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Wicked composer refuses to perform at Kennedy Center: "It no longer represents an apolitical place"

Stephen Schwartz joins other artists who have refused to perform at the center since the board voted last month to add President Trump's name.

American composer Stephen Schwartz

American composer Stephen SchwartzBen Stansall / AFP

Sabrina Martin
Published by
Sabrina Martin

Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz announced he will not participate in a gala scheduled at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, becoming one of the most recognizable names to publicly voice his rejection of recent changes at the institution under President Donald Trump.

Schwartz, creator of such musicals as Wicked, Godspelland Pippin, communicated his decision Friday in an email sent by his assistant to Newsday media outlet. In that message, he expressed his disagreement with theKennedy Center's current direction.

"It no longer represents the apolitical place for free artistic expression it was founded to be. There's no way I would set foot in it now," he said.

A pre-reorganization invitation

In his statement, Schwartz noted that he had been invited to participate in the gala by Francesca Zambello, artistic director of the Washington National Opera, before President Trump pushed for the removal and replacement of Kennedy Center board members.

Zambello confirmed in a brief interview that Schwartz had long been slated to serve as host of the opera gala, scheduled for May 16.

The Kennedy Center's response

From the Kennedy Center's current leadership, Schwartz's claims were rejected. Roma Daravi, the institution's vice president of public relations, stated in a release that Stephen Schwartzwas never mentioned or officially confirmed and that no contract existed with the center's current leadership.

In the same vein, Richard Grenell, president of the Kennedy Center, wrote on social media that the reports about Schwartz were "totally bogus." He claimed that the composer never signed a contract and that he had no related conversations with Schwartz since taking over as president of the center.

A backdrop of selective cancellations

Schwartz joins other artists who have decided to cancel performances at the Kennedy Center since the board voted last month to add President Trump's name to the building. They include jazz musician Chuck Redd, who canceled a Christmas Eve concert he had performed for nearly two decades, as well as septet The Cookers, who canceled two New Year's Eve concerts. Also announcing cancellations were Doug Varone and Dancers and folk singer Kristy Lee.
The Kennedy Center continues to move forward with its programming under the new leadership, as some figures in the artistic field opt to retire voluntarily.

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