Which specific artists and productions have formally canceled Kennedy Center engagements since February 2025?

1. Issa Rae: a sold‑out one‑night show pulled

The most visible early cancellation was Issa Rae’s decision to cancel her sold‑out event “An Evening With Issa Rae,” which Rae said she called off because of what she described as an infringement on the institution’s values after President Trump installed himself as chair ^{[3] [4]}.

2. “Finn” creators: a children’s musical tour canceled after being notified

The creators of the children’s musical Finn — Chris Nee, Michael Kooman and Christopher Dimond — publicly announced that their Kennedy Center tour stop had been canceled; they said the Kennedy Center informed them of the cancellation on February 12 and they later planned an alternative one‑night presentation offsite ^{[1] [5]}.

3. Opera and advisory resignations that affected programming (Renée Fleming, Ben Folds)

Renée Fleming resigned from an artistic‑advisor role at the center, and Ben Folds stepped down from his position with the National Symphony Orchestra — moves that were reported alongside cancellations and which the reporting links to the upheaval following the board purge ^{[3] [4]}.

4. Shonda Rhimes and other board resignations that signaled dissociation

Television producer Shonda Rhimes resigned from a Kennedy Center board post and publicly dissociated herself from the institution in the days after the takeover; while resignation differs from canceling a ticketed performance, outlets treated it as part of the same artist exodus that has impacted programming ^{[4] [6]}.

5. LGBTQ+‑themed events and the Gay Men’s Chorus: program reversals and cancellations

The International Pride Orchestra’s planned Pride Celebration Concert, which would have featured LGBTQ+ artists including drag performers, was reversed by the Kennedy Center and the Gay Men’s Chorus had a planned performance dropped — developments that outlets linked to the new leadership and to prior public statements by the president about drag programming ^{[1] [3]}.

6. Production-level cancellations: Hamilton tour stop and broader theatrical pullouts

Reporting notes that several productions rescinded Kennedy Center dates, with coverage later citing the Hamilton tour canceling a scheduled stop as part of a list of theatrical pullouts tied to artist and producer decisions in the wake of the takeover ^[7].

7. International and classical artists withdrawing U.S. engagements (Sir András Schiff)

Some classical artists announced wider U.S. withdrawals framed as moral objections to recent political changes; British pianist and conductor Sir András Schiff declared he would cancel all U.S. performances for 2025 and 2026, a decision outlets connected to the general climate surrounding U.S. institutions, including the Kennedy Center ^[8].

8. The Kennedy Center’s account and the scale of cancellations

The Kennedy Center responded by publishing a list of more than 20 cancellations or postponements over six months and framed many drops as stemming from low sales or artist availability rather than a uniform political boycott; Roma Daravi, the center’s vice president of public relations, characterized the release as transparency amid “misinformation” ^{[1] [2]}.

9. Ambiguities, overlap between resignations and cancellations, and reporting gaps

Available reporting mixes formal ticketed‑show cancellations, creator‑initiated tour withdrawals, and advisory resignations — and not every high‑profile name referenced in coverage (for example, Lin‑Manuel Miranda as having “pulled out” in some pieces) has a clear, single‑source public statement recorded in these articles confirming a specific canceled Kennedy Center engagement, leaving some ambiguity about whether the action was a canceled performance, a withdrawn production stop, or a resignation ^{[2] [4]}.

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