After several performers announced they would no longer appear at the Kennedy Center—sorry, The Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts—because of President Donald Trump’s interference with the beloved venue, Trump announced on Sunday that the center would close for repairs.
Trump posted on social media that the center is “tired, broken, and dilapidated” and that it would close on July 4 for two years and undergo repairs. The center was last renovated in 2019. Trump argued that a temporary closure is needed because construction would impede artists performing there, and that ongoing performances would affect the quality of construction.
Maine Rep. Chellie Pingree was skeptical of Trump’s argument and wrote, “Trump has run the Kennedy Center into the ground, failed artists + workers, and disgraced the memory of JFK. Can’t sell tickets. Can’t book performers. So to hide his utter failure he is shutting it down for ‘renovations.’ I call BULLSHIT.”
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Trump has run the Kennedy Center into the ground, failed artists + workers, and disgraced the memory of JFK.
Can’t sell tickets. Can’t book performers. So to hide his utter failure he is shutting it down for “renovations.”
I call BULLSHIT.
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— Congresswoman Chellie Pingree (@pingree.house.gov) February 1, 2026 at 7:57 PM
Trump decided in December to put his name on the Kennedy Center, a violation of the law that has been challenged in court. The unprecedented decision to make his name a part of the venue has led to chaos within the artistic community. Performers began canceling their shows that were scheduled to take place, including musician Chuck Redd, the jazz ensemble The Cookers, and dance ensemble Doug Varone and Dancers.
Internationally famous composer Philip Glass announced in January that he was canceling the performance of his symphony “Lincoln,” scheduled for the Kennedy Center in June.
“Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony. Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this Symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under its current leadership,” Glass said in a statement.
Trump installed former ambassador and longtime MAGA cheerleader Richard Grenell as chair of the center, and he has frequently complained about the cancellations—even threatening to sue performers.
Instead of retaining its role as a leading American cultural institution, under Trump the center has become a dumping ground for MAGA-friendly pro-Trump performances. Those events do not sell tickets like a Philip Glass event.
Related | Kennedy Center morphs into free venue for Trump's friends
The Center has also become part of the Trump propaganda machine. Last week, the premiere for Melania Trump’s documentary “Melania,” financed by a convenient multimillion-dollar payoff by billionaire Jeff Bezos, was held at the center.
“To say that Melania is a hagiography would be an insult to hagiographies. This is a film that fawns so lavishly over its subject that you feel downright unpatriotic not gushing over it,” Hollywood Reporter movie reviewer Frank Scheck said of the film.
The venue’s premiere event—the Kennedy Center Honors—also suffered a setback thanks to Trump. Ratings for the broadcast fell 25% from the year before as viewers chose not to watch after Trump appointed himself as host.
The conveniently announced closure is an effective way to bury stories of performers canceling in between propaganda screenings. The Kennedy Center joins the ever-growing lineup of failed Trump ventures, from Trump Steaks to Trump Airlines to Trump University. But this time a beloved part of America’s cultural heritage is also taking a hit.
