Billy Porter and More to Be Honored at Elizabeth Taylor Night of Compassion

The Elizabeth Taylor AIDS Foundation (ETAF) revealed award-winning actor, activist and fashion icon Billy Porter will receive The Elizabeth Taylor Legacy Award and Vanity Fair will receive The Elizabeth Taylor Commitment to End AIDS Award at The Elizabeth Taylor Night of Compassion on September 17, 2026, at The Beverly Hills Hotel. Hosted by CNN's Laura Coates, the evening will feature a performance by Grammy and Tony-nominated singer and actress Deborah Cox.

Billy Porter

Billy Porter is an award-winning actor, singer, director, producer, composer and playwright. He won the Emmy Award for Outstanding Lead Actor for his role in FX's acclaimed drama Pose, a role that earned him three Emmy nominations in total. A Hollywood Walk of Fame inductee, Porter has an extensive list of theatre credits, including originating the role of 'Lola' in the Broadway musical Kinky Boots in 2013, which won him a Tony Award, Drama Desk Award, and Outer Critics Circle Award, as well as a Grammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album. He won his second Tony Award in 2022 as a producer on A Strange Loop, which won Best Musical, and his third Tony Award in 2024, receiving the Isabelle Stevenson Tony Award for his activism and contributions to the LGBTQ+ community. Recently, Porter starred as the Emcee in the Broadway and West End revivals of Cabaret. Upcoming, Porter will be seen in The Hunger Games: Sunrise on the Reaping, as Magno Stift.

Vanity Fair

Vanity Fair changed the conversation related to HIV/AIDS when it published its November 1992 issue featuring Elizabeth Taylor holding a condom. Since that time, the world-renowned publication has stood with not only people living with HIV, but also has been a staunch advocate for LGBTQ rights. They have tirelessly used their platform to amplify values similar to Elizabeth Taylor's, demonstrating compassion and courage. As recently as February 2026, they allowed the foundation to take over its website homepage to bring attention to the stigma, discrimination and criminalization that still exists in HIV/AIDS communities.

Deborah Cox 

Deborah Cox is a Grammy and Tony-nominated recording artist, Broadway performer and Canadian Music Hall of Fame inductee whose career spans music, theater, television and film. She is currently starring in Titanique on Broadway as “Unsinkable” Molly Brown and also serves as a producer for the production. An internationally celebrated vocalist, Cox has achieved six Top 20 Billboard R&B singles and an extraordinary 13 No. 1 hits on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play Chart, earning her a place at No. 23 on Billboard's “Greatest of All Time Top Dance Club Artists” list. Deborah received a Grammy nomination in 2025 for The Wiz (Best Musical Theater Album), in which she starred as Glinda and served as co-producer of the theatrical production, underscoring her continued impact on both the stage and in the recording arts.

The Elizabeth Taylor Night of Compassion will include a curated reception and culinary experience, a live performance, and an exclusive preview of rare items from The Elizabeth Taylor Archive.