Top musician cancels Trump-Kennedy Center debut after MN carnage

An award-winning composer has canceled an upcoming performance at the Trump-Kennedy Center after a protester was shot dead in Minneapolis.

Philip Glass called off the forthcoming debut of his Symphony No. 15, 'Lincoln,' themed after the nation's 16th president.

'Symphony No. 15 is a portrait of Abraham Lincoln, and the values of the Kennedy Center today are in direct conflict with the message of the Symphony,' Glass wrote in a statement on X on Tuesday..

'Therefore, I feel an obligation to withdraw this Symphony premiere from the Kennedy Center under its current leadership.'

The decision comes after Alex Pretti, a 37-year-old VA nurse was shot dead by federal agents during anti-immigration protests in Minneapolis on Saturday.

The Kennedy Center's Vice President of Public Relations, Roma Daravi, told the Daily Mail, 'we have no place for politics in the arts, and those calling for boycotts based on politics are making the wrong decision.'

Daravi also noted that the Center has 'not cancelled a single show.'

'Leftist activists are pushing artists to cancel, but the public wants artists to perform and create - not cancel under pressure from political insiders that benefit from creating division,' Daravi concluded.

Glass, 88, was recognized for his contributions to American music as a member of the 2018 Kennedy Center Honors class and is widely regarded as one of the most influential composers of the 20th century.

He has additionally received the National Medal of Arts from former President Barack Obama in 2015, and even a Golden Globe in 1998 for his original score for 'The Truman Show.'

Symphony No. 15: 'Lincoln', was most recently scheduled to be performed by the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO) in June as part of an ongoing celebration of America's 250 years of independence in 2026. 

Production delays have pushed back the performance date from when it was originally planned in 2022.

The NSO's executive director Jean Davidson told the Washington Post that her organization has 'great admiration for Philip Glass' and that they 'were surprised to learn about his decision at the same time as the press.'

A handful of creatives have cancelled performances at the arts venue, a list that has continued to grow steadily since the Center's board voted to add Trump's name to the building in December.

The Kennedy Center's name change was poorly received by many members of the Kennedy Family, including former President John F. Kennedy's niece Kerry Kennedy, who pledged to take a 'pickax' to the letters forming Trump's name on the building after he leaves office.