Todd Moe (Provided photo — NCPR)

SARANAC LAKE — Todd Moe, who retired from North Country Public Radio in June after 24 years on air with NCPR, will be celebrated at the Pendragon Theatre’s Summer Gala on Aug. 16.

The gala will be held 5:30 to 8 p.m. at the Paul Smith’s College Visitors Interpretive Center. The theme for the event is Year of the Dragon.

Before retiring, Moe had served as the local host of the NPR news magazine Morning Edition since 2000, waking up almost every day at 4 a.m. to travel to work and host the show, NCPR reported in March. Moe started his career at NCPR as a general assignment reporter in 1998. He has a long history of telling the story of arts throughout the North Country region throughout his decades at the station.

This year’s gala will be a return to Pendragon’s traditional gala format. Pendragon took a few years off from the event because of the coronavirus pandemic, then held a few smaller-scale, more relaxed gatherings.

The gala will celebrate the arts and the Saranac Lake area community. The evening will include dinner and drinks, both live and silent auctions, performances by Pendragon artists, music by local band At A Moment’s Notice and a special tribute to Moe.

“The Year of the Dragon theme was a natural fit as the Year of the Dragon is said to bring auspicious opportunities and exciting advancements,” a news release from Pendragon reads. “The Pendragon team is embracing this as they embark on a journey to build a new theatre.”

Pendragon Theatre’s home has been on Brandybrook Avenue for most of its four-and-a-half decade lifespan. The theater is set up to move to a currently abandoned building at the corner of Church and Woodruff streets, formerly an A & P Supermarket. Pendragon board members, state and local elected officials participated in a groundbreaking ceremony for the new location on July 2. Pendragon administrators hope to finish fundraising and get construction started this year.

Tickets for the gala are available at pendragontheatre.org. All funds raised through the event will support the year-round professional theatre’s operating budget.

Pendragon is mid-way through its summer season, with a production of “The Little Mermaid Jr.” playing Aug. 8 to 18 featuring local children who participate in the popular Camp Pendragon youth program. A world premiere play, “Tracks,” will be on the stage at Pendragon’s current home Sept. 3 to 7, and then will travel to New York City for an off-Broadway run.

The company recently completed a run of “The Marvelous Wonderettes,” a series of staged readings held throughout the area, and a two-night return of this winter’s production of “Guys and Does.”