Why are Les Misérables cast members boycotting their Kennedy Center performance? Drama explained

The musical, Les Misérables, has been making headlines recently, after some of the cast members from the touring production have decided not to perform at the Kennedy Center.

The boycott by the cast members is because the US President Donald Trump will be attending a fundraising event at the Kennedy Center, and the Les Misérables performance is part of the event.

As per CNN, ten to twelve performers have decided not to perform. The cast was also given the option to opt out of the musical, the night Trump would be attending the event.

Why are Les Misérables cast members opting out of the performance?

Some of the members of Les Misérables have chosen not to perform at the Kennedy Center on June 11, 2025, when President Donald Trump will be in attendance.

The boycott comes as a reaction to the Trump administration making changes within the center, including replacing the former Kennedy Center president, Deborah Rutter, with Richard Grenell, one of Trump's allies.

The cast members opting out of the performance are also because of Trump's involvement in taking control over the programming and leadership of the Kennedy Center. In a statement to The Guardian, Richard Grenell, who has now been assigned as the president of the center, said:

the center will "no longer fund intolerance. Any performer who isn’t professional enough to perform for patrons of all backgrounds, regardless of political affiliation, won’t be welcomed.”

He continued:

''In fact, we think it would be important to out those vapid and intolerant artists to ensure producers know who they shouldn’t hire – and that the public knows which shows have political litmus tests to sit in the audience.''

He further added:

''The Kennedy Center wants to be a place where people of all political stripes sit next to each other and never ask who someone voted for but instead enjoys a performance together.''

The day Les Misérables will be performing is the same day Trump is holding the fundraising event to benefit the Kennedy Center. As the changes were made in the Kennedy Center, many artists, including Ben Folds and Issa Rae, have resigned from their roles.

Performances, including Finn, which is a musical for young audiences and was commissioned by the Kennedy Center, were also cancelled. A spokesperson for the center told CNN:

''Finn’, which was not yet announced, was canceled for financial reasons PRIOR to the change in Kennedy Center leadership. The authors were also notified prior to the change.”

One of the co-creators of Finn, Michael Kooman, however wasn't too convinced by this reasoning, stating,

“It’s hard to ignore the circumstances in which the cancellation of the tour is happening,”

Hamilton, the musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda also cancelled its planned performances at the center after the changes in the center's leadership and Trump's takeover of the Kennedy Center.

As per the New York Times, the House committee has allocated $257m for the Kennedy Center, as Trump had previously criticized the center's condition.

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