"A year ago just a year ago the Kennedy Center in Washington DC was a world-class centre for the performing arts. It had a resident opera company, respected artistic teams, and a run of the acclaimed musical Hamilton to look forward to. It had a bipartisan board that upheld the dignity of an organisation that, since it was conceived of in the mid-20th century, had been treated with courtesy and supported by governments of both stripes."
"Donald Trump inserted himself as chair of the organisation soon after his 20 January inauguration, dispatched the hugely experienced executive director, and installed his unfortunate loyalist Richard Grenell to run it. This former ambassador to Germany might have wished for better things; at any rate, entirely inexperienced in the arts, he seems utterly out of his depth. Things have unravelled. Artists have departed the centre in droves."
"The financial hit was so serious, she told me, that the opera company was considering uprooting from the centre and going it alone. Grenell and co's insistence that all productions should be net neutral fully funded in advance was also an insuperable problem. With large numbers of singers and musicians to pay for, as well as the spectacle that patrons come to enjoy, productions are generally financed not just by ticket sales but by grants and philanthropic support."
One year earlier, the Kennedy Center in Washington DC was a world-class performing arts centre with a resident opera company, respected artistic teams, and a run of the acclaimed musical Hamilton planned. Donald Trump inserted himself as chair, removed the experienced executive director, and installed Richard Grenell, who lacked arts experience. Artists departed in droves, Hamilton and audiences pulled out, and ticket sales plunged. Patrons sent protest messages and returned shredded season brochures. The financial hit forced the opera company to consider leaving. Grenell's insistence on net-neutral, fully pre-funded productions undermined grant and philanthropic financing, prompting the company to announce its departure.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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