Kennedy Center Nixes Pride Events After Trump Overhaul, Artists Left Scrambling

The Kennedy Center has abruptly pulled the plug on a week's worth of LGBTQ+ Pride events meant to coincide with the World Pride festival in Washington, D.C., following a major shakeup in leadership when Donald Trump fired the center’s top brass and installed himself as chairman, surrounded by a slate of loyalists.

Numerous artists and producers behind the "Tapestry of Pride" program—scheduled for June 5 to 8—said their events were either quietly canceled or relocated with little warning. Washington's Capital Pride Alliance swiftly cut ties with the Kennedy Center in response, calling the sudden change "disappointing" as they scrambled to find new venues.

June Crenshaw, deputy director of the Alliance, summed up the mood: "We are a resilient community, and we have found other avenues to celebrate." Still, having to reroute festivities at the last minute isn’t exactly how Pride planners like to spend their spring.

Despite the chaos, the Kennedy Center’s website still lists a generic "Tapestry of Pride" section with a link to World Pride, but not much else—almost as if someone left the decorations up after the party was already called off.

The backdrop to all this: Trump’s dramatic move in early February to oust both the president and chairman, then replace much of the board with his own picks, culminating in his own election as chairman. Many in the arts and LGBTQ+ communities saw this as a clear signal that programming at the Center would be headed in a very different direction.

The World Pride event, a biennial celebration, runs from May 17 through June 8, lighting up the nation’s capital with performances and parties. But this year, questions are swirling about what kind of welcome attendees will receive, given the recent policies and rhetoric targeting LGBTQ+ and especially transgender individuals.

Michael Roest, founder of the International Pride Orchestra, was in the final planning stages for a June 5 performance at the Kennedy Center. But days after Trump’s takeover, Roest received a terse email: "We are no longer able to advance your contract at this time." According to Roest, the Center went from "very eager to host to nothing." Undeterred, he moved the performance to the Strathmore theater in Bethesda, Maryland, but he’s not looking back—Roest says his group, and likely many others, won’t consider returning unless there’s a major public commitment to inclusivity from the new leadership.

Other events, like a drag story time and sections of the AIDS Memorial Quilt, were rerouted to the World Pride welcome center in Chinatown. Monica Alford, a longtime event planner and Kennedy Center collaborator, also saw her June 8 event evaporate after Trump’s leadership change, ending what she described as a "safe space for the queer community." She called the loss a blow not just to LGBTQ+ people, but to the entire city’s cultural fabric.

Alford emphasized her events were designed to be family-friendly and sophisticated, echoing the spirit of her popular drag brunches on the Center’s rooftop. Now, she and others are left searching for new places to keep the celebration alive.

One thing’s clear: Washington’s LGBTQ+ community isn’t letting canceled contracts kill their Pride. They’re finding new stages, new partners, and plenty of reasons to keep the party going—just maybe not at the Kennedy Center, at least for now.