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President Donald Trump announced that the Kennedy Center will be closed for "approximately" two years beginning on July 4 as it will undergo "construction, revitalization, and complete rebuilding" in a post shared on his Truth Social account Sunday (February 1).
"After a one year review of The Trump Kennedy Center, that has taken place with Contractors, Musical Experts, Art Institutions, and other Advisors and Consultants, deciding between either Construction with Closure and Re-Opening or, Partial Construction while continuing Entertainment Operations through a much longer period of time, working in and around the Performances, I have determined that The Trump Kennedy Center, if temporarily closed for Construction, Revitalization, and Complete Rebuilding, can be, without question, the finest Performing Arts Facility of its kind, anywhere in the World," Trump wrote. "In other words, if we don’t close, the quality of Construction will not be nearly as good, and the time to completion, because of interruptions with Audiences from the many Events using the Facility, will be much longer. The temporary closure will produce a much faster and higher quality result!
"Based on these findings, and totally subject to Board approval, I have determined that the fastest way to bring The Trump Kennedy Center to the highest level of Success, Beauty, and Grandeur, is to cease Entertainment Operations for an approximately two year period of time, with a scheduled Grand Reopening that will rival and surpass anything that has taken place with respect to such a Facility before.
"Therefore, The Trump Kennedy Center will close on July 4th, 2026, in honor of the 250th Anniversary of our Country, whereupon we will simultaneously begin Construction of the new and spectacular Entertainment Complex. Financing is completed, and fully in place! This important decision, based on input from many Highly Respected Experts, will take a tired, broken, and dilapidated Center, one that has been in bad condition, both financially and structurally for many years, and turn it into a World Class Bastion of Arts, Music, and Entertainment, far better than it has ever been before. America will be very proud of its new and beautiful Landmark for many generations to come. Thank you for your attention to this matter!"
Journalist Maria Shriver, the niece of late former President John F. Kennedy, and Jack Schlossberg, the late former president's only grandson, both criticized Trump over his decision to temporarily close the Kennedy Center.
"Translation: It has been brought to my attention that due to the name change (but nobody’s telling me it’s due to the name change), but it’s been brought to my attention that entertainers are canceling left and right, and I have determined that since the name change no one wants to perform there any longer," Shriver wrote on her X account, along with a screengrab of Trump's Truth Social post. "I’ve determined that due to this change in schedule, it’s best for me to close this center down and rebuild a new center that will bear my name, which will surely get everybody to stop talking about the fact that everybody’s canceling… right?"
"Trump can take the Kennedy Center for himself. He can change the name, shut the doors, and demolish the building. He can try to kill JFK. But JFK is kept alive by us now rising up to remove Donald Trump, bring him to justice, and restore the freedoms generations fought for," Schlossberg wrote on his X account.
In December, the Board of the Kennedy Center reportedly "voted unanimously" to rename the natural cultural center to the Trump-Kennedy Center after Trump, according to White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt. The vote reportedly took place during a board meeting, which Trump personally called into, a source with knowledge of the situation confirmed to CNN.
The president had frequently joked about renaming the "Trump Kennedy Center" in the past prior to the reported vote. Democratic Rep. Joyce Beatty, an ex-officio board member, attempted to object to the vote but was muted prior to the meeting being adjourned, the source confirmed.