hundreds of high school and college students from across Connecticut.
The Oct. 6 event marked the start of a new season for the nonprofit, which was founded in 1992 and stages four flagship forums each year at the Bushnell. Noah, best known for hosting Comedy Central's The Daily Show with Trevor Noah for eight seasons, is also the author of the best-selling memoir Born a Crime, which chronicles his difficult upbringing in South Africa and has sold more than 3 million copies across all formats. He now hosts the SiriusXM podcast What Now? With Trevor Noah.
Journalist Michele Norris moderated the conversation, guiding Noah through reflections on growing up mixed-race during apartheid in South Africa. As The Daily Campus reported, Norris spent years anchoring NPR's All Things Considered and later founded the Race Card Project, bringing her own background in public radio to the discussion of introspection and identity.
Soweto Stories Meet American Quirks
Noah spent part of the evening recounting stories from his childhood in Soweto, the sprawling township outside Johannesburg where he grew up navigating South Africa's racial divisions. He balanced those recollections with lighter observations about his adopted home in the West, including a pointed take on Americans' enduring devotion to the Neil Diamond classic Sweet Caroline.
That bit set up the night's biggest surprise: the Forum's team brought out a live rendition of Sweet Caroline, catching Noah off guard as audience members sang along. The moment capped an evening organizers said generated a strong response from a crowd that had already sold out the room.
A Season Built Around Youth and Civic Engagement
The Daily Campus noted that the Forum is looking forward to welcoming Andrew Ross Sorkin, Chris Hayes, Samantha Power and David Miliband for the remainder of the 2026-2027 season. The next installment, set for Nov. 20, will bring financial journalist Andrew Ross Sorkin to Hartford for a discussion billed as The Economy, Money & Power, examining forces reshaping work, money and society, according to We-Ha. A later forum planned for March 3, 2027, is expected to dig into media consumption trends, the influence of artificial intelligence, shifting business models and public trust in journalism, per the same outlet.
The organization has leaned increasingly into youth programming in recent seasons, a trend that showed up directly at the Noah event, which featured hundreds of high school and college students from across Connecticut in the audience. CT Insider reports the Forum has reinforced its commitment to young people in a way that has become central to its identity even as it continues drawing marquee names; past guests have included Barack Obama, José Andrés, Liz Cheney, Yo-Yo Ma, Spike Lee and Seth Meyers.
Photographer Nick Caito provided images from the evening, and the Hartford Courant published a 154-photo gallery capturing the night at the Bushnell. The gallery offers a visual record of the season-opening event, from Noah's conversation with Norris to the crowd's impromptu singalong that sent the Forum's 35th season off on an unusually musical note.
