Kennedy Center Honors Adding "Trump" to Name, Moving to Smaller Venue

To the surprise of absolutely no one who’s been keeping track of Donald Trump’s sweeping changes to the Kennedy Center, the annual Kennedy Center Honors have been renamed the Trump Kennedy Center Honors. Richard Grenell, the interim president of the performing arts venue, revealed the rebranding in a recent interview with DC news station WTOP. Grenell said that even though the venue will close this summer for a two-year renovation period, the annual ceremony will still take place under its new name, the Trump Kennedy Center Honors — albeit at a smaller venue. “It will definitely go forward,” Grenell said. “It will probably just be in a smaller venue, which just means ticket demand will be even higher.” He added that a new location has “yet to be determined,” but “we’re already looking for different places.” Advertisement Related Video After returning to the Oval Office, Trump installed himself as chair of the Kennedy Center’s board; not long after, a group of his own appointees unanimously voted to change its name to The Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. In the wake of the chaos, ticket sales reportedly plummeted in recent months and dozens of artists, including the Washington City Opera and Philip Glass, canceled their performances at the venue. Amid the wave of cancellations, Trump announced that he would be closing the center for “construction, revitalization, and complete rebuilding.” However, Maria Shriver, the niece of former President John F. Kennedy, speculated that the renovation was actually tied to the many artists withdrawing from their scheduled appearances at the venue. The first Kennedy Center Honors under Trump’s leadership, featuring handpicked recipients including KISS, Gloria Gaynor, George Strait, Sylvester Stallone, and Michael Crawford and emceed by the president himself, drew the lowest ratings in the program’s history. Advertisement Load More