Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures brings major authors to the city through five event series—Evenings, New & Noted, Made Local, Poets Aloud, and Words & Pictures—and runs a program called Authors to Schools to bring visiting authors to local students. The organization also gives away thousands of free books, hosts the Western Pennsylvania Book Read, and provides a forum for people of the region to think about and discuss timely and important ideas. Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures’ total reach is 22,000+ adults and children per year.
About Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures
The mission of Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures is to connect celebrated authors with the community, elevate civic discourse, and inspire creativity and a passion for the literary arts.
Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures’ programs are often life-changing for children. For example, when children’s author Sharon G. Flake came for Authors to Schools in 2025, a diverse group of 280+ children from several schools came together at the Community College of Beaver County to meet her. Before she went up on stage, Ms. Flake walked through the crowd, connecting with the children individually by talking about the characters in her books, and asking if they had similar thoughts and feelings. Later, after Ms. Flake finished speaking, dozens of children lined up at the microphone, eager to keep talking with her.
Get Involved
Readers can subscribe to attend Ten Evenings events, buy or reserve tickets for other events—which are often free and include books with the ticket price—sign up for the Western Pennsylvania Book Read (which is going through March of 2027), or volunteer.
How Support Helps
A community of hundreds of readers who make modest donations makes it possible for Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures to host events, run programs, and give away books. Supporters can bring the world’s greatest authors to Pittsburgh and share reading with others by making a donation.
To donate, visit pittsburghlectures.culturaldistrict.org/donate-now/donations.
Story and Photography by Pittsburgh Arts & Lectures
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