Wicked Composer Pulls Out of Kennedy Center Appearance After Trump Name Change

Stephen Schwartz, the celebrated composer of the hit musical Wicked, has said he will no longer appear at the Kennedy Center following a controversial decision to include US President Donald Trump’s name in the venue’s official title.

In a statement, the Oscar- and Grammy-winning composer said the Kennedy Center, once intended to be an apolitical space for artistic expression, has now become politically charged. “Appearing there has now become an ideological statement,” Schwartz said, adding that he would not perform at the centre as long as that remains the case.

Schwartz explained that he had been invited in late 2024 by the Washington National Opera to take part in a gala scheduled for May. While he initially agreed, he said communication stopped months ago and he assumed the event was no longer happening. He later learned from a reporter that his name had appeared on the Kennedy Center’s official schedule, though it was subsequently removed.

Responding to the controversy, Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell dismissed reports of Schwartz cancelling as “totally bogus,” claiming the composer was never formally signed to perform and that no discussions had taken place since Grenell assumed the role.

Despite the denial, Schwartz maintained that the core issue remains the politicisation of the institution. “The Kennedy Center was founded to be an apolitical home for free artistic expression,” he said. “It is no longer apolitical.”

Schwartz is the latest in a growing list of artists distancing themselves from the Kennedy Center following the name change. Jazz group The Cookers recently cancelled their New Year’s Eve shows, while Doug Varone and Dancers withdrew from planned April performances, stating they could no longer ask audiences to enter the institution under its new identity.

Earlier, jazz percussionist Chuck Redd also cancelled a long-standing Christmas Eve performance. Grenell has criticised these cancellations as politically motivated, calling them examples of “derangement syndrome.”

The controversy stems from a December decision by the Kennedy Center’s board — largely made up of Trump allies — to rename the venue the Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts. The move has sparked backlash from lawmakers, legal experts, and members of the Kennedy family, who argue that the centre was named by federal law in honour of President John F. Kennedy and cannot be renamed unilaterally.

Joe Kennedy III, a former US congressman and grandnephew of President Kennedy, condemned the decision, saying the centre is “a living memorial” that should not be altered for political reasons.