By Molly Goddard
2:22am PDT, Mar 15, 2025
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J.D. Vance did not get a warm welcome at the Kennedy Center.
As the current vice president and his wife, second lady
Usha Vance, took their seats at the historic establishment to see the National Symphony Orchestra perform on Thursday, March 13, audience members loudly expressed their dislike for J.D. and President
Donald Trump's leadership.
Keep reading for more on what happened when the right-wing politician walked into the packed theater…
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In a video captured by journalist
Andrew Roth and shared on X, J.D. Vance and wife Usha Vance can be seen sitting in a box high above the rest of the crowd for the orchestra performance in the famed concert hall.
Audience members could be heard jeering the couple before the show began. Eyewitness
Charles T. Downey told the
Washington Classical Review that the
Vances were "greeted less than cordially with a sustained chorus of loud booing."
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After the footage went viral,
Kennedy Center President
Richard Grenell — who was appointed by Donald Trump — shared a message condemning the people who perpetuated the awkward situation.
"This video should challenge us all to commit to making the Kennedy Center a place where everyone is welcomed," he wrote on X. "It troubles me to see that so many in the audience appear to be white and intolerant of diverse political views. Diversity is our strength. We must do better. We must welcome EVERYONE. We will not allow the Kennedy Center to be an intolerant place."
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Donald Trump and his administration have made many changes to the government-run arts institution after he became the operating chairman upon his
White House return. The commander-in-chief also recently made Usha Vance a member of the Kennedy Center's Board of Trustees.
In a revolt against the Republican-led changes, artists like
Issa Rae and
Rhiannon Giddens canceled their upcoming performances at the Kennedy Center. The Broadway musical
Hamilton also axed their run at the establishment after Trump fired former president
Deborah Rutter and replaced her with Richard Grenell.
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"We cannot presently support an institution that has been forced by external forces to betray its mission,"
Hamilton's lead producer,
Jeff Seller, said in a statement about canceling their run at the Kennedy Center.
Last month, Donald Trump took to his
Truth Social account to announce his new role with the famed venue. "It is a Great Honor to be Chairman of The Kennedy Center, especially with this amazing Board of Trustees," he wrote. "We will make The Kennedy Center a very special and exciting place!"
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Donald Trump further explained his mission with the arts facility to reporters in February: "We took over the Kennedy Center. We didn't like what they were showing and various other things," he said, according to
CNN.
"I'm going to be chairman of it, and we're going to make sure that it's good and it's not going to be
woke. There's no more woke in this country," he continued. "Woke has cost us a fortune and cost us our reputation, but the reputation is coming back very, very rapidly."
