(Washington) Donald Trump announced on Sunday his intention to close for two years the Kennedy Center, the emblematic performance hall in Washington that the American president has taken over since his return to power and which he now wants to renovate.
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The place, which the billionaire renamed to attach his name and which has since been shunned by certain artists, will close on July 4 on the occasion of the celebrations of the 250th anniversary of the United States, Mr. Trump said on his Truth Social network.
“I have determined that ceasing its entertainment operations for approximately two years is the quickest way to bring the Trump Kennedy Center to the highest level of success, beauty and grandeur,” he said.
He said the work would transform a “dilapidated” institution into a “world-class bastion of arts, music and entertainment”.
“The financing is finalized and fully in place! », added the billionaire, himself chairman of the board of directors of the room inaugurated in 1971 and now called “Trump Kennedy Center”.
This name change, carried out in mid-December, came as the ultimate symbol of its takeover by the American president. It was denounced by President Kennedy’s family and by the Democratic opposition who contest its legality in the absence of legislation in Congress.
PHOTO ALLISON ROBBERT, ASSOCIATED PRESS ARCHIVES
The performance hall hosted the premiere of the film on Thursday Melania in the presence of President Donald Trump and numerous members of the American executive branch.
Donald Trump said he was “honored” and “surprised” by this decision – although he had spoken insistently about the “Trump-Kennedy Center” since his return to power, pretending to be joking.
Under the new leadership, drag shows and events celebrating the LGBT+ community were scrapped while religious right conferences were held and Christian artists were invited.
Some artists have decided in response to cancel their shows planned in this institution, such as the country singer Kristy Lee or the jazz group The Cookers, until a few days ago the composer Philip Glass.
The master of repetitive and minimalist music, three times nominated for the Oscars, judged “the values of the Kennedy Center today (…) in direct contradiction with the message of the symphony” which he was to present there and which is dedicated to President Abraham Lincoln who abolished slavery.
Since his return to power, Mr. Trump has launched transformations of iconic places in Washington, starting with the construction of a ballroom at the White House as well as a project for an imposing arch near the Lincoln Memorial.
