Conan O'Brien to be honored at Irish Arts Center gala in New York City

The Irish Arts Center (IAC), based in New York City, has announced that it will honor Irish American comedian Conan O'Brien at its 26th annual Spirit of Ireland Gala this November.

O’Brien will be honored alongside Robert A. Bradway, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Amgen, a worldwide pioneer in biotechnology, at the gala event at Chelsea Piers on Friday, November 7.

The gala, organizers said, will celebrate the future of Irish and Irish American artists and raise support for the nurturing and multifaceted hub IAC offers them.

Special tributes are also planned to longtime honorary chair Loretta Brennan Gluckman and virtuosic freestyle entertainer Kelley James, with a special performance by the revolutionary all-female Irish traditional supergroup BIIRD.

Each year, Irish Arts Center presents the Spirit of Ireland Award to individuals who embody the spirit of the Irish: tenacity, creativity, resilience, integrity, humor, charisma, indomitability, and a unique talent for storytelling.

Previous recipients and presenters of the Spirit of Ireland Award include Meryl Streep, Ed Sheeran, Bono, Sting, Elvis Costello, Maureen O’Hara, Roma Downey, Hozier, Stephen Colbert, Jimmy Fallon, Jean Butler, Daniel Day Lewis, Ralph Fiennes, Steve Martin, and Cassandra Wilson, to name but a few.

The gala’s honorary chairs are Academy Award-nominated actor Liam Neeson and Golden Globe-winning actor Gabriel Byrne.

“Four years after opening our magnificent new building, this year’s Gala comes at a major inflection point for Irish Arts Center as we accelerate plans to complete the 51st Street/Phase Two of our project," Irish Arts Center Executive Director Aidan Connolly said.

"We couldn’t be happier to celebrate this moment by honoring the wonderful Conan O’Brien, who has brought so much joy into the world over his four-decade career, and Robert Bradway, one of America’s great CEOs, who has given so much to Ireland and to science.

"With a robust program of tributes and performances, our 26th annual Gala is sure to be another night of great craic and celebration.”

The Spirit of Ireland Gala is the Irish Arts Center’s largest fundraiser of the year, with proceeds supporting the Center’s programming and operations, which, since opening its new 11th Avenue building, has helped more than 1,000 artists reach more than 100,000 audiences, with significant acclaim including numerous Critics’ Picks and seventeen features or reviews in The New York Times.

The Gala also coincides with significant progress to be announced on IAC’s Phase Two plans to redevelop the Center’s original, adjacent 51st Street home as a second, flexible venue for intimate performances and residencies, and to secure the future of the organization.