Philip Glass and Renée Fleming are the latest artists to cancel their events at the John F. Kennedy Center For The Arts.
The Washington, DC institution has seen a steady stream of cancellations ever since President Donald Trump asserted control of the programming as part of his campaign against alleged "wokeness." All last year, artists dropped out of their scheduled performances to protest Trump, and Ben Folds resigned as the center's artistic advisor. When Yasmin Williams went through with her show despite an "insane" email exchange with Trump underling Richard Grenell, she was met with organized heckling by Trump's culture warriors.
In December, Trump's Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt announced that the center's board had voted to change its name to the Trump-Kennedy Center, though only Congress has the authority to approve a name change. The move kicked off a new wave of protests. Among other cancellations, Chuck Redd called off his Christmas Eve gig at the center (sparking lawsuit threats from Grenell), and the Washington National Opera announced its departure from the center after 55 years.
Fleming, the acclaimed soprano, resigned from her role as an artistic advisor to the Kennedy Center a year ago, but she was scheduled to perform twice at the center this May. Four days ago, the center announced she would not be performing after all due to a "scheduling conflict." Notably, when she left her advisor role, she said, "I've treasured the bipartisan support for this institution as a beacon of America at our best. I hope the Kennedy Center continues to flourish and serve the passionate and diverse audience in our nation’s capital and across the country."
Now Glass, the legendary minimalist composer, has joined the parade of cancellations. Six years ago, the National Symphony Orchestra commissioned Glass to write a symphony honoring Abraham Lincoln for the Kennedy Center's 50th anniversary in 2022. Glass missed the deadline, but his Symphony No. 15, "Lincoln," based on Lincoln's 1838 Lyceum Address, was set to premiere at the center this June. Today, he announced in a social media post that he was withdrawing the Lincoln symphony from the Kennedy Center because its current values "are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony."
Here's what he wrote in full:
After thoughtful consideration, I have decided to withdraw my Symphony No. 15 "Lincoln" from the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony. Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this Symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under its current leadership.
Despite all the turmoil, the National Symphony Orchestra has been planning to stick it out at the Kennedy Center. "We are going to make this work," Joan Bialek, the chair of the National Symphony Orchestra board, told the New York Times last week. "I was born in Washington, grew up with the Kennedy Center, grew up in the N.S.O., and I can’t let it disappear. We will make it through this."
I wonder if Glass pulling out will change her calculus at all — and where 88-year-old Glass, who was a Kennedy Center Honoree in 2018, will ultimately premiere this new work.
