On Friday, March 28, rock band Guster performed at the Kennedy Center, and used that opportunity to show solidarity with the LGBTQIA+ community. Since President Trump took over the organization and installed himself as chairman of the board, the Kennedy Center has cancelled a number of shows with queer themes—among them a performance by the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C. and a children's musical called Finn, about a shark who really wants to be a colorful fish.
At the Guster concert Friday, the band brought up the cast members of Finn to perform the song "Hard Times." Watch the performance above.
Singer Ryan Miller introduced the performance with these remarks: “I have a friend named Michael [Looman] who wrote the songs for a musical called Finn. In the before times they were booked to play here. But as all of you know, things happened, and the show is no longer being presented at the Kennedy Center. As the new administration has made abundantly clear, Finn’s themes of inclusivity, love, and self-acceptance aren’t going to be welcome in this building while they are in control. So tonight, our band is here to say, 'Our stage is your stage.' We are your allies, we stand with the LGBTQ community, and we want you to sing with us. Please welcome the cast of Finn and composer Michael Kooman. They belong here.”
The Kennedy Center previously told Playbill that the Finn cancellation was a "purely financial decision" though the show's creators disagreed, saying they were not informed about the cancellation until after Trump's takeover. Trump has pledged to get rid of "woke" programming and drag shows at the institution.
Since news of its cancellation broke, the theatre community has rallied around Finn. A recent New York concert performance of the musical featured Broadway stars such as Andrew Rannells and Lea Salonga—with a portion of proceeds going to The Trevor Project, the leading suicide prevention and crisis intervention organization for LGBTQ+ young people.
Other cancellations at the venue since Trump's takeover have included a D.C. run of the Broadway production of Eureka Day (about anti-vaxxers), Legally Blonde (though staffers say this was not due to Trump), and an International Pride Orchestra performance. In response, a number of artists have pulled their shows from the Kennedy Center schedule, including a 2026 run of the Hamilton national tour and concerts from Melissa Errico, Issa Rae, and Rhiannon Giddens.
