Festival Napa Valley CEO/President Rick Walker and his team delivered an amazing festival this year, delivering memorable moments to all attendees and raising a record-breaking $4.5 million at the Arts For All fundraising auction and gala. My favorite highlights included several events.
First was the Grand Cru Classics (July 13) with pianist Jean-Yves Thibaudet and world class violinist Ray Chen performing with Festival Orchestra Napa, conducted by Filippo Ciabatti. The Maria Manetti Celebrates La Dolce Vita! event (July 16) honored Sophia Loren on the festival stage at Charles Krug.
It continued with a patron dinner at Raymond Vineyards, the vineyard grounds transformed into an Italian street night market with pizza stand, food stalls, gelato cart, and strolling Napolitan style musicians. The exquisite Dance Gala (July 19) featured BodyTraffic accompanied by cellist Suuvi, percussionist Ricky Matute, and composer Pedro Osuna.
That performance was followed by a patron dinner at Castello di Amorosa, where festival favorite Christina Maxwell performed Broadway showtunes, a show funded by the Suzanne Deal Booth Visual Arts Program, which brings visual arts to the live stage, creating the interdisciplinary and multisensory performances that made the evening so magical.
The crown jewel and most memorable event of Festival Napa Valley is the Arts for All Gala and Auction. The 2024 gala took place on July 14 and reached new heights, raising a record-setting $4.5 million to support access to arts education programs and to provide free or affordable concerts to the community.
Filled with fine food and wine, camaraderie, and timeless, musical enchantment, the gala contributes to a legacy for future generations, supporting access to world class performances, public school arts education programs, Festival Napa Valley’s music academies, and scholarships for students and talented emerging musicians. The gala has raised over $24 million to date and is one of the nation’s leading arts charity events.
Again, held at Nickel & Nickel Winery in Oakville this year, the gala was headlined by international superstar Lionel Richie. Renowned for his musical contributions both as a member of the Commodores and as a solo artist, Richie brought his soulful voice and charisma to the Festival Napa Valley stage, drawing more than 450 guests to their feet to dance and sing along to his timeless megahits, including “Hello,” “All Night Long,” “Easy Like Sunday Morning,” and “Say You, Say Me.”
Paired with single vineyard wines provided by Nickel & Nickel Winery, guests enjoyed an elegant dinner prepared by chef Elliot Bell, owner of Charlie’s, a family-run, community-focused, neighborhood restaurant in St. Helena. Bell served as the executive sous chef at Thomas Keller’s The French Laundry, where he spent the past decade of his career, and he also served as a volunteer firefighter for several years as a member of the St. Helena Fire Department.
The live auction, conducted by Emmy®-winning auctioneer John Curley, auctioned bespoke luxury travel, wine, and performing arts experiences. It was a chance to make memories that lasted not only all night long, but for a lifetime. The evening’s top lot was a bespoke, all-electric Maserati GranCabrio Folgore Tignanello created for Marchesi Antinori exclusively for the gala and in celebration of the 50th anniversary of Tignanello wine.
Top lots included a Festival Napa Valley-hosted trip to Japan during cherry blossom season, which generated spirited bidding and more than 30 participants including me; a four-night getaway to Bordeaux and Milan with iconic jewelry brand Pomellato; a luxurious grand tour of France as a guest of Opus One; a once-in-a-lifetime food and wine experience with renowned chef Massimo Bottura in his hometown of Modena, Italy; an invitation to the legendary Dolce & Gabbana Alta Moda; and a private concert with rising star Matteo Bocelli and dinner featuring Tusk Estate wines at Solage Resort & Spa, for which I also bought a spot.
Other unique buy-a-spot lots included a luncheon hosted by vintner Kathryn Walt Hall and daughter Jennifer Brown at Hall’s Rutherford home, a gourmet barbeque at Alpha Omega Winery hosted by Festival Board Chair Robin Baggett, and a private concert and dinner with international superstar Kate Hudson at Tusk Estates.
Other glamorous, bespoke experience lots included the red-carpet access and orchestra-level seats to the 76th annual Emmy Awards, followed by attendance to the Television Academy Governors’ Gala; premier seats to the 2025 Kennedy Center Mark Twain Prize for American Humor ceremony in Washington, D.C., with access to the exclusive opening act pre-ceremony dinner and the post-performance celebration.
Lionel Richie also donated a pop-up lot, offering VIP tickets to his Las Vegas residency and an invitation to join him backstage. Conservationist and philanthropist Nan Parks broke the record for Fund a Need with her pledge of $400,000.
Tim Busch and family, owner of Maritage Resort & Spa in Napa, donated $250,000 pledge, and joined by a $100,000 donation from arts philanthropist Maria Manetti Shrem. More than $1.2 million in Fund a Need pledges were raised, double last year’s record.
“We are grateful for our generous donors and sponsors who made this year’s Arts for All Gala such a monumental success,” said vintner Leslie Frank, gala chair and Festival board member. “Together, we are making a profound impact on the quality of life in Napa Valley and beyond.”
Festival Napa Valley’s 19th summer season takes place July 5-20, 2025. The Arts for All Gala is part of the festival’s Patron Experience and will be held on Sunday, July 13, 2025. A limited number of passes for the 2025 summer season are available by reservation at FestivalNapaValley.org.