This year’s Kennedy Center Honors will be relocated amid ongoing legal battle

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For the first time, the annual Kennedy Center Honors will be held somewhere other than the John F. Kennedy Center for Performing Arts amid a political and legal fight that has put the institution’s future in limbo.

The “relocation” to Capital One Arena in downtown Washington, DC, on Monday, December 7, will reflect an “extension” of the tradition of the event, according to a Save the Date poster announcing the details obtained by CNN.

The star-studded gala performance recognizes individuals who have made lifetime contributions to American culture through the performing arts and is typically held in the Opera House of the Kennedy Center itself.

However, the main building of the Kennedy Center is currently locked, as the center’s Trump-aligned board and leadership argue that it must close for an extensive two-year renovation. They have argued that President Donald Trump’s help is needed to raise funds for the renovation, and that his name should be added to the institution to acknowledge his efforts – both points that are being contested in a lawsuit working its way through a federal court.

These factors call into question what the status of the building will be by the time of the event in December. The Kennedy Center’s executive director Matt Floca has told the court that the building must remain closed amid safety concerns and that the closure will be evaluated on a week-by-week basis.

The inability to use the building this year for one of their marquee events underscores the significance of the tumultuous year the arts institution has endured – and continues to endure.

Since Trump used his powers to appoint allies to the Kennedy Center board and was elected chairman last February, the venue has suffered from declining ticket sales, high profile performance withdrawals and multiple rounds of legal disputes over putting the 47th president’s name on the building.

Trump’s heavy involvement in the institution has led to a further deterioration of its finances, CNN previously reported, but he has refused to back off from his quest to remake the center in his image.

Established in 1978, the Kennedy Center Honors show celebrates artists typically selected by a special advisory board for the distinction each year. The advisory board includes members of the board of trustees.

Last year, honorees included country music singer George Strait, the rock band KISS, singer Gloria Gaynor, Tony-award winner Michael Crawford and actor Sylvester Stallone.

In an unprecedented move, Trump, as chairman of the board, hosted the event last year himself – the first time a president had done so. Unveiling the list of honorees in August, he said he was “98% involved” in picking them.

The 2026 honorees have yet to be selected. The event has never been held off-site. During the Covid pandemic the 2020 Honorees was postponed to the following year – with a hybrid version being indoors and outdoors.

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由于政治和法律斗争使肯尼迪表演艺术中心的未来陷入困境，一年一度的肯尼迪中心荣誉奖将首次在约翰·F·肯尼迪表演艺术中心以外的地方举行。

据 CNN 获得的一份“敬请期待”海报显示，12 月 7 日星期一，比赛将“移师”华盛顿特区市中心的 Capital One Arena，这将体现该赛事传统的“延续”。

这场星光熠熠的盛大演出旨在表彰那些通过表演艺术为美国文化做出终身贡献的个人，通常在肯尼迪中心歌剧院举行。

然而，肯尼迪中心的主楼目前处于关闭状态，因为该中心与特朗普关系密切的董事会和领导层认为，中心必须关闭进行为期两年的大规模翻修。他们辩称，需要唐纳德·特朗普总统的帮助来筹集翻修资金，并且应该将他的名字添加到该机构中以表彰他的贡献——这两点目前都在联邦法院的一起诉讼中受到质疑。

这些因素令人质疑，到12月活动举办时，这座建筑的状态究竟如何。肯尼迪中心执行主任马特·弗洛卡已向法庭表示，出于安全考虑，该建筑必须继续关闭，并将每周评估关闭情况。

今年无法使用该建筑举办其一项重要活动，凸显了这家艺术机构所经历的动荡一年（并且仍在继续经历）的重要性。

自特朗普利用职权任命盟友进入肯尼迪中心董事会，并于去年二月当选主席以来，该场馆一直饱受门票销售下滑、知名演出取消以及围绕将这位第47任总统的名字刻在建筑物上而引发的多轮法律纠纷的困扰。

据 CNN 此前报道，特朗普对该机构的深度介入导致其财务状况进一步恶化，但他拒绝放弃按照自己的意愿重塑该中心的努力。

肯尼迪中心荣誉奖设立于1978年，旨在表彰杰出艺术家，该奖项通常由一个特别顾问委员会每年评选产生。顾问委员会成员包括肯尼迪中心理事会成员。

去年的获奖者包括乡村音乐歌手乔治·斯特雷特、摇滚乐队 KISS、歌手格洛丽亚·盖纳、托尼奖得主迈克尔·克劳福德和演员西尔维斯特·史泰龙。

去年，特朗普史无前例地以董事会主席的身份亲自主持了该活动——这是美国总统首次这样做。他在8月份公布获奖者名单时表示，他“98%参与”了评选过程。

2026年的获奖者尚未选出。该活动从未在异地举办过。受新冠疫情影响，2020年的获奖者颁奖典礼推迟到次年举行，并采取了室内外相结合的混合形式。