The Washington National Opera decided on Friday to walk away from the Kennedy Center as its performance home after more than 50 years, in a sharp rebuke to President Trump’s sweeping changes to the institution.
The decision by the storied opera company to leave the Kennedy Center was confirmed to The Hollywood Reporter by a spokesperson for the nation’s premier arts venue on Friday evening. A resolution to depart was approved by the Washington National Opera’s board of trustees; a representative for the arts center said the decision ultimately came down to budget challenges.
“After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to part ways with the WNO due to a financially challenging relationship,” the representative said. “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 decision was not unanimous and has led to internal strife among board members.
“There were disagreements among the board on whether to disaffiliate or not. Some WNO board members are resigning,” one of the Kennedy Center’s 37 board members, who asked to remain anonymous, said in a statement sent to THR.
After severing ties with the Kennedy Center and vacating the center’s 2,364-seat opera house, the WNO will resume operations as a fully independent nonprofit entity. Opera officials told The New York Times that new performance sites in the capital have been identified, though no lease has yet been signed.
Shortly after retaking office last January, President Trump fired several Kennedy Center board members and installed individuals aligned with his mission to overhaul the cultural institution in his image. He was soon named chairman, with his close ally, Richard Grenell, appointed executive director. In December, a name change was announced: the institution built to honor President John F. Kennedy after his 1963 assassination would be renamed the Trump-Kennedy Center.
For many artists scheduled to perform at the Kennedy Center this season, the changes were a bridge too far, leading to widespread cancellations. Protests from patrons and donors followed, contributing to declining ticket sales and funding. Officials said the WNO’s exit will occur as soon as possible, with a revised season schedule expected to be released shortly.
Francesca Zambello, the opera’s artistic director, said in November that the upheaval resulted in a 40 percent drop in ticket revenue.
Founded in 1957, the Washington National Opera has called the Kennedy Center home since the building opened in 1971, eight years after Kennedy’s assassination. Under Grenell’s leadership, the center has mandated that all National Symphony Orchestra performances open with the national anthem; Grenell even conducted one performance himself. His directives have also required productions to be revenue-neutral — an expectation widely viewed as unrealistic given the high cost of mounting a classic opera to the Kennedy Center’s standards.
This year’s Kennedy Center Honors ceremony was hosted by Trump and spotlighted Sylvester Stallone, Kiss, Gloria Gaynor, Michael Crawford and George Strait as honorees. The show was taped on Dec. 7, where Trump anticipated that the broadcast would draw in the best ratings yet. Nielsen Live + Same Day Panel + Big Data reported the 2025 Kennedy Center Honors averaged 4.1 million viewers, meaning this year’s show dropped 26 percent in viewership year-on-year.
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