In a move described as “stolen valor” by one congressman, the performing arts center intended as a memorial to John F. Kennedy now shares billing with a living, tweeting president. The result has been less a golden age of art and more a mass exodus of performers.
What’s in a name? If you’re the board of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, the answer is apparently: a chance for a dramatic, and legally dubious, rewrite. In December 2025, the newly Trump-appointed board voted to rename the nation’s premier performing arts venue “The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”
Within 24 hours, construction crews were bolting the new name to the marble facade. The only problem? Almost everyone else—artists, the Kennedy family, legal experts, and even some board members—was busy hitting the eject button.
The Unanimous Vote That Wasn’t
The process itself was a masterclass in bureaucratic theater. President Trump, who had been elected chairman of the board after dismissing its previous members, frequently joked about calling it the “Trump Kennedy Center.” The board, now a “who’s who of loyalists” including new president Richard Grenell, made the joke a reality with a vote they called “unanimous.”
But Ohio Democratic Representative Joyce Beatty, an ex-officio board member, presented a different version of events. “I was on that call and as I tried to push my button to voice my concern… I was muted,” she stated. She has since filed a lawsuit arguing the renaming is a “flagrant violation of the rule of law,” as federal law designates the center as a memorial to President Kennedy.
The Great Cancellation Cascade
The artistic community responded not with applause, but with a resounding curtain drop. What began as a trickle of cancellations quickly became a flood, creating a stampede for the exits that has left the center’s schedule looking sparse.
A Growing Chorus of “No, Thanks”
· Washington National Opera: After 55 years as the resident company, it severed ties, citing a new “break-even” financial model as incompatible with planning opera.
· Hamilton: The touring production canceled its spring 2026 run back in March 2025, with the producer stating the administration’s purge “flies in the face of everything this national center represents.”
· Doug Varone and Dancers: eThe choreographer said the renaming “pushed me off a cliff,” leading to a canceled April 2026 show. The company raised over $42,000 in a crowdfunding campaign to offset the loss.
· Chuck Redd: The jazz musician and longtime host of the center’s Christmas Jazz Jam canceled his 2025 event. The center’s response? Threatening a $1 million lawsuit against him.
· Stephen Schwartz: The composer of Wicked withdrew as host of a 2026 opera gala, stating that appearing “has now become an ideological statement.”
The list extends to folk singers like Kristy Lee, jazz ensembles like The Cookers, banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck, and rock bands like Low Cut Connie. Artistic advisors like Renée Fleming and Ben Folds resigned from their roles.
A Clash of Visions (and Vantages)
The Trump administration frames its takeover as a rescue mission. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said the rename honored “the unbelievable work President Trump has done over the last year in saving the building,” pointing to renovations and financial overhauls.
Center president Richard Grenell has dismissed the canceling artists as “far left political activists” booked by previous leadership, accusing them of refusing to “perform for all people.” He stated the departure of the Washington National Opera would allow the center to bring in more variety from around the world.
The artists tell a different story. They speak of a cherished, non-partisan institution being transformed into a political vanity project. Doug Varone reflected that John F. Kennedy “believed in the arts as kind of the beating heart of our nation,” a spirit he feels is now absent.
The Kennedy family agrees. Joe Kenned III called the move illegal, comparing it to trying to rename the Lincoln Memorial. Kennedy’s niece, Maria Shriver, said it was “beyond comprehension,” given her uncle’s deep support for the arts.
The Ironic Finale
Presidential historian Mark Updegrove provided the sobering footnote: “We don’t want to see our president acting as the chairman of the board for the Kennedy Center.” He noted that renaming institutions for a sitting president, especially one they themselves control, is virtually unprecedented.
The ultimate irony is that in his zeal to put his name on a monument to American culture, President Trump has managed to do what decades of politics couldn’t: he has made the Kennedy Center itself a partisan symbol. The “Trump Kennedy Center” now stands not as a beacon of artistic achievement, but as a gleaming marble monument to a deeply divided cultural moment. The stage is set, the lights are on—but the performers, in a powerful act of dissent, are choosing to play somewhere else.