Joe’s Pub Annual Gala Honors Justin Vivian Bond At The Public Theater

Joe’s Pub at The Public Theater held its 2026 Annual Gala on Monday, March 2, honoring Dr. Justin Vivian Bond as this year’s Vanguard Honoree. Check out photos of the production.

The one-night-only benefit event took place at Joe’s Pub and The Library at The Public Theater and featured performances by Bond, Taylor Mac, Bianca Leigh, and others.

The evening was co-chaired by Brown Bartholomew and James Garnett, and Millicent and David Fortunoff. Members of the benefit committee included Anthony Roth Costanzo, Victoria Leacock Hoffman, Elizabeth Koke, Amanda Joy Rubin, Cindy Sherman, Ann Stephenson, and Rufus Wainwright.

Guests and performers in attendance included Judith Butler, Murray Hill, Bianca Leigh, Taylor Mac, Gail Papp, Billy Porter, Cindy Sherman, Garnet Williams, Mafer Bandola, Thomas Bartlett, Kate Douglas, Daniel Emond, Lisa Stephen Friday, Pooja Reddy, Gregory Richardson, Kate Rigg, and Ryan Raftery. Joe’s Pub Director Alex Knowlton and The Public Theater Executive Director Patrick Willingham were also present.

The program featured performances by Justin Vivian Bond and band, Murray Hill, and Thomas Bartlett (Doveman). Additional performances came from Joe’s Pub Working Group artists Mafer Bandola, Kate Douglas, Daniel Emond, Pooja Reddy, and Gregory Richardson. Vanguard curation artists included Bianca Leigh (OH, MARY!), Paul Soileau (Christeene), and Garnet Williams (CATS: THE JELLICLE BALL). New York Voices commissioned artists Lisa Stephen Friday, Taylor Mac, and Jo Lampert also performed.

Bond wore a two-piece look by Parsons graduate Maxwell Sobieski with Alaïa gloves and Prounis jewels on the step-and-repeat, and later performed in a custom archival Lanvin by Alber Elbaz (Fall/Winter 2010 runway collection) with jewels by Prounis.

The annual gala celebrated Bond’s career and raised funds for artist development initiatives at Joe’s Pub, including the Joe’s Pub Working Group, the New York Voices commissioning initiative, and the Vanguard Residency.

Previous Vanguard honorees include Laurie Anderson, Margaret Cho, Judy Collins, Nona Hendryx, Angélique Kidjo, and Barbara Maier Gustern.

Photo Credit: David Andrako Photos