Kennedy Center’s New Year’s Eve performances canceled amid artist backlash over institution’s name change
In a dramatic climax to a tumultuous year at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, several high-profile New Year’s Eve shows have been canceled, as performers continue to withdraw in protest of a controversial decision to rename the venerable institution to now include Donald Trump’s name. The cancellations, widely reported on December 29-30, deepen a cultural and political clash over the direction of one of America’s most iconic arts venues.
Veteran jazz septet The Cookers announced that they were canceling their two scheduled New Year’s Eve concerts at the Kennedy Center’s Terrace Theater, performances that had been promoted as a fiery kickoff to the new year. In a statement, the ensemble invoked jazz’s historical roots in freedom of expression — and although the group did not explicitly name the Trump renaming decision, drummer Billy Hart acknowledged to The New York Times that the change had “evidently” influenced their choice to withdraw.
The last-minute cancellations add to a wave of similar decisions by artistic organizations this month. Doug Varone and Dancers, a respected New York-based dance company, announced it was pulling out of two performances planned for April — including a 40th-anniversary celebration scheduled at the Kennedy Center’s Eisenhower Theater — citing concerns about the institution’s new direction after senior administrative departures and the name change. Artistic director Doug Varone said the decision was “financially devastating but morally exhilarating.”
Other artists have also cancelled their upcoming 2026 performance dates – citing the name change as the reason.
The Kennedy Center’s board voted earlier in December to rename the venue The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, replacing its longstanding identity as a non-partisan living memorial to President Kennedy — a move that has been denounced by Democratic lawmakers, members of the Kennedy family, and many in the arts community as unlawful and politically motivated.
Almost immediately after the name change was announced, the Trump name appeared on the exterior of the building, placed predominantly above and before the Kennedy name (i.e., “The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts.”)
Performers who had previously canceled appearances include jazz musician Chuck Redd, who called off his annual Christmas Eve “Jazz Jams” in protest of Trump’s name being added to the center’s façade, and Alabama folk singer Kristy Lee, who withdrew from a mid-January concert, saying she could not perform “in good conscience.” Other artists across disciplines have distanced themselves from the center in recent weeks.
In response to the cancellations, Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell — a Trump ally appointed earlier this year — has sharply criticized the withdrawing artists as “far-left political activists” and dismissed boycotts as politically motivated stunts. Grenell has framed the controversy as a cultural struggle over who gets to define America’s artistic spaces, even threatening legal action and potential fines over some cancellations.
The fallout at the Kennedy Center highlights broader tensions within American cultural institutions as politics and the arts collide. As 2025 comes to a close, it remains uncertain how many more performances might be affected, even as the center prepares to enter a new year under its newly branded identity.
For more on the story, see the video accompanying this article.
~
(Sources: Reuters, The New York Times, BroadwayWorld / Newsweek, NME, Investing.com)
Posted by Richard Webster, Ace News Today
Follow Richard on Facebook, Twitter & Instagram
