Top Kennedy Center exec quits, says she couldn’t do her job right under Trump

Orchestra chief says she can’t do her job

Jean Davidson, executive director of the National Symphony Orchestra, resigned on March 7 after less than three years in the role. Davidson told the New York Times she could not lead effectively in the current climate.

She told the Los Angeles Times that forces beyond her control made it harder and harder to reach her goals. Davidson had led the NSO since April 2023 and planned to stay through its 100th anniversary in 2031.

Davidson takes a new job in Beverly Hills

Davidson will become executive director and CEO of the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Beverly Hills. She starts on May 4.

Before joining the NSO, she ran the Los Angeles Master Chorale from 2015 to 2023.

Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell said he appreciated Davidson’s work building relationships with donors and patrons. Grenell also credited Davidson and her team with helping the symphony gala raise record funds.

Staff found out about big changes from the news

Davidson said communication from the new board had been limited. Staff learned about major decisions through media reports at the same time as the public.

The planned two-year closure starting July 4 was one decision she heard about that way.

The NSO performs about 175 concerts a year and has already planned its next season. The orchestra is now scrambling to find temporary performance spaces around D.C.

Trump replaced the board and took the chair

In February 2025, Trump fired members of the Kennedy Center’s existing board of trustees.

He appointed a new board that included White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles, second lady Usha Vance, and Fox News host Laura Ingraham. The new board then elected Trump as chairman.

Former ambassador Richard Grenell became president of the center. Former Kennedy Center president Deborah Rutter lost her job.

Board put Trump’s name on the building

In December 2025, the board voted to rename the center the Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. New signs went up the next day.

Legal scholars and the former Senate historian have said the renaming needs an act of Congress because federal law established the name in 1964.

Rep. Joyce Beatty, a Democrat from Ohio and ex-officio board member, filed a lawsuit in December 2025 challenging the name change. Beatty said the board muted her when she tried to object during the vote.

Trump announced a two-year shutdown for renovations

On Feb. 1, Trump announced the center would close on July 4 for about two years of construction. He estimated the project would cost about $200 million and described the building as tired and run-down.

Congress had already approved about $257 million for capital repairs through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, signed into law on July 4, 2025.

Staff and board members said they were not consulted before the announcement, which came through social media.

Artists and groups pulled out in protest

The Washington National Opera ended its residency at the Kennedy Center in January after performing there since 1971. The opera cited a new rule requiring all productions to be fully funded in advance.

The San Francisco Ballet canceled a planned five-day run in late May.

Composer Philip Glass, soprano Renee Fleming, banjo player Bela Fleck, and “Wicked” lyricist Stephen Schwartz all canceled scheduled appearances.

A touring production of “Hamilton” also pulled out of its planned 2026 run.

Kennedy Center sued a jazz drummer who canceled

On March 6, the Kennedy Center filed a breach-of-contract lawsuit against jazz drummer Chuck Redd in D.C. Superior Court. Redd had hosted the center’s annual Christmas Eve Jazz Jam since 2006.

He canceled his December 2025 performance after Trump’s name went on the building. Grenell had previously threatened to seek $1 million in damages, calling the cancellation a political stunt.

The actual lawsuit says Redd was set to earn $6,500 and asks for damages to be decided at trial.

Ticket sales dropped to post-pandemic lows

A Washington Post analysis found that from September to mid-October 2025, about 43% of seats at the center’s three main venues went unsold. During the same stretch in 2024, only about 7% went unsold.

Credit and debit card data showed ticket spending fell by more than half compared to the year before. Even during the pandemic recovery year of 2021, a smaller share of seats sat empty.

A Wall Street Journal report in early 2026 found ticket purchases dropped about 70% compared to the prior three-year average.

Lawmaker moves to block the closure in court

Rep. Joyce Beatty amended her existing lawsuit on March 7 to seek a court order blocking the closure. She asked the court to stop any steps toward closing, demolishing, or renovating the center.

The filing also seeks to guarantee Beatty can take part in a March 16 board meeting where trustees plan to discuss the closure.

Beatty argues the Kennedy Center runs on congressional funding, and Congress should have been consulted.

Sen. Lisa Murkowski, who chairs the Senate subcommittee overseeing that funding, said a temporary closure never came up when Congress approved renovation money.

NSO faces an uncertain future without a home

The NSO has called the Kennedy Center home since 1986, but it operates as a separate organization. Under its agreement, the Kennedy Center must continue funding the orchestra during renovations.

The center has said it would help find a new performance space, but details remain unclear. Davidson said the orchestra has never sounded better, but needs donors and audiences to keep showing up.

Pamela Wardell, the NSO’s director of development, said the orchestra has concerts through June and is working to stay positive.

A year of upheaval at the nation’s arts center

The Kennedy Center opened in 1971 as a memorial to President John F. Kennedy, who was assassinated in 1963. It typically stages more than 2,000 performances a year.

Since Trump’s takeover, the center has seen leadership turnover, artist boycotts, falling ticket sales, and legal challenges. Courts have not resolved the legality of either the renaming or the closure plan.

Davidson’s resignation leaves the NSO without top leadership as it faces losing the home it has had for nearly 40 years.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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