Tony- and Olivier-winning actor Michael Crawford has been named a 2025 Kennedy Center Honoree, part of the first slate of honorees to be named since President Trump took control of the Washington, D.C. arts institution. Crawford is most noted for originating the title role of The Phantom of the Opera, reportedly one of President Trump's favorite musicals. Crawford won both the Olivier and Tony Awards for his performance in the long-running musical.
Crawford—along with fellow honorees Rocky writer and star Sylvester Stallone, "I Will Survive" singer Gloria Gaynor, and rock band Kiss—will be celebrated at a December 7 ceremony at the Kennedy Center, to be broadcast on CBS at a later date. Trump has also revealed that he will host the proceedings.
The Kennedy Center Honors pay tribute to individuals whose unique contributions have had an impact on the rich tapestry of American life and culture through the performing arts, whether in music, dance, theatre, opera, motion pictures, or television. Last year's honorees were filmmaker Francis Ford Coppola, rock band The Grateful Dead, singer-songwriter Bonnie Raitt, jazz musician Arturo Sandoval, and Harlem's The Apollo.
But this most recent spate comes at an incendiary time in the Honors' history. Trump has previously sat out of Kennedy Center Honors ceremonies after recognized artists threatened to boycott as a form of protest. After being elected back into the White House, Trump replaced the institution's board with confidants and installed himself as chairman, taking unprecedented partisan control of the formerly bipartisan organization.
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.
Crawford also starred on Broadway in Dance of the Vampires, and his many West End credits include the title role in Barnum. He was also a fixture in '60s movie musicals, playing Hero in 1966's A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum and Cornelius Hackl in 1969's Hello, Dolly! He's lived in New Zealand since 2007, moving for health reasons due to myalgic encephalitis.
