A tarp covers the newly removed name of U.S. President Donald Trump from the facade of the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C., Saturday, June 13, 2026. A federal appeals court has rejected the Trump administration’s last-minute bid to keep the president’s name on the Kennedy Center as a Friday removal deadline approaches.
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Kennedy Center management has not committed to scheduling new shows or adding staff, even as it considers options ahead of the full two-year closure that a federal judge blocked last month.
In a court filing Friday, Kennedy Center attorneys said the center intends to “maintain its operating model” beyond July 5, when it was originally scheduled to close for renovations. Under these circumstances, public spaces at the Kennedy Center will remain accessible, but the stage may be largely silent.
“The court’s order does not affirmatively require the board to reschedule previously canceled programming or seek new programming,” the attorneys wrote in the filing.
The Kennedy Center is being forced to rethink its plans following a ruling in May by U.S. District Judge Christopher Cooper that overturned a number of high-profile moves imposed by the board, which is dominated by supporters of President Donald Trump. Cooper argued that Trump’s name was illegally added to the building and ordered it removed. He blocked the closure and gave the agency’s leadership until Friday, along with Rep. Joyce Beatty (D-Ohio), the ex-officio board member who filed the lawsuit, to provide an update on the situation.
The venue said management will present several renovation proposals to the board for consideration for a vote. Options include a complete closure or a partial closure that would allow “continued public access and limited programming” in spaces unaffected by the works. A third option is to “consider a very limited series of phased closures to address only the center’s most critical infrastructure needs while maintaining a full program schedule.”
Kennedy Center lawyers said the recommendations have not yet been finalized and a vote will likely take place in mid-July.
Meanwhile, Beatty’s lawyers argued that the Kennedy Center was not fully complying with Cooper’s orders. Trump’s name was removed from the building, but he took issue with the tarp that was installed to cover the area where the letter was placed. There appears to be no immediate effort to remove the tarps.
They also argued that without an effort to return to some form of programming, the Kennedy Center would effectively close its doors despite Cooper’s ruling.
“By eviscerating staff and programs, defendants believe they can sit back and allow the pre-planned closure to begin,” Beatty’s attorney said in a filing.
