{"id":224385,"date":"2026-05-08T09:59:26","date_gmt":"2026-05-08T09:59:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/224385\/"},"modified":"2026-05-08T09:59:26","modified_gmt":"2026-05-08T09:59:26","slug":"the-2026-peoples-ball-at-the-brooklyn-public-library","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/224385\/","title":{"rendered":"The 2026 People\u2019s Ball at the Brooklyn Public Library"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/93c9cb3742758c00ecdd3302bd1c7c22.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>June Ambrose &amp; Souleo Rocking the 2026 People\u2019s Ball. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"standard_paragraph\">By RUBEN NATAL-SAN MIGUEL May 7th, 2026<\/p>\n<p class=\"standard_paragraph\">The 2026 People\u2019s Ball took place on Sunday, May 3, 2026, from 7:00 PM to 10:00 PM at the Brooklyn Public Library\u2019s Central Branch. The annual free event has become an inclusive, community-driven alternative to the exclusive Met Gala, encouraging attendees from all backgrounds to \u201cstrut their stuff\u201d on the runway in outfits that express their most authentic selves.<\/p>\n<p>Co-curated by Souleo, Jakab Orsos, and Meredith Walters, the evening also featured specially commissioned awards created by artist Beau McCall.<\/p>\n<p>In honor of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, the 2026 People\u2019s Ball celebrated the enduring legacy of American fashion, with a special focus on the contributions of women and Black and Native American communities.<\/p>\n<p>Honorees:<br \/>Bethann Hardison \u2014 pioneering model and activist.<br \/>June Ambrose \u2014 award-winning creative director and costume designer.<br \/>Patricia Michaels \u2014 internationally celebrated Native American fashion designer.<\/p>\n<p>Entertainment included a performance by Tony Award winner Melba Moore and music by DJ Fritzo.<\/p>\n<p>The evening was hosted by television and radio personality Bevy Smith alongside actor Ariel Polanco.<br \/>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/88b9d2beb1a904177e9ba13fab7b2405.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Bethann Hardison &#8211; 2026 People\u2019s Ball Honoree. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/4b02286bd2b3b6548ab07ba35984164e.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Melba Moore &#8211; People\u2019s Ball 2026. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/c1b6265170da2283695f731de2266da7.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>June Ambrose &#8211; 2026 People\u2019s Ball Honoree. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/bd045a41baa6e85db3354e35604d03eb.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Souleo &#8211; Curator Extraordinaire for People\u2019s Ball 2026. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/2e1dc1899670a8aad1b4a1b08e94453e.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Bethann Hardison and Beau McCall. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/7ec000f29b81639b145ddeca1efc7bce.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Icons Bevy Smith, Bethann Hardison, June Ambrose &amp; Melba Moore. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<br \/>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a9021c1aa20ca3d2a1a96cbe76873e94.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Souleo on stage. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/2ee5bb4c786b233c62eb31604c6b149c.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Joseph McRae &#8211; People\u2019s Ball 2026. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/ada13024ffa5a80a8f0000c8b537f3a5.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Patricia Michaels &#8211; internationally celebrated Native American fashion designer at People\u2019s Ball 2026. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/3dfc8174dde8025c91a885e4d4585883.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Bethann Hardison and Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/c507fe8c31178e97e36b070246bf3646.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Proof at People\u2019s Ball 2026. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/0707415a4ae850de9d8d7b6e561604f2.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Humilit Style &#8211; People\u2019s Ball 2026. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<br \/>\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/cbcd204422f304653a93f8b4028ac4a5.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Ready to walk the runway! Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/a10be54b80af1ba0629a0f936e1e4204.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>Catwalk runway walkers &#8211; People\u2019s Ball 2026. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\"><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"img-responsive\" src=\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/86f0398708df75532631812ddd02c5ec.jpg\" alt=\"\"\/>The People\u2019s Ball 2026 at the Brooklyn Public Library. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel<\/p>\n<p class=\"image_caption\">\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"June Ambrose &amp; Souleo Rocking the 2026 People\u2019s Ball. Photo by Ruben Natal-San Miguel By RUBEN NATAL-SAN MIGUEL&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":224386,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[8360,8363,8362,98,100,99,8361,9,24,63,8359,8364],"class_list":["post-224385","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-art-magazine","tag-art-news","tag-art-show-reviews","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-contemporary","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc","tag-whitehot","tag-whitehot-art"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224385","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=224385"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/224385\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/224386"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=224385"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=224385"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=224385"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}