Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures will host a gala fundraising event, Off the Page, on Friday, April 10 at the Priory Hotel, to celebrate the non-profit’s 35th anniversary and award its first Literary Citizen Award.
The ticketed event will be held in the Grand Hall at the Priory Hotel on the North Side. Tickets to the event are still available. Individuals who cannot attend but wish to support can do so here.
“The enthusiasm of our devoted readers and neighbors who attend the lectures shows the value and impact of Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures on our city and region,” said Sony Ton-Aime, executive director of Pittsburgh Arts and Lectures. “We envision this festive fundraising event as a way to bring the delight and inspiration of books ‘off the page’ and into a fun evening to celebrate our community and the many gifts we all take from great books and writers.”
Off the Page will also highlight the long history of the organization’s contributions to the rich literary heritage and current culture of Pittsburgh. The evening will include the presentation of the organization’s inaugural Literary Citizenship Award to novelist Jane McCafferty, a professor of creative writing at Carnegie Mellon University and the managing director of the Drue Heinz Prize from the University of Pittsburgh Press.
Pittsburgh Arts & Letters’ Literary Citizenship Award recognizes an individual whose work as an author, publisher, editor or other contributor to literary discourse resonates with the organization’s mission to connect celebrated authors with the community, elevate civic discourse, and inspire creativity and a passion for the literary arts. In addition to McCafferty’s own standing as a novelist, her oversight of the Drue Heinz Prize—one of the most significant awards for literary fiction in the United States—is work that elevates authors, discourse, and literary art.
A short after-dinner program will feature McCafferty in conversation with one of Pittsburgh’s other literary luminaries, two-time PEN/Faulkner Award-winning writer John Edgar Wideman.
In addition to a cocktail hour, dinner, and the program with McCafferty and Wideman, the book-themed event will also include a silent auction of novel packages and experiences, and dancing with music from celebrated local entertainer DJ Loyal.
“Our board members and numerous volunteers have been planning this special evening since last fall,” said Laura Klein Mullen, president of the PA&L’s Board of Directors. “Their enthusiasm reflects what I know this organization means to so many of us. I’m so grateful for the support our community has shown for our organization. Their gifts support more than the lectures; they support every moment where a person is moved to greater understanding or empathy for others, every discovery in an author or work new to them, that they encounter through our programs. That is very special.”
Series subscribers had early pre-sale opportunity to purchase tickets and sales opened to the general public on Wednesday, February 25.
WHEN
Friday, April 10, 2026 | 6-11 p.m.
WHERE
The Grand Hall at the Priory
614 Pressley Street, Pittsburgh, PA 15212
JOIN US
BUY TICKETS
DONATE
QUESTIONS?
Accessibility: clegere@pittsburghlectures.org
Registration and tickets: mcorn@pittsburghlectures.org
General inquiries: info@pittsburghlectures.org
ABOUT JOHN EDGAR WIDEMAN: John Edgar Wideman’s books include, among others, Languages of Home, Slaveroad, Look for Me and I’ll Be Gone, You Made Me Love You, The Homewood Trilogy, American Histories, Writing to Save a Life, Brothers and Keepers, Philadelphia Fire, Hoop Roots, and Sent for You Yesterday. He won the PEN/Faulkner Award twice and has twice been a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award and National Book Award. He is a MacArthur Fellow and a recipient of the Lannan Literary Award for Lifetime Achievement, and the PEN/Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story. He divides his time between New York and France.
ABOUT JANE MCCAFFERTY: Jane McCafferty is a writer in Pittsburgh, whose work has been recognized by several awards, including the Drue Heinz award, two Pushcart prizes, and the National Endowment for the Arts award. She is professor emerita at Carnegie Mellon and continues to teach for Carlow’s Madwomen in the Attic and in community settings. For the past eight years, she has been Director of the Drue Heinz prize for literature, appointed by the late Ed Ochester. Jane is currently finishing a book of stories and a novel, and lives in Highland Park.
Hosted by the Off the Page Gala Committee:
Co-Chairs Laura Mullen and Gabe Welsch
PA&L Board Members Nicola Foote, Virginia Jaramillo, Meredith Mileti, Laurie Miller Stephens, Kiya Tomlin, Rob Turner, Tahirah Walker; and
Committee Members Courtney Abegunde, Jayne Adair, Christopher Amar, Shanna Carrick, Becky Culyba, Pam Golden, Jake Grefenstette, William E. and Melissa Hallett, Sylvia Keller, Lynn and Ken Krynski, Kevin and Erin Lavelle, Allison McCarthy, Andrew Medlar, Inez Miles, Gerald Morrosco, Steve Pavsner and Judith Horgan Pavsner, Anu Reddy, Ed Simon, Janet Squires, Rachel Vinciguerra, and Lu-in Wang.
Our Sponsors
Supporting Sponsor
David C. Fredericks Honors College
Supporting Sponsor
University of Pittsburgh Library System
Supporting Sponsor
PNC Bank
Prize Sponsor
Carnegie Mellon University
In-Kind Sponsor
Dollar Bank
