Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (LCPA) has announced that Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Co-President Andreas C. Dracopoulos and groundbreaking dancer, author, and advocate Misty Copeland will be honored at their 2026 Summer Gala.
The event will take place Monday, June 1 at David Geffen Hall, helping kick off the beloved Summer for the City festival, which opens across the Lincoln Center campus on June 10.
Copeland will receive the inaugural Lincoln Center Luminary Award, established to recognize leading artists who have demonstrated both extraordinary talent on stage, and civic vision: artists who create, convene, and care for communities. The award will be presented with remarks from Thelma Golden, Director and Chief Curator of The Studio Museum in Harlem.
Copeland’s exceptional career and leadership both on and off stage is unparalleled. She is one of the world’s most celebrated dancers and the first Black woman promoted to Principal Dancer of American Ballet Theatre (ABT), a New York Times best-selling author, and a steadfast advocate for access within the arts through her work with the Misty Copeland Foundation, as well as a Board member of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts and dedicated supporter of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF) Lincoln Center West Initiative since its inception.
Across New York and the globe, Dracopoulos’ leadership resonates through innovative and impactful support of major institutions in the arts, education, healthcare, and social welfare. As Co-President of the Stavros Niarchos Foundation (SNF), he has been a leading proponent of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts’ initiatives to invite more New Yorkers into the power of the arts through artistic and community-focused activations of outdoor spaces. He was a driving force behind Restart Stages, an outdoor performing arts center created on campus in 2021 to provide safe spaces for New Yorkers to gather and help kickstart the performing arts sector coming out of the pandemic, and Summer for the City, as the lead supporter of the festival’s free programming since its launch in 2022.
“The arts are a powerful force for inspiration and connection, fundamental to who we are as a city and to how we come together in community,” said Mariko Silver, President and CEO of Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts. “We are grateful and honored to celebrate the extraordinary talent, vision, and civic leadership of Misty Copeland and the remarkable leadership of Andreas C. Dracopoulos – whose enduring commitment has helped advance our mission of ensuring people in New York and around the world feel a sense of belonging and see themselves reflected in the future we are building together.”
Tickets for the performance portion of the Summer Gala evening for the general public go on sale on Wednesday, May 20 at 12pm through LCPA’s groundbreaking Choose-What-You-Pay model. Performers and participants will be announced in the coming weeks. Check for updates at LincolnCenter.org.
As the event ushers in the summer season, it also provides critical support for Summer for the City – Lincoln Center’s premiere free arts festival, attended by more than 1.6 million visitors since its launch in 2022. The Gala will also shine a light on the SNF Lincoln Center West Initiative, a project launched in 2023 to open up the Amsterdam Avenue side of Lincoln Center’s campus. With welcoming entrances, public community gardens, and a world-class amphitheater, this Initiative reinforces Lincoln Center’s mission to make the arts accessible to all, expanding our collective imagination and creating connections and dialogue.
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