Washington National Opera to leave the Kennedy Center in wake of Trump renaming

The Washington National Opera on Friday announced that it’s leaving the Kennedy Center, where it has performed for decades, in the latest high-profile departure following President Donald Trump’s efforts to reshape the iconic venue.

“To ensure fiscal prudence and fulfill its obligations for a balanced budget, the WNO will reduce its spring season and relocate performances to new venues,” the Washington National Opera said in a statement. “This is a decision centered on doing what is best for the WNO going forward after an amicable transition.”

The opera company added that it will announce new performance spaces in the coming weeks.

The Washington National Opera, the resident opera company of the Kennedy Center, has performed at the venue since it opened in 1971. In Friday’s statement, it said the “affiliation was never intended to be permanent.”

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A spokesperson for the Kennedy Center said in a statement Friday, “After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to part ways with the WNO due to a financially challenging relationship.”

“We believe this represents the best path forward for both organizations and enables us to make responsible choices that support the financial stability and long-term future of the Trump Kennedy Center,” the spokesperson said.

The New York Times first reported on the severing of ties.

While the opera company did not cite politics as a reason for its exit, the move underscores how the Kennedy Center has become a political lightning rod in the artistic community over the past year.

Trump in February announced via Truth Social that he was firing the center’s board members, including the chair, “who do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture.”

“We will soon announce a new Board, with an amazing Chairman, DONALD J. TRUMP,” he added.

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The new board elected Trump its chair in February, and last month it added Trump’s name to the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, calling it “The Trump-Kennedy Center.”

Musicians such as Béla Fleck have canceled performances at the facility, while “Wicked” composer Stephen Schwartz said he is no longer hosting a gala at the center, noting that “appearing there has now become an ideological statement.”

Members of the Kennedy family have also objected to the name change. Former Rep. Joseph Kennedy III, D-Mass., said in a Dec. 18 social media post, “The Kennedy Center is a living memorial to a fallen president and named for President Kennedy by federal law. It can no sooner be renamed than can someone rename the Lincoln Memorial, no matter what anyone says.”

Trump’s takeover of the venue is also facing a legal challenge. Rep. Joyce Beatty, D-Ohio, sued the Trump administration last month over the name change.

Beatty, who serves as an ex officio member of the center’s board, said in the suit that the center’s renaming “is a flagrant violation of the rule of law, and it flies in the face of our constitutional order.”