SPRING GALA
The goal of PSNY’s Gala is to raise funds and awareness for the Annual New York City Poetry Festival, the largest free gathering of poets in the country.
Forge the future of poetry with The Poetry Society of New York & help raise funds for The 15th Annual New York City Poetry Festival!
Every epic journey begins with an invocation of the muse—a creative spark to burn an everlasting flame. Step into the fire and join The Poetry Society of New York for our 8th Annual Spring Gala, an elegant evening devoted to poetry, community, and shared creation.
This year’s theme is Bronze Age Feast & Cabaret.
We’re mesmerized by myths passed down over millennia—from ancient memory to the modern day—stories that surface whenever someone needs meaning, guidance, or wonder. We also pay homage to the origins of oral-formulaic poetry: generations of rhythm, repetition, and rhyme that continue to manifest each year on Governors Island at The New York City Poetry Festival (NYC PoFest).
PSNY’s Spring Gala raises funds for NYC PoFest, the largest free event for poets in the country. For one weekend each summer in Nolan Park, poetry returns to its roots: not gated or ticketed, but shared freely—proudly, out loud—beneath open skies. If NYC PoFest is a journey toward shared meaning, creativity, and return—an Odyssey, one might say—then this Gala is the moment to gather strength and build the vessels necessary for the voyage ahead.
By attending the Gala, patrons enact poetic metallurgy—working metaphorical fire, transforming raw material, and helping build structures sturdy enough to hold a community together.
Poetry truly takes a village. PSNY relies on collective support, care, and coordination to keep poetry thriving in public. This evening invites poets, poetry lovers, and poets-to-be to:
Invest in a living literary community
Support free public space for creativity
Build cultural infrastructure that lasts
Help ensure poets have a safe place to land each summer
The Evening
Guests will enjoy:
A three-course seated feast
An open bar
Immersive cabaret performances, including poetry, music, drag, and dance
Live and silent auctions supporting PSNY’s work