NEW: Kennedy Center Votes To Close Down

The Kennedy Center’s board voted Tuesday to shut down the iconic Washington performing arts venue as it grapples with mounting financial trouble, structural problems and an ongoing legal battle over efforts to honor President Donald Trump at the complex.

The decision came during a private board meeting, according to people familiar with the matter who spoke on condition of anonymity.

The vote marks a dramatic turn for one of the nation’s most recognizable cultural institutions, which has been warning that it faces severe financial strain and potentially major renovation costs.

The shutdown decision came the same day U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper blocked another effort to place Trump’s name on the Kennedy Center.

Cooper ruled that the center could not install new signage or memorials honoring Trump without approval from Congress.

“Simply put, Defendants cannot install memorials for President Trump or anyone or anything else at the Kennedy Center without Congress’s blessing.”

The ruling reinforced an earlier court decision that found the board had exceeded its authority when it previously added Trump’s name to the building.

Trump’s name was later removed under court order, but the board continued exploring other ways to recognize his role in overseeing planned renovations and fundraising efforts.

The legal fight unfolded alongside a worsening financial picture.

“Another example of the urgent need to close for renovation and revitalization, as our Chairman President Trump has championed. Fortunately, no one was injured when the main hall’s ceiling collapsed.

This structural failure stems from decades of neglect and deferred maintenance… pic.twitter.com/ooreyKQ9wC

— The Kennedy Center (@TKCOfficial) September 15, 2026

Documents circulated to trustees ahead of Tuesday’s meeting warned that the Kennedy Center was approaching what officials described as a severe fiscal crisis, with concerns over payroll, maintenance and the cost of repairing the aging complex.

Board leaders had argued that Donald Trump‘s involvement could be critical to raising the money needed to stabilize the institution and fund a sweeping renovation project.

The center has also dealt with physical problems, including reports of ceiling damage that renewed calls for temporarily shutting the building while repairs are completed.

The board previously backed a two-year closure for renovations, but that plan became tangled in litigation surrounding the center’s governance and efforts to place Trump’s name on the property.

Tuesday’s vote now puts the venue on a path toward closure as officials confront both the building’s physical condition and its financial future.

The Kennedy Center has not publicly detailed how long the shutdown will last or what will happen to scheduled performances and events.

The board’s decision also leaves unresolved the larger fight over whether Trump can be formally recognized on the federally chartered complex without congressional action.

For now, the Kennedy Center faces one of the most significant disruptions in its history, with its doors set to close while legal, financial and renovation battles continue.

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