Stars pull out of shows and positions at Kennedy Center after Trump takeover

[Wicked Blue]

Source: Guardian

Donald Trump’s takeover of the John F Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington has generated outcry from performers and members, with several stars pulling out of engagements or associations.

Trump purged the board of the arts foundation last week, clearing the group of appointees by Joe Biden. Stacked with Trump loyalists, the new board terminated the center’s president, Deborah Rutter, and installed Trump as chair. The board then named Richard Grenell, who served as ambassador to Germany during the first Trump administration, as interim president.

In response, several stars have disassociated from the center. Issa Rae, creator and star of Insecure, announced on her Instagram story on Thursday that she was cancelling her upcoming one-night-only show at the Kennedy Center. The sold-out show, An Evening with Issa Rae, was scheduled at the venue in March.

-snip-

On Wednesday, the renowned soprano Reneé Fleming said she would step down from her role as artistic adviser to the center. Though her statement did not mention Trump, she praised its ousted chair David M Rubenstein and Rutter, and said: “Out of respect, I think it right to depart as well."

Read more: https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2025/feb/13/kennedy-center-trump-issa-rae-shonda-rhimes

[crim son]

1. Who in their right mind would want to stay?

I applaud those who have decided not to indulge The Convicted Felon's fantasy that he has artistic taste.

[Wicked Blue]

5. No doubt Putin will send over some Russian performers

[Irish_Dem]

12. Turn it over to the Russian ballet. Change the name to Moscow Dancers.

[regnaD kciN]

76. Sadly, this guy died a few years ago...

?si=8WW467W9ELj840iE

[BonnieJW]

47. Wait for it

A concert with Kid Rock, Toby Keith, Lee Greenwood and The Village People.

[Haggard Celine]

51. I'd like to see Toby Keith pull that one off!

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

61. They'll dig him and do a "weekend at Bernie's" type show

[Donkees]

2. ... installed as stool

[RainCaster]

43. I love your choice of words

Stool has so many meanings. All apply.

[3catwoman3]

3. Good for them!

My late mother was the school nurse at the middle school Renee Fleming attended, and she followed her career with great interest.

[bluestarone]

4. Perfect solutionj.

[hlthe2b]

6. No performer should agree to appear. NADA. NONE.

Let Lee Greenwood appear every night for the next four years and see who shows up.

Sad as this will hurt the Kennedy Center long after Trump is dust (what a thought...

[mtngirl47]

9. He could rotate with Kid Rock, Ted Nugent, Lara Trump, Carrie Underwood

Snoop Dog, Billy Ray Cyrus, Kanye West

am I forgetting anyone?

[Dan]

15. The Circus

Staring Trump’s Cabinet with the GOP Congress as dancers.

[BonnieJW]

50. I forgot Lara.

And i said Toby Keith and meant Ted Nugent. Can you imagine who will comprise the audience? A Kennedy Center with SRO nazis

[Linda ladeewolf]

56. Hulk Hogan used to sing!

😈

[Mawspam2]

59. The Undertaker.

[Mossfern]

68. The Village People

[MLWR]

10. And no one should buy tickets to the various events there.

[Aristus]

7. Now appearing at Trump's Kennedy Center:

Pole-dancers, banjo players, the entirety of Branson, Missouri's entertainment establishment, Miss Pre-Teen America contests (swimsuit competition only), and Rob Schneider.

[OldBaldy1701E]

8. Dont forget Kid Rock!

(Gods know I have tried to!)

[radical noodle]

44. Better yet

Ted Nugent and Kanye (I'll call him "Ye" when I call the Gulf of Mexico the Gulf of America... never)

[rampartd]

60. "the body of water formerly known as the gulf of mexico" seth meyers

[pazzyanne]

55. Kid Who ...

[crim son]

18. LOL!

No Kid Rock?

[Aristus]

24. I forgot him.

That's what happens to forgettable performers.

