Trump announces Kennedy Center to close for two years for renovations

Donald Trump announced the temporary closure of the Kennedy Center for two years. As the president explained on his Truth Social account, the objective is to carry out a series of renovations at the historic Washington, D.C., theater. The closing is scheduled for July 4, although the board's approval, recently formed by the president, is still pending. Among them are Lee Greenwood, Paolo Zampolli and Attorney General Pam Bondi.

At the beginning of his second term, in March 2025, Trump had criticized the condition of the iconic D.C. theater, citing "tremendous deterioration" resulting from "mismanagement."

As the president explained on his social network, the decision was taken after consultation with "contractors, musical experts, artistic institutions and other advisors," who understood that, to guarantee a better result in less time, the most reasonable option was closure.

"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!" he explained.

At the same time, the Republican assured that the funds for repairs are already available. It is unclear whether it is new private donations or the $257 million approved in the Big Beautiful Bill for "necessary expenditures for major repairs, restoration, backlogged maintenance and security structures."

The restorations include marble on the theater's exterior, seating and "completely" refurbished stages.

"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," the president stated.