Kennedy Center, Washington
Last week was a dark one for the arts life in the US. AH Trump took control of one of the most important and until now nonpartisan arts institutions in the country, the Kennedy Center in Washington.
He fired most of the high level administrate staff and replaced those experts by a new leadership, which has no expertise or experience in the arts, as he does himself too. According to what he said, he’s never even been to an performance at the Kennedy Center.
In the end, it doesn’t matter what happens at the Kennedy Center as long as everything is in line with his political ideas. The most important might be his order to purge diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives from the federal government and institutions like the Kennedy Center.
The Washington Post asked two questions: « Can Donald Trump destroy the Kennedy Center? Or will he use it in the usual way that authoritarians have used the arts in the past, as a vehicle for Trumpian propaganda? The answer to the first question is decidedly yes, he can destroy the center… »
The Federal Government just pays for the building’s operations and maintenance, which means for 16% of a $268 million budget essentially funded by ticket sales and private donations, $95 million in 2024.
Now it is AH Trump’s responsibility to keep those funding coming. And also the public is an important factor. Being now labeled a Trump Center, many people could start avoiding and boycotting the events in the Kennedy Center. So will do a number of artists. Some of them have begun backing out of scheduled appearances.
The actress, comedian and television producer was the first major artist to say last Thursday that she was backing out of a Kennedy Center engagement, canceling her sold-out show: “Unfortunately, due to what I believe to be an infringement on the values of an institution that has faithfully celebrated artists of all backgrounds through all mediums, I’ve decided to cancel my appearance at this venue,” she said on Instagram.
Amanda Rheaume, a lesbian Canadian singer-songwriter, said she backed out of her April 5 performance at the Kennedy Center after learning Trump was the new chairman. “I was excited to be booked at renowned The Kennedy Centre. The USA is a major music market, and bookings at these well-known places, are advantageous to audience and career, but I cannot in my right heart bring myself, my songs, my stories to a place he is involved in.”
On the other hand, it looks like performances that are not in line with AH Trump’s ban on LGTBQIA+ will be cancelled. Like a children’s musical (Pizzicato report) or a National Symphony Orchestra concert described as a “celebration of love, diversity, and the vibrant spirit of the LGBTQ+ community” that was scheduled to take place during World Pride 2025 and has now has been removed from the Center’s website.
It could happen that AH Trump will have no further time to devote to the KC, so that the institution simply will slow down and become worthless. One of the Trump aids, Stephen K. Bannon, proposed scheduling a performance by the J6 Prison Choir, an ensemble of convicted criminals who participated in the Jan. 6, 2021, insurrection at the United States Capitol. Go and listen to that bunch of would-be singers
Another topic is important: Today, in the United States, it is no longer easy to speak out loudly against AH Trump. Most of the arts leaders who comment negatively about what is going on at the Kennedy Center speak on the condition of anonymity because they feel it is no longer safe to speak freely about art and culture in the US. It’s almost like in Russia.
“The arts community probably breaks down like the rest of America,” says Jamie Bennett, the interim co-CEO of the national advocacy group Americans for the Arts.
