Because of Trump
World-famous composer cancels premiere of work at Kennedy Center
Updated on January 28, 2026 – 12:03 p.mReading time: 2 minutes
The Kennedy Center in Washington, DC is famous for music, dance and theater. But since US President Trump has exerted influence there, cancellations from artists have increased.
After US President Donald Trump took control of the renowned John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington, DC, world-famous composer Philip Glass has canceled the premiere of his new symphony there.
The cultural institution had commissioned the 88-year-old to compose a piece about the former US President Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865), which was to be premiered there in June. However, the current values of the Kennedy Center are in conflict with its “Symphony No. 15,” Glass wrote in a letter that he also published on the online platform X. That’s why he won’t have the work performed there.
Numerous other artists and groups had previously canceled performances at the Kennedy Center – including actress Issa Rae, the musical “Hamilton”, banjo player Béla Fleck, opera singer Renée Fleming, the Martha Graham Dance Company and “Wicked” composer Stephen Schwartz. There was also a recent cancellation from the Washington National Opera, which has been performing there since 1971.
Shortly after taking office, US President Trump fired several members of the Kennedy Center’s board of trustees, took over the chairmanship himself and made the former US ambassador to Germany, Richard Grenell, president of the institution. At the time, he justified the move by saying, among other things, that the institution was too “woke”. He recently renamed the center The Trump Kennedy Center.
All genres of theater, dance and music are traditionally shown in the magnificent building on the Potomac River, which opened in 1971. It was named after the former US President John F. Kennedy (1917–1963).
