Overview

• President Trump installed loyalists on the Kennedy Center board in February, firing its longtime director and naming himself chairman to reshape programming along conservative lines.
• Overall subscription revenue for the 2025–26 season has dropped 36 percent and theater subscriptions have plunged 82 percent amid artist and patron backlash.
• Several touring productions, including Hamilton, and artists such as Issa Rae and Rhiannon Giddens canceled appearances in protest of the leadership changes.
• At least a dozen Les Misérables cast members boycotted Wednesday’s performance, which featured fundraising packages priced from $100,000 to $2 million with pre-show receptions and presidential photo ops.
• The center’s long-term financial stability remains in doubt as ticket sales decline and cancellations mount despite White House assurances of a revitalization effort.