Met Gala 2019: Everything You Need to Know

As this year’s Met Gala nears, you may need a refresher on the details. Well, we’re here to help! Read on for the odds and ends to bear in mind before the big day, from the date and the theme to the co-chairs.

When is the Met Gala?

As per tradition, the Met Gala will be held on the first Monday of May (the only day of the year besides Thanksgiving, Christmas Day, and New Year’s Day when the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Fifth Avenue location is closed to the public). This year, that’s on May 6, 2019.

What is the theme of the Met Gala this year?

The theme is “Camp.” For this year’s exhibition, Andrew Bolton—Wendy Yu Curator in Charge of The Costume Institute—drew on Susan Sontag’s seminal 1964 essay, “Notes on ‘Camp’.” The essay describes a sensibility marked by performance, excess, and a kind of winking bad taste, exemplified by figures like Oscar Wilde and outré aesthetic movements such as Art Nouveau. Among the pieces on display will be dazzling looks from Off-White, Schiaparelli, Moschino, Dior, Thom Browne, and lots more.

The show will be quite a departure from last year’s extravaganza, which considered fashion’s dialogue with religious art and costume; as with 2017’s tribute to Rei Kawakubo. But Bolton and his team at the Met have been known to find fashion inspiration in all kinds of wonderful places.

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What’s the dress code?

The invitation calls for “Studied Triviality,” a phrase borrowed from a quote by Wilde. In a 1895 interview, the poet and playwright described his camp masterpiece The Importance of Being Earnest as “exquisitely trivial, a delicate bubble of fancy, and it has its philosophy. . . . That we should treat all the trivial things of life very seriously, and all the serious things of life with sincere and studied triviality.”

Although guests have historically played fast and loose with the theme, this one leaves a lot of room for fun—raucous color and exciting silhouettes should be in high supply under the tent.

Who will be there?

Each year, the best and brightest from the worlds of fashion, music, film, sports, and much more descend on the Met for the gala. While the particulars of the guest list are kept secret, the co-chairs are not: In 2019, Lady Gaga, Harry Styles, Serena Williams, and Alessandro Michele of Gucci (which is serving as a co-sponsor) will join Anna Wintour at the top of the museum steps, greeting guests as they arrive.

When can you see the exhibition?

“Camp: Notes on Fashion” opens to the public at 1000 Fifth Avenue on Thursday, May 9 and closes on September 8—but you can already take a peek at its glorious accompanying catalogue. |||

How do I stream the Met Gala red carpet?

The night of the Met Gala, when the stars arrive, Vogue (@voguemagazine) will stream the carpet on Instagram Live. It's the best place to see exclusive celebrity interviews and red carpet coverage as it happens in real time. Our Vogue Instagram Stories will offer a behind the scenes look at the Met Gala. Check out Vogue's Twitter account for minute-to-minute updates on all Met Gala happenings. Our red carpet slideshow will be produced in real time as the stars descend upon the steps of the Met and around 5:30 PM you can find that on Vogue.com.

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