President Trump is set in the center at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts Center in Washington, DC. “We’re going to make a lot of changes,” he said earlier this month, “including seats, decorations, almost everything. It requires a lot of work.”
He directs many of those changes as follows: New Chairman of the Board. All President Joe Biden’s appointees have been replaced by Trump Allies.
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The Trump White House says Overhaul required The Marquee Arts Center is because it says “wake up and broke.”
Last month, Deborah Lutter was fired as president of the Kennedy Center after more than a decade of service. Asked if the arts institutions were broken, Lutter replied, “The Kennedy Center has the most complex financial model, and that applies to all nonprofit arts organizations.”
It has a $268 million budget and is receiving $43 million from the federal government. In 2023, the Kennedy Center had a $6 million surplus, despite not being a money-making company. “We are a nonprofit organization,” Rutter said. “It’s not meant to make money.”
That budget comes mainly from donations. Billionaire businessman and former chairman David Rubenstein gave him more than $100 million. He was also fired last month. “Leaving both of us at the same time causes concern for understanding the structure, making decisions, how to interpret our mission, and how to interpret all of that.”
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The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts was established in 1971 as a National Cultural Centre and Memorial to President John F. Kennedy. The annual honor ceremony aired on CBS features the finest music, theater and dance.
But now, conservatives accusing the center of being “too liberal” and highlight three drug events, including last year’s “Broadway Drug Branch.”
Asked if it was wrong to host a drug show, Lutter replied, “I don’t think so. I believe that everyone in America will have the opportunity to see it, and at your National Cultural Center.”
She noted that the show Trump mentioned in a social media post (he promised to “stop this”) represented three of the 2,000 performances that took place at the Kennedy Center last year.
Asked why the focus was on three drug shows, Rutter said, “I can’t really imagine it. Drugs have been around for centuries. Shakespeare played with Drug, the original Shakespeare.”
President Trump Boycotted the Kennedy Center honors during his first termafter criticism from award recipients like Norman Leah. So, what is the new chair planning now? With the audio obtained by “CBS Sunday Morning”, he proposes a new host – himself:
“The king of ratings, right? Whether we like it or not, the king of ratings! So, if I were the host of honor, if you don’t mind, we’ll be a little conservative…”
So, what kind of people does President Trump want to respect? Paolo Zampoli, a longtime friend of the president who has been on the board since 2020, said, “I have a list of people and I remember the name Pavarotti. I remember the name Andrea Boseli. They wanted to do something about Elvis Presley.”
Zampoli proposes changes to make the Kennedy Center “better”: “We’re on the Potomac River, a small marina where boats can come on weekends, and a lovely place to spend the weekend and make it a destination.
Another idea? Send art to the International Space Station. “My idea was to live a modern artist to create very small pieces of art, not Picasso, not Michelangelo, not Michelangelo,” Zampoli said.
Some artists (including those who are LGBTQ) have expressed their belief that they are not welcome at the Kennedy Center. But Zampoli said, “I don’t think the president has anything to these kinds of people. He doesn’t know what “inclusion” or “awakening” is. The Kennedy Center is accessible to everyone and must represent the American agenda. ”
Not everyone agrees. One thing you don’t see at the center is the musical “Hamilton.” Producers cancelled the show after President Trump became chairman. The President’s reaction? “I didn’t really like ‘Hamilton’. I didn’t like it. ”
There were several other famous cancellations and resignations. Also, Vice President JD Vance has won the Boo-Ed for his recent performance.
Musician Ben Fold is one of those who resigned after serving as the arts advisor to the Center’s National Symphony Orchestra. He was part of the leadership of the Kennedy Center during the first Trump administration.
Asked if there was political involvement, Fold said, “I’ve never seen anything like this. It was new and sudden. Let’s say we enter an artist who has a different view than the president. Do they feel they feel safe themselves?
And isn’t that so now? “Well, I don’t think it’s anymore,” Foles said. “There’s an instinct, an authoritarian instinct. That applies to all authoritarian times in history. Control culture and early control of art.”
“Sunday Morning” contacted the White House and Kennedy Center for this story. No one responded to the interview request.
Asked what was the most difficult part of these changes, Lutter replied, “I think the stab wounds ignored expertise and experience. We were working towards extraordinary things.”
Now, Lutter says he hopes that the institution’s founding message will be unforgettable. “I often go back to Eisenhower’s words, then Kennedy’s words and then who are we? What do we do? We believe that all Americans should be seen and welcomed at the Kennedy Center.”
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A story created by Sara Kugel and Julie Morse. Editor: Carol Ross.
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