More Event Cancellations Rock the Kennedy Center After Trump Slapped His Name on the Wall
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts is grappling with a growing wave of event cancellations following President Donald Trump’s controversial push to rebrand the iconic venue with his name, with a prominent New York dance company and a jazz ensemble the latest to withdraw scheduled performances.
The departures—costing organizers tens of thousands in lost revenue show deepening resistance from the arts community to what critics call an illegal and self-aggrandizing takeover of a federally established institution honoring the assassinated president.
According to a Monday report in The New York Times, Doug Varone and Dancers, a acclaimed contemporary troupe based in New York, canceled its two-night engagement planned for April. The decision inflicted a $40,000 financial hit on the company but was framed as a principled stand.
“It is financially devastating but morally exhilarating,” company founder Doug Varone told the Times.
The cancellation follows the resignation of two key Kennedy Center administrators—Jane Raleigh and Alicia Adams from its board in protest of Trump’s rebranding initiative.
Separately, the jazz ensemble The Cookers pulled out of its New Year’s Eve performance. While specific reasons were not immediately disclosed, the move comes after jazz musician Chuck Redd opted not to perform on Christmas Eve, signaling broader unease in the performing arts world.
Trump’s Rebranding Push and Legal Questions
Trump has aggressively sought to rename the Kennedy Center the “Trump-Kennedy Center,” with his name already affixed to the building’s exterior. The effort has sparked widespread backlash, with legal experts arguing it violates the center’s founding federal charter under President Lyndon B. Johnson following John F. Kennedy’s 1963 assassination.
The Kennedy Center was established by Congress as a living memorial to JFK, with its name and purpose codified in law. Attempts to alter it without legislative approval are widely viewed as unlawful, though the administration has proceeded regardless.
The rebranding has alienated artists, donors, and patrons who see it as an erasure of Kennedy’s legacy for personal glorification.
The cancellations fit an emerging pattern of cultural institutions and performers distancing themselves from Trump-associated venues. Earlier pullouts included high-profile acts citing ethical concerns over performing in a space bearing Trump’s name.
The Kennedy Center, traditionally a bipartisan symbol of American arts excellence, has seen attendance and programming disruptions since the controversy erupted. Board resignations and staff morale issues have compounded operational challenges.
Varone’s “morally exhilarating” framing reflects a sentiment among some artists: financial sacrifice is worth preserving artistic integrity against perceived politicization.
The Cookers’ withdrawal, though less explicitly stated, aligns with musicians’ growing reluctance to associate with the rebranded venue.
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What We Know About The Political Fallout
Trump’s move has divided Washington’s cultural elite, with some conservatives praising it as correcting historical imbalances, while liberals and moderates decry it as authoritarian overreach.
The center’s leadership, navigating federal funding and public expectations, faces pressure to maintain programming amid boycotts. Upcoming seasons risk further gaps if more acts follow suit.
The controversy could become a midterm flashpoint, symbolizing broader debates over Trump’s influence on public institutions as 2026 approaches.
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For now, the Kennedy Center—once a unifying cultural beacon—stands as a battleground, with empty dates on the calendar reflecting the cost of a president’s name on the marquee.
The cancellations may prove “devastating” financially, but for participating artists, they represent a stand against what they see as an unacceptable redefinition of American heritage.
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