A wave of high-profile cancellations has hit Washington’s Kennedy Center, dimming what’s usually a glittering stretch of year-end performances

A wave of high-profile cancellations has hit Washington’s Kennedy Center, dimming what’s usually a glittering stretch of year-end performances.

After Donald trump fired the entire board and replaced it with political allies who unanimously voted to slap his name on the building, outrage spread quickly through the arts world.

The marquee New Year’s Eve jazz celebration was abruptly called off, adding to a growing list of cancellations. Lin-Manuel Miranda’s “Hamilton” also withdrew, joining other big acts furious over the blatant politicization of one of the nation’s most respected cultural spaces.

The Kennedy Center, once a symbol of artistic freedom and unity, now feels like a vanity project draped in red-white-and-gold. Many artists are quietly citing frustration over the new leadership’s loyalty-first approach, as well as concerns about censorship and creative control. What used to be a stage for boundary-pushing performance is turning into one for political theater—and the creatives who built its reputation are heading for the exits.

Even the Kennedy Center Honors telecast, traditionally a ratings bright spot, flopped hard last week with the lowest numbers in its history. Viewers and performers alike seem exhausted by trump’s attempt to brand everything as his own.

The result is a cultural institution drained of credibility and a national audience ready to move on. I don’t think anything is going to change at the Kennedy Center until trumps name is pried off the wall and any connection he has to it is severed.