Two more acts have canceled their scheduled performances at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. This adds to the rising trend of cancellations after Donald Trump’s name was added to the venue, according to The New York Times.
The latest cancellations come from two very different parts of the arts world: a seasoned jazz septet with strong roots in music’s activist history and a New York dance company celebrating a milestone anniversary. Both pointed, either directly or indirectly, to the renaming decision as a reason for their withdrawal.
Jazz veterans The Cookers canceled two New Year’s Eve shows, and in a statement posted Monday, the group said its decision was a matter of principle. They wrote, “Jazz was born from struggle and from a relentless insistence on freedom: freedom of thought, of expression, and of the full human voice.”
Their drummer, Billy Hart, was even clearer about the reason behind the move. He told the Times that the name change “evidently” influenced The Cookers’ choice to drop out. For a group that has built its reputation on musical excellence and values linked to jazz’s history, the statement felt like more than just a scheduling change. It was a statement.
New York dance troupe Doug Varone and Dancers also canceled two performances that were set for April, which were expected to be part of the company’s 40th anniversary season. Doug Varone told the Times that the decision would cost the group $40,000, a significant loss for a dance company even in good times. Still, he explained that he felt the choice was worthwhile, writing in an email that “It is financially devastating but morally exhilarating.”
The Kennedy Center was named after my uncle, President John F Kennedy. It was named in his honor. He was a man who was interested in the arts, interested in culture, interested in education, language, history. He brought the arts into the White House, and he and my Aunt Jackie… pic.twitter.com/wcGjTp2uqa
— Maria Shriver (@mariashriver) December 18, 2025
These cancellations are the latest signs that the renaming has had consequences beyond furious voices online. Recently, other performers have also backed out of Kennedy Center appearances in protest, turning a board decision into an ongoing cultural battle that is now visible in the performance schedule.
Jazz musician Chuck Redd canceled his Christmas Eve concert, also in response to the name change. His decision drew an immediate, strong reaction from Richard Grenell, the Trump-appointed president of the center, who stated the organization would seek $1 million in damages.
In a Dec. 26 letter to Grenell, he accused the musician of harming the institution and described the protest as an act of intolerance. “Your decision to withdraw at the last moment – explicitly in response to the Center’s recent renaming, which honors President Trump’s extraordinary efforts to save this national treasure – is classic intolerance and very costly to a non-profit arts institution,” Grenell wrote.
Trump’s name was added to the center on Dec. 19 after the White House announced that the Kennedy Center board of trustees unanimously chose to rename the venue “The Donald J. Trump and The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.”
Trump’s controversial move to add his name to the national arts institution has drawn backlash from Kennedy family members. He has been criticized for what many feel is an invasion of a national arts institution that has long presented itself as a nonpartisan cultural landmark.
Regardless, the consequences are no longer just theoretical and they are evident in canceled shows, lost revenue, angry letters, and performers choosing to take a financial loss rather than share a stage under a banner they believe they cannot accept.
