Overview
- Jazz supergroup The Cookers pulled out of two New Year’s Eve concerts, joining a wave of withdrawals that followed the Dec. 18 vote to add President Trump’s name to the venue.
- New York’s Doug Varone and Dancers canceled two April performances, citing the renaming and what the company called a takeover of the institution.
- Kennedy Center president Richard Grenell criticized the artists and threatened $1 million in damages over Chuck Redd’s Christmas Eve cancellation.
- Folk singer Kristy Lee also dropped a Jan. 14 show, and the center’s exterior signage and website now reflect the new Trump–Kennedy Center branding.
- Rep. Joyce Beatty has sued in federal court, arguing the board lacked authority to rename a congressionally designated memorial without an act of Congress.