Jean Davidson announced Friday that she will step down from her role as executive director of the National Symphony Orchestra, citing frustrations with the ongoing upheaval at the Kennedy Center following changes implemented under President Donald Trump.
Davidson confirmed her decision in comments to The New York Times, saying the environment surrounding the famed performing arts venue had made it increasingly difficult for her to continue leading the orchestra.
“It’s no secret that this has been a really hard year,” Davidson said Friday. “I started looking for a new opportunity several months ago.”
She added that the shifting situation at the Kennedy Center had made it difficult for her to carry out her responsibilities.
“I didn’t see how I could be effective as a leader in the current climate,” she told the outlet.
The Kennedy Center has experienced a wave of changes since Trump took office last January and began reshaping the institution. The president has taken several major steps that have significantly altered the leadership and direction of the performing arts center.
In February, Trump ended the terms of multiple members of the center’s board and installed a new board made up of allies, naming himself chairman.
Later in the year, Trump announced that the venue would be renamed “The Donald J. Trump and the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts.” The move, which placed Trump’s name alongside that of the late president John F. Kennedy, is currently being challenged in court.
The administration also installed Trump’s name on the exterior of the building next to Kennedy’s. The center was originally named to honor the former president following his assassination in 1963.
Trump further stirred controversy last month when he announced plans to shut down the Kennedy Center for two years beginning in July in order to carry out renovations.
The planned closure has already sparked legal action. Rep. Joyce Beatty, a Democrat from Ohio, filed a lawsuit Friday seeking to block the shutdown. She argued the closure could allow the administration to “demolish” the building while it is closed.
The turmoil surrounding the center has had ripple effects across the performing arts community.
A number of performances have been canceled in recent months, and ticket sales have reportedly dropped for the groups that have continued to perform at the venue.
Some artists have chosen to distance themselves from the Kennedy Center altogether.
Renowned composer Philip Glass withdrew his newest symphony from a planned performance by the National Symphony Orchestra in late January. The piece was intended to serve as a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, but Glass said the center’s new direction did not align with the spirit of his work.
Banjo virtuoso Béla Fleck also pulled out of an upcoming performance with the NSO, saying the situation at the Kennedy Center had become too “charged and political.”
In January, the Washington National Opera departed the venue, leaving the National Symphony Orchestra as the only musical group still based at the center.
At the time, Davidson said the orchestra intended to remain.
The Kennedy Center has been the NSO’s home for more than five decades, and Davidson reiterated that the orchestra still plans to stay connected to the venue despite the turbulence.
Still, Davidson said the rapidly changing circumstances made it increasingly difficult to carry out her duties overseeing the orchestra’s operations, fundraising, and audience development.
She told The New York Times that she received no advance notice of Trump’s decision to close the center for two years. While she acknowledged that repairs were necessary, the sudden announcement forced the orchestra to scramble to find alternate venues for upcoming performances.
“There’s been a lot of change going on, and there’s not a lot of communication,” Davidson said. “We are finding out things through the press — at the same time as everyone else. Like the center closing on July 4.”
Despite her departure, Davidson urged Washington residents to continue supporting the orchestra.
“The orchestra has never sounded as great as it sounds now,” she said. “… But we need Washington — donors, audiences — to support the orchestra for it to survive.”
The Kennedy Center and the White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
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