As President Trump's takeover of the Kennedy Center continues, another notable longtime staff member has stepped down from the organization. Jeffrey Finn, who has overseen the Washington, D.C., theatre's programming since 2016, announced in an email August 15 that he was departing the organization September 19. The New York Times first reported the news.
Finn's title was senior vice president of artistic programming as well as vice president and executive producer of theatre. He oversaw the venue's Broadway touring engagements, as well as the Broadway Center Stage series, buzzy musicals that the Center produced. Among those productions included the world premiere of Schmigadoon! (based on the Apple TV+ series), Sunset Boulevard starring Stephanie J. Block, and Nine starring Steven Pasquale. The Kennedy Center's Broadway Center Stage series also sent shows to New York, including the 2023 Spamalot revival, and the upcoming Off-Broadway revival of The 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee starring Kevin McHale. The upcoming Broadway revival of Chess, which features an entirely new book, was first tried out at the Kennedy Center.
No reason was given for Finn's departure, though he expressed being open to serving as a consultant. As a two time-Tony-winning producer, Finn's Broadway credits also include The Outsiders and the 2021 Company revival.
Requests for comments from Finn and the Kennedy Center were not returned at the time of publication.
This is the latest in a series of staffing shakeups since Trump fired most of the Kennedy Center board earlier this year and installed himself as chairman of the board. He also fired the Kennedy Center's longtime president, Deborah Rutter, and installed loyalist Richard Grenell. The Kennedy Center also recently axed its social impact team, which was led by performer Marc Bamuthi Joseph.
Last week, Trump also announced that he would be hosting the 2026 Kennedy Center honors, saying that he was "very involved" in selecting this year's honorees and that he had turned down "a couple of wokesters." The December 7 ceremony will honor Phantom of the Opera star Michael Crawford, Rocky writer and star Sylvester Stallone, "I Will Survive" singer Gloria Gaynor, and glam rock band Kiss. Reportedly, Tom Cruise was also selected as an honoree but turned it down due to "scheduling conflicts."
Trump previously criticized the prior programming at the Kennedy Center, saying it was "woke" and "terrible" and that the "programming was out of control with rampant political propaganda, DEI, and inappropriate shows.” He has never provided further details on the allegedly offensive programming, nor specifics about which parts of their content he found troubling. Much of his rhetoric has revolved around drag performance, though two musicals that the Trump-controlled Kennedy Center has programmed—Mrs. Doubtfire and Chicago—include drag performances as major components.
Since Trump's takeover, a number of previously programmed shows have been canceled—either by the center itself or by artists who no longer wanted to perform there. This included the Hamilton producers cancelling the national tour stop at the Kennedy Center, and the producers of Eureka Day (which recently won a 2025 Tony Award) canceling a planned engagement of the play. The Center canceled a planned tour of a children's musical called Finn, which had themes that could be interpreted as queer; the Kennedy Center said that the decision was a financial one, while the creators of the show said they had been informed after Trump’s takeover.
In addition to taking control of the Kennedy Center, Trump has also proposed eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts. While the agency still exists and is still being considered for federal funding, Trump's announcement has led to the NEA canceling grants to theatres nationwide.
