At a Glance
- Washington National Opera will leave the Kennedy Center after a funding clash
- Center now requires full upfront funding, a model opera says it can’t meet
- Performances will move to new venues and the spring season will be cut back
- Why it matters: The split removes a flagship resident company from the nation’s busiest performing-arts campus
The Washington National Opera announced Friday it is walking away from its decades-long residency at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, saying the center’s new business model makes continued partnership impossible.
The Break-Up
The opera’s board concluded it could not operate under the Kennedy Center’s revised rule that every production be fully funded before rehearsals begin.
> “Requires productions to be fully funded in advance – a requirement incompatible with opera operations.”
To stay solvent, the company will shrink its spring schedule and present future shows in alternative spaces around Washington.
Center Responds
Kennedy Center spokesperson Roma Daravi framed the split as a financial necessity.
> “After careful consideration, we have made the difficult decision to part ways with the WNO due to a financially challenging relationship.”
The announcement lands amid wider fallout after President Donald Trump dissolved the previous board and installed himself as chairman. Since then:
- Lin-Manuel Miranda canceled an appearance
- Rock singer Peter Wolf nixed a concert
- The board voted to rebrand the complex the Trump-Kennedy Center, sparking fresh boycotts
Notably, the opera’s own statement did not mention Trump or the renaming dispute.
Key Takeaways
- WNO becomes the latest high-profile tenant to exit the Kennedy Center
- The opera cites a cash-up-front policy, not politics, as the deal-breaker
- Future productions will be staged at undisclosed venues around D.C.
- Both sides say they want an amicable transition as contracts wind down
The departure leaves the Kennedy Center without a resident opera company for the first time in decades.
