Although last week the esteemed New York institute announced it would be going ahead with its annual fundraising event, now, the Met has now revealed it will be postponing this year’s Gala, due to coronavirus. 

Slated to take place on the first Monday of May, as it has done since its inception, the news follows the instructions that gatherings of over 50 should be cancelled for the next eight weeks, as outlined by America’s Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 

Speaking in a statement, a spokesperson from the Met explained, “In deference to this guidance, all programs and events through May 15 will be canceled or postponed.”

The news follows the Met’s decision to close its doors to the public after two of its employees reported they had coronavirus symptoms. Elsewhere, a number of fashion weeks and music festivals have also been postponed due to the pandemic. 

Look back on last year’s Met Ball above. 

UPDATE MARCH 24: The Met’s Spring 2020 exhibtion, About Time: Fashion and Duration, is now schedueled to run from late October through till Februrary 2021. The date of the Gala, the red carpet event which marks the opening of the insitution’s annual show, “is still under discussion.”