[Ocelot II]

28. Don't forget the vocal offerings of Lara Trump!

She might threaten to sing, if that's what she calls the disturbing sounds she makes with her face.

[quaint]

67. Usually I agree with you, but dissing banjo players is a step too far.

humpf

But you get my last heart, anyway.

[Javaman]

70. Lol I was just thinking that

He’s going to turn the Kennedy center into Branson Missouri

[Onthefly]

11. T-rump can have a nightly clown show. No offense to real clowns.

[Wicked Blue]

13. He can put his enemies in pillories right on stage

and encourage the audiences to throw rotten vegetables at them.

[Irish_Dem]

14. Trump and his cabinet would like lap dancers.

[sheshe2]

48. Is Kim available?

Trump advisor Kimberly Guilfoyle reportedly offered to give a lap dance to the person who donated the most money at a campaign fundraiser
https://www.businessinsider.com/kimberly-guilfoyle-reportedly-offered-lap-dance-trump-campaign-fundraiser-2020-11

[Irish_Dem]

64. Kim is too crazy even for the Trumps. DonJr dumped her and his dad sent her to Greece

to be the US ambassador. Got her out of the country.

[IzzaNuDay]

16. This would work for a friend

They are somewhat famous in classical music and a Trumper. We’ve agreed to disagree on many topics, but common bond is music. Hope they are happy.

[Ocelot II]

29. They won't do classical music. MAGAs find it too snooty.

If it doesn't turn up on a juke box at a truck stop in Dumbfuckistan they won't have it at Trump's newly-defiled Kennedy Center.

[twodogsbarking]

17. Oedipus Rex should be the first play starring Barron and Melania.

Well that was, well, disgusting.

[Midnight Writer]

19. I, for one, am looking forward to Chachi's one man show.

A two-hour monologue covering everything from why Joanie Loves Chachi to why Charles Is In Charge.

Should be fire!

[markodochartaigh]

22. It's so sad to see all the old heart throbs who

are reich-wing. Scott Baio, Antonio Sàbato, Eduardo Verástegui, Ricky Schroder, Kirk Cameron.

[druidity33]

46. Wait...

Kirk Cameron and Ricky Schroeder were heartthrobs?

[markodochartaigh]

57. I guess I'm not that picky.

n/t

[Raftergirl]

20. I would guess most people who go see shows at The Kennedy Center will not be going anymore.

I expect touring Broadway shows will cancelled, too. Much too woke for that venue now. And it’s far from Podunk Amerika to go see a show there. Will be a pretty empty place from now on.

[Solly Mack]

21. K&R

[FakeNoose]

23. Ted Nugent is waiting for his phone call - he's a headliner!

[nwliberalkiwi]

25. Underage Girls

Right up Donnie's alley!!!

[perdita9]

26. Trump doesn't seem to know much about booking talent

Popular artists can afford to have standards. They're not going to show up to a venue if it will cause them to compromise on their pricipals.

[crud]

27. The Aristocrats appearing nightly and twice on Sunday.

[Sneederbunk]

30. Will An Evening With Kid Rock sell?

[Chipper Chat]

31. Seriously I do expect the Kennedy Family

To demand the removal of the Kennedy name. It's coming.

[serbbral]

77. I think so too

I was thinking about this last night. It is really a shame.

[TurboDem]

32. I foresee a stripper pole in the center of the stage. n/t

[Scrivener7]

33. Good for them! The felon will have plate jugglers and ventriloquists headlining in no time.

[vankuria]

34. I feel bad

I really enjoyed watching the Kennedy Center Honors, I can think of so many wonderful performances like Paul McCartney being honored and singing “Michelle” to Michelle Obama. Now this is just another place he’ll destroy and make into a MAGA amateur hour with Ted Nugent or some other vile, no talent creep.

