Wife to Screen Final Performance of Late Poet Andrea Gibson

Megan Falley is returning to Maine on Nov. 12 for a sold-out event at the State Theatre in Portland. The show, titled "Andrea Gibson’s 'Love Letter From the Afterlife,'" centers on the life and work of the poet who died on July 14, 2025, from ovarian cancer. Falley, Gibson’s wife, said the event serves as a way to continue elevating their voice and message.

The centerpiece of the evening is a screening of Gibson’s final performance at the Paramount Theater in Denver in 2024. That footage will be accompanied live by the five-piece Goosebumps Orchestra. Blake Neely wrote the score for this performance. Neely also composed the music for the 2025 Oscar-nominated documentary "Come See Me in the Good Light," which follows Gibson’s cancer diagnosis and the couple’s response to it.

Gibson was born and raised in Calais, Maine. They graduated from St. Joseph’s College in Standish in 1997 with a degree in English. Before becoming a poet, Gibson was a standout basketball player. In a 1993 article for the Portland Press Herald, they described a Class C championship game for Calais High School as a "perfect ending to a perfect season." Gibson scored a game-high 20 points in that match.

Falley noted that Gibson remained connected to their hometown throughout their life. The couple visited Maine several times, including a trip to Calais a few weeks before Gibson’s cancer diagnosis. Falley recalled that Gibson was in significant pain during that visit but felt compelled to return to the place where they grew up. "I thought it was so beautiful when I went and I totally understood their love for it," Falley said.

In a 2025 interview, Falley discussed watching the Denver performance recording in May, just months before Gibson’s death. She described the experience as emotional, noting that Gibson’s health was declining. "I think that they felt like it was in many ways, between that show and the documentary, that they had accomplished what they wanted to with both," Falley said. Gibson had received their cancer diagnosis four years before their death.

Falley still resides in the home she shared with Gibson in Longmont, Colorado. She continues to manage the poet’s Substack newsletter, "Things That Don’t Suck," where she shares essays and observations. Singer-songwriter Chris Pureka, a longtime friend of Gibson, will also perform at the Portland event. The night will conclude with Falley reading Gibson’s poem, "Love Letter From the Afterlife."