How the Kennedy Center Has Been Transformed by Trumpism

"When the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts opened its doors, in 1971, the Times' architecture critic, Ada Louise Huxtable, was not impressed. She described the building's style as "aggrandized posh" and sniffed that its overlong corridors "would be great for drag racing." The 2,360-seat Opera House, she wrote, looks like "one of those passe, redpadded drugstore candy‐valentines," and, on Sunday night, at the forty-eighth Kennedy Center Honors, that's exactly what it was-a tacky, supersized love letter to the center's self-installed chairman, President Donald Trump."

"Every detail of the ceremony appeared to have been plucked from Trump's mood board, an indelible blend of revanchist impulses and eighties camp. The Honors medallions, which historically were trimmed in rainbow ribbon and had been made, for forty-seven years, by the Baturin family, in Bethesda, Maryland, were redesigned, by Tiffany & Co., with a navy-blue ribbon purportedly associated with "tradition." This year's awardees were the country singer George Strait, the glam-rock band Kiss, the Broadway tenor Michael Crawford-known for his defining role as the Phantom of the Opera-the disco queen Gloria Gaynor, and Sylvester Stallone, of "Rocky" and "Rambo" fame."

"Also a seeming tribute to Trump: steak-house salads served in glass cups outside the auditorium; Mar-a-Lago-faced women done up as if "Thank you for your attention to this matter!" were a dress code. ("This matter" being boobs.) Selfie stations were arranged around the Grand Foyer, the backdrops resplendent with crushed roses, cinematic skylines, and guitars."

The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts opened in 1971 and features long corridors and a controversial ornamental style. The 2,360-seat Opera House has been likened to red-padded, candy-valentine décor. The forty-eighth Kennedy Center Honors aligned closely with President Donald Trump's personal tastes through performer selection, medallion redesign, and Mar-a-Lago-inflected aesthetics. Honors medallions were redesigned by Tiffany & Co. with a navy-blue ribbon replacing a decades-long rainbow ribbon made by the Baturin family. Awardees included George Strait, Kiss, Michael Crawford, Gloria Gaynor, and Sylvester Stallone. Event touches included steak-house salads in glass cups, selfie stations, and crushed-rose backdrops.

Read at The New Yorker