What is the Met Gala? Where is it held? Who is invited?

The annual Met Gala, put on by Vogue, is the biggest night in fashion.

The Met Ball is coming up on Monday, May 1.

The Met Ball, also known as the Costume Institute Gala or the Costume Institute Benefit, is a fundraiser helmed by Anna Wintour to benefit the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute in Manhattan, New York City.

The world’s most prestigious fashion event is the fashion world’s most highly anticipated event, and an invitation is greatly coveted by those in the industry.

Only the A-List celebrities are invited to the glamorous benefit, those who are perceived as the most relevant influencers in the entertainment industry, business, sports, media, and politics.

What is the Met Gala?

Held each year on the first Monday in May, a date that also signifies the first day of the museum’s Anna Wintour Costume Institute’s annual exhibit, the Met Gala was established in 1948 by Eleanor Lambert, a fashion publicist, to raise funds for the Costume Institute, which was newly founded at the time.

The event is now the biggest fundraiser in NYC. The Meta Gala raised $9 million in 2013 and $12 million in 2014; by 2022, the gala broke records with $17.4 million.

Total contributions surpassed $200 million in 2019.

The cost of tickets to attend the Met Gala was raised from $30 000 to $50 000 in 2023.

Where is the Met Gala held?

The glamorous fundraiser event is at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Upper East Side of Manhattan in New York City.

The first Met Gala Benefit in 1948 was a formal dinner, and tickets cost $50. The attendees of the then-simple event were those in Manhattan’s fashion industry and members of New York high society, and the fundraiser was held at varying locations across the city.

Enter Diana Vreeland in 1972. The prominent businesswoman served as Costume Institute consultant and totally upscaled the glamor and prestige of the event. From that year on, the benefit was held at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, and each year there would be a different theme.

The Met Gala also became a more global and diverse attraction, drawing the interest of higher profile celebrities in the entertainment and arts industry like Elizabeth Taylor, Andy Warhol, Bianca Jagger, Diana Ross, Elton John, Liza Minnelli, Madonna, and Cher.

Who is invited to the Met Gala?

Anna Wintour, who has been chairperson of the Met Gala since 1995, is at the helm of the guest list. She began including even more global figures in the fashion, entertainment, business, sports, and political sectors.

Selected fashion, music, and film celebrities are invited to the event that annually sends out only 600 to 700 invitations. People who have appeared on the cover of Vogue in the past year are usually prominent attendees, as well as significant players across the various sectors beyond entertainment, such as sports stars, politicians, media figures, and billionaires.

Many guests at the globally renowned event come from countries far beyond the United States, with some attendees coming from Europe and beyond.