SouthernWorldwide.com – Representative Joyce Beatty, a Democrat from Ohio and an ex officio board member of the Kennedy Center, has accused the venue’s current leadership of intentionally allowing it to deteriorate into a “lifeless husk.” This accusation stems from the perceived failure to resume regular shows and programming at the Washington, D.C. performing arts center.
Beatty’s legal action against former President Donald Trump began in December 2025. The lawsuit was initiated after the board made the decision to install signage bearing Trump’s name alongside John F. Kennedy’s on the building.
According to a court filing on Friday, Beatty’s legal team asserts that the current board, with Trump serving as chairman, is in direct violation of a court order issued in May. They argue that the board is “refusing to take any steps to maintain the Center’s operations, and will effectively close the Center as a performing arts venue come July 5, 2026.”
“They plan to turn the Kennedy Center into a lifeless husk,” Beatty’s lawyers stated in their filing.
Lawyers representing the Kennedy Center, however, countered this assertion. They argued that the court’s order “did not affirmatively require the Board to reschedule programming that had previously been cancelled or to seek new programming.”
The order, issued by U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper, had previously prevented the Kennedy Center from proceeding with its planned two-year closure for renovations. Cooper also mandated the removal of Trump’s name from the building, a task that was completed last weekend.
Judge Cooper’s extensive 94-page order, handed down last month, did not explicitly compel the immediate resumption of shows. The order acknowledged that “at least some plans to restart rehearsals, performances and educational programming” were in place.
However, the judge did emphasize that the board “bears an affirmative duty to carry out the Center’s programming and maintain a memorial to President Kennedy. It may not simply stop putting on shows altogether.”
In response to these directives, the Kennedy Center indicated that its management would commence presenting recommendations for plans to reopen the venue.
The venue’s legal representatives stated that the board is currently evaluating several potential courses of action. These options reportedly include a complete closure with no programming, a partial closure that would permit public access to certain areas and performances in unaffected spaces, and a phased repair plan designed to reinstate a full programming schedule.
A vote to decide on these options, which have not yet been finalized, is scheduled to take place in mid-July, according to the Kennedy Center’s lawyers.
The dispute surrounding the Kennedy Center’s future began in February 2025, shortly after Donald Trump’s second inauguration as president. During this period, Trump made significant changes to the board, replacing several trustees and appointing himself as a trustee.
Subsequently, the newly formed board, with individuals allied to Trump, elected him as chairman. This position allowed him to dismiss the center’s previous president, Deborah Rutter. In a speech delivered in May 2025, Trump claimed that under Rutter’s leadership, the board had “wasted millions and millions of dollars and handed us a budget deficit of $26 million.”
“In addition, the programming was out of control with rampant political propaganda, DEI, and inappropriate shows. We had some very inappropriate shows, to put it—I think, to put it very nicely,” Trump further stated.
Also in May 2025, the board implemented a change that stripped all 23 ex officio members of their voting rights. This category of members included prominent Democrats, such as Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, as well as Trump administration officials like Secretary of State Marco Rubio and Education Secretary Linda McMahon.
In February of this year, Trump announced the intended two-year closure of the center on the social media platform Truth Social. However, this plan was subsequently blocked due to Beatty’s lawsuit.
The protracted legal and public relations saga reached a notable point on June 13, when workers began the process of removing Trump’s name from the facade of the Kennedy Center. The signage that was removed previously read, “The Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts.”
