Donald Trump, now serving as board chair of the Kennedy Center, is well into his overhaul of the cultural institution. On February 7th, he fired dozens of board members, appointed himself to the top role, and dismissed Deborah Rutter from her position as president—a role she held for 11 years. Now, Trump has reportedly begun storyboarding the shows he wants to produce in Washington, D.C.
According to audio of a board meeting meeting obtained by The Washington Post, the 47th president would like the Kennedy Center’s programming to go “slightly more conservative.” He specifically cited, as examples, “non-woke” musicals, such as Cats, Fiddler on the Roof, Phantom of the Opera, and more.
Cats was written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and follows a group of felines (portrayed by cast members as anthropomorphic creatures) as they prepare for the Jellicle Ball, where they decide on a tribe member to leave their current realm and rise to a utopian heaven-like existence. The production is famously rooted in non-woke themes of empathy, diversity, and social inclusion. During the board’s meeting, the president expressed deep admiration for the show, recalling his first memories in seeing the musical.
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But as MSNBC culture critic Rebecca Ritzel points out, Trump might be sorely disappointed to learn that most of the musicals on his wishlist including Cats are not currently touring in America. The board also mentioned exclusively producing shows that are non-equity, meaning they wouldn’t be represented by the Actors’ Equity labor union. However, again, they’d run into issues staging Trump’s beloved musicals without labor contracts.
Trump has also reportedly proposed expanding the nomination process for the annual Kennedy Center Honors. Among his suggested honorees are Elvis Presley (“Elvis sells better as a dead man,” he allegedly said), Babe Ruth, Sylvester Stallone, and others. Traditionally, the Honors celebrate living figures in the performing arts, but Trump wants to broaden the criteria to include politicians, executives, posthumous figures, and what he describes as “slightly more conservative” individuals.
The Kennedy Center is a not-for-profit institution, and with Trump’s recent upheaval of the Center, most regular duties hang in limbo. Beyond the firings and dismissals mentioned above, deadlines to announce the next round of programming have been missed. Performers have pulled out of shows and members of the institution have resigned, including Ben Folds, Renée Fleming, and now former treasurer Shonda Rhimes. Richard Grenell was appointed by Trump to takeover Rutter’s position, and the Center was set to host a two-month production of Hamilton, but plans were canceled after producers pulled out.
“Our show simply cannot, in good conscience, participate and be a part of this new culture that is being imposed on the Kennedy Center,” Jeffrey Seller, producer of the musical, said in a statement on social media. For his part, Trump said he “doesn’t like Hamilton very much.”
