Kennedy Center Revenue Crashes After Trump Hijacks Program
President Donald Trump tried to remake the Kennedy Center in his image—it appears to be backfiring.
Allison Robbert/Getty Images
President Donald Trump’s MAGA makeover of D.C.’s Kennedy Center is sputtering amid plunging sales.
Revenue from subscriptions for the upcoming season of programming is down 36 percent from last year—dropping from $4.4 million in 2024 to just $2.8 million so far this year, The Washington Post reported, citing data shared by former Kennedy Center employees and confirmed by a current staff member.
Single-ticket sales also dropped 50 percent in April and May, compared with the same period last year, according to The New York Times.
The plummeting sales suggest Trump—despite boasting at a recent board dinner that he had “eliminated DEI initiatives” and “brought back family-friendly programming that will attract large audiences once again”—may have pushed an already struggling institution deeper into financial trouble.
Revenue from theater performances, which Trump vowed to make “non-woke,” took the hardest hit, dropping 82 percent in the first two weeks of the subscription campaign compared to last year.
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More than a dozen acts canceled their planned runs in the wake of Trump’s takeover, including the wildly popular musical Hamilton—with creator Lin-Manuel Miranda stating, “The Kennedy Center was not created in this spirit, and we’re not going to be a part of it while it is the Trump Kennedy Center.”
Richard Grenell, the president of the Kennedy Center, speaks at a dinner with members of the center's board. Trump installed himself as chairman of the center in February by replacing board members with loyalists.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Trump, who in his youth dreamed of becoming a theater producer, has suggested bringing in musicals like Cats, Phantom of the Opera, and Fiddler on the Roof to replace “woke” programming.
One former Kennedy Center staffer who spoke to the Post said, “If I am the new administration, I am certainly worried by these numbers, especially the theater dollars,” noting that theater is “by far the largest driver of revenue for the center for ticket sales.”
Trump looks down from the Presidential Box in the center's Opera House after a board meeting.
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Richard Grennell, the MAGA firebrand whom Trump appointed as president of the center, has repeatedly sounded the alarm over the institution’s financial health, accusing previous leaders of mismanaging its finances.
In an effort to improve the center’s finances, Trump will attend a gala fundraiser for the center next week. Invitations offer a gold sponsorship for $2 million and silver for $100,000 the Times said, and both include photo opportunities with the president.
Following the fundraiser, Trump is set to watch a performance of Les Misérables—one of his longtime favorites, per the Times. However, at least 10 cast members are reportedly planning to boycott his attendance.
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