Richard Grenell, the president of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, told employees in a memo that the Kennedy Center expects significant staffing reductions while it closes for a two-year renovation. The memo, obtained by The Associated Press, warns staff that the center will operate with “skeletal” teams during the facility’s closure and construction phase.
Grenell wrote that departments would “obviously function on a much smaller scale,” and he said that some units would be “totally reduced or on hold” until the center begins preparations to reopen in 2028. He also told staff that leadership would offer “permanent or temporary adjustments for most everyone,” adding that department heads would be “evaluating the needs and making the decisions” about what staff or units would remain in place during the shutdown period.
The message indicated that the Kennedy Center leadership planned to provide as much clarity and advance notice as possible as the renovation progresses. The reporting said the Kennedy Center is slated to close in early July, and that few additional details about the renovation plans have been released publicly since President Donald Trump announced the closure plan at the beginning of February.
In response to questions surrounding the renovation effort, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that, after the upgrades are complete, “Americans and visitors from all over the world, for generations to come, will enjoy the Center and marvel at its spectacular features and design.” The statement was provided as the administration outlined the renovation timeline, even as the reporting on the memo noted that neither Trump nor Grenell had provided evidence supporting claims that the building is in disrepair.
The Associated Press reporting said it was unclear how many employees the center currently has. It cited a 2025 tax filing indicating that nearly 2,500 people were employed during the 2023 calendar year, and it said a request for comment sent to Kennedy Center Arts Workers United, which represents artists and arts professionals affiliated with the center, was not immediately returned.
The memo warning about staffing reductions arrives amid broader disruptions for the Kennedy Center, including cancellations or withdrawals by leading performers and groups since Trump ousted the center’s leadership about a year earlier and added his own name to the building in December. The reporting also said the Washington Post has cited significant drops in ticket revenue—along with private philanthropy—as key parts of the center’s operating budget, and officials had not yet said whether long-running traditions will continue while the center is closed.
The Kennedy Center, first conceived in the 1950s as a national cultural facility during the Eisenhower administration, opened in 1971 after President John F. Kennedy led a fundraising initiative and the center was named in his honor following his assassination. The center has been a prominent venue for theater, music and dramatic performances, with bipartisan support reported until the Trump administration returned to office last year.
Grenell’s memo characterized the renovation as an investment in the center’s future, saying, “This renovation represents a generational investment in our future,” and stating that when the Kennedy Center reopens, it will do so as a “stronger organization” that honors its legacy while expanding its impact.