Kennedy Center Cancelations Mount After Donald Trump's Takeover of Historical Venue

The curtain is falling early on a growing number of performances at the newly rebranded Trump-Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts.

In the latest high-profile withdrawal, the San Francisco Ballet announced it would cancel its planned five-day run at the Washington, D.C., venue in May. The decision adds to a mounting list of artists distancing themselves from the institution following President Donald Trump’s sweeping takeover and renaming of the historic arts center.

“SF Ballet looks forward to performing for Washington, D.C., audiences in the future,” the company said in a statement to The New York Times, offering no further comment.

Richard Grenell, the Trump appointee now serving as president of the center, did not hide his frustration.

“Professional artists should perform for everyone — not just for people they agree with politically,” Grenell told The New York Times.

Previously, after Grammy-winning bluegrass musician Béla Fleck withdrew from a January performance, Grenell posted on X: “You just made it political and caved to the woke mob who wants you to perform for only Lefties.”

Center leadership has insisted it has not canceled performances. “We have not canceled a single show,” Roma Daravi, vice president of public relations at the Trump-Kennedy Center, told USA TODAY in January. “Leftist activists are pushing artists to cancel, but the public wants artists to perform and create — not cancel under pressure from political insiders that benefit from creating division.”

Still, the list of artists stepping away continues to grow.

Composer Philip Glass withdrew the world premiere of his Symphony No. 15, “Lincoln,” writing on social media: “Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the symphony. Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under its current leadership."

Issa Rae canceled a sold-out appearance, stating on Instagram: “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.”

Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz also bowed out of hosting a gala, saying the center “no longer represents the apolitical place for free artistic expression it was founded to be. There's no way I would set foot in it now.”

Others who have canceled include Renée Fleming, Shonda Rhimes (who resigned from the board), the touring production of Hamilton, Martha Graham Dance Company, Rhiannon Giddens and several additional performers and ensembles.

Critics argue Trump politicized the venue by renaming it and appointing himself chairman, while Trump has described the building as “tired, broken, and dilapidated,” pledging a two-year closure beginning July 4 for “Construction, Revitalization, and Complete Rebuilding.”

As ticket sales reportedly decline and programming shifts, the Kennedy Center has become a symbolic battleground over art, politics and free expression.