[serbbral]

78. Me too

I used to really enjoy watching the Kennedy Awards. It was so great seeing those who had put in so many years of talent and humanitarian work receive their flowers. What a lot of Republicans call 'woke' is not the same as its original meaning. I wonder who exactly is he referring to when he talks of 'woke' people/artists.

[Beck23]

35. The National Symphony Orchestra (NSO)

Will Trump fire all the women and blacks who play in the NSO?

[sdfernando]

49. I have no doubt

and he will accuse them of "Formalism"

[Ray Bruns]

66. Nope. They are all DEI hires.

[Rebl2]

79. Hopefully

they all quit.

[Dem4life1234]

36. Fascists have no taste in creativity

Why does he think he deserves worship? He's not even a good leader.

He will turn it sleazy.

[NBachers]

37. Tickets now on sale for Kevin Sorbo and his Donkey Express!

[mackdaddy]

38. He is probably looking into renaming it the Trump Center from the Kennedy Center.

He renamed an entire Gulf don't you know...

[kimbutgar]

39. I wouldn't be shocked if changed it to the 🍑💩🤡 center

[FakeNoose]

53. Don't give them any ideas ... and that idea is terrifying

[Martin68]

40. The resistance is determined.

[off-the-clock]

41. Ok here is a problem ... Will PBS continue to showcase Kennedy Center?

If PBS say no then bye-bye PBS, if they say yes then what other crap will PBS have to showcase?

By the way there is a famous opera star who I believe is associated with Putin and maybe she'll appear there. Anna Netrebko.

[LudwigPastorius]

52. "If PBS say no then bye-bye PBS..."

The PBS network may be gone regardless of what they do with Kennedy Center broadcasts.

Now that Trump and the GOP hold the White House and both houses of Congress I don't doubt that they will try to kill the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (which funds PBS, NPR, American Public Television, and others).

If they can't kill it completely, they will defund it.

They've tried in the past, but didn't have the numbers in Congress. Now they do.

[birdographer]

42. EVERYTHING THAT TRUMP TOUCHES DIES. n/t

[sheshe2]

45. Truth.

[Norrrm]

54. They could have Snoop Dog but then they would be investigated for DEI.

[aocommunalpunch]

74. Nah.

Lapp Dogg would bring all the self-haters to the yard.

[YoshidaYui]

58. yes by all means, refuse to work

go find some where else to work,... and let all it FALL into Trumps toilet

[Yo_Mama_Been_Loggin]

62. He'll be flushing that thing forever then.

[rpannier]

63. Kid Rock will get lots of playing time

Many plays starring Voight, Gibson, and Stallone

[muriel_volestrangler]

65. Jill Biden, Michelle Obama and Hillary Clinton should resign too - Laura Bush as well

As "Honorary Chairs", it's not as if they'll have any power to alter what the Criminal Rapist does to the institution. There's no "honor" left in them being there.

[JohnSJ]

69. Good, and no artist who believes in Democracy should perform there as long as the sociopath is the chair.

[Beartracks]

71. Rightwingers will just say this proves their point about wokeness or whatever.

Assuming they actually have a point beyond petty vindictiveness.

===============

[Daleuhlmann]

72. Any Artist With Even an Ounce of Integrity Would Do the Same Thing!

No reputable artists should lower themselves to giving a command peformance for his Orange Majesty!

[TommieMommy]

73. Yep 😡. he ruins everything

[Sailingdiver]

75. the cult still has

Ted "crap muh pants" nugent and the idiot from Detroit, the Joe dirt like guy, hell i forget his name, the moron who shoots at bud light.

So I'm sure the KC will be filled.

[malthaussen]

80. Big deal. The Kennedy Center is now an organ of the State.

Any artists who perform there will be expected to convey the State's message. They neither need nor care about any who will not comply.

-- Mal

[LetMyPeopleVote]

81. Protestors take to the streets of Washington D.C. last night to protest Trump's hostile takeover of the Kennedy Center

Link to tweet

[electric_blue68]

82. Ty.