WASHINGTON D.C. (CelebrityAccess) — Hamilton, the smash-hit touring Broadway theatrical about the birth of American democracy, has pulled out of a planned performance at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., after the abrupt takeover of the American arts institution by the Trump administration in February.
Hamilton was scheduled to appear at the Kennedy Center in 2026 as part of the institution’s celebration of the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
Last month, newly inaugurated U.S. President Donald Trump ignored decades of precedent when he fired the leadership of the Kennedy Center, including longtime President Deborah Rutter and Chair David Rubenstein, and appointed a new board of directors that appeared to consist entirely of loyalists, who proceeded to elect Mr. Trump as the new Chairman of the organization.
Since then, numerous artists have canceled events at the Kennedy Center, including actor and producer Issa Rae, singer-songwriter Rhiannon Giddens, the rock band Low Cut Connie, and author Louise Penny.
In a joint interview with producer Jeffrey Seller, Hamilton creator Lin-Manuel Miranda told The New York Times the decision was prompted by the changes at the arts institution. “This latest action by Trump means it’s not the Kennedy Center as we knew it,” Miranda told the newspaper. “The Kennedy Center was not created in this spirit, and we’re not going to be a part of it while it is the Trump Kennedy Center. We’re just not going to be part of it.”
“It became untenable for us to participate in an organization that had become so deeply politicized,” Seller added. “The Kennedy Center is for all of us, and it pains me deeply that they took it over and changed that. They said it’s not for all of us. It’s just for Donald Trump and his crowd. So we made a decision we can’t do it.”
A statement from Hamilton producer Jeffrey Seller was shared on Hamilton‘s social media:
“Political disagreement and debate are vital expressions of democracy. These basic concepts of freedom are at the very heart of Hamilton. However, some institutions are sacred and should be protected from politics. The Kennedy Center is one such institution.
The Kennedy Center was founded over 50 years ago with a sincere bipartisan spirit. Indeed, it was founded during the administration of President Dwight Eisenhower, named after President John F. Kennedy, and opened in 1971 under the administration of President Richard M. Nixon. The Kennedy Center was meant to be for all Americans, a place where we could come together in a celebration of the arts. Politics have never affected the presentation of thousands of shows and the display of extraordinary visual arts.
However, in recent weeks we have sadly seen decades of Kennedy Center neutrality be destroyed. The recent purge by the Trump administration of both professional staff and performing arts events at or originally produced by the Kennedy Center flies in the face of everything this national cultural center represents. This spirit of nonpartisanship ended on February 7, 2025, with the firing of Kennedy Center President Deborah Rutter, the Chairman of the Board David Rubenstein, and numerous other Kennedy Center board members, as well as the cancellation of important programming. These actions bring a new spirit of partisanship to the national treasure that is the Kennedy Center.
Given these recent actions, our show simply cannot, in good conscience, participate and be a part of this new culture that is being imposed on the Kennedy Center. Therefore, we have canceled the third engagement of Hamilton at the Kennedy Center, originally scheduled for March 3 – April 26, 2026.
Hamilton was proudly performed at the Kennedy Center in 2018 during the first Trump administration. We are not acting against his administration, but against the partisan policies of the Kennedy Center as a result of his recent takeover.
Our cancellation is also a business decision. Hamilton is a large and global production, and it would simply be financially and personally devastating to the hundreds of employees of Hamilton if the new leadership of the Kennedy Center suddenly canceled or re-negotiated our engagement. The actions of the new Chairman of the Board in recent weeks demonstrate that contracts and previous agreements simply cannot be trusted. This is sad because basic integrity and the rule of law have long been great American principles that help serve as the foundation for our nation.
I have personally loved the Kennedy Center since touring it as a seventh grader in 1977, along with the Lincoln Memorial and the Jefferson Memorial. I watched the first Kennedy Center Honors in 1978. Regardless of the political climate, I always felt at home at the Kennedy Center, and I am grateful for every person who has spent the last 50 years making it a beacon of nonpartisanship and celebration. But we cannot presently support an institution that has been forced by external forces to betray its mission as a national cultural center that fosters the free expression of art in the United States of America.”
