Kennedy Center exodus continues as National Symphony director Jean Davidson heads to the Wallis

NEW YORK (AP) — The executive director of the National Symphony Orchestra, a mainstay at the Kennedy Center, is leaving to head the Los Angeles-based Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. It’s the latest departure from the Kennedy Center since President Donald Trump began asserting control over the storied performing arts venue in Washington.

The Wallis announced Friday that Jean Davidson had been appointed executive director and CEO. Before joining the Kennedy Center in 2023, Davidson had served for eight years as executive director and CEO of the Los Angeles Master Chorale at The Music Center.

“The arts are where a community sees itself, and where it imagines what’s possible next,” Davidson said in a statement. “I’m honored to join the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Arts at this pivotal moment.”

Kennedy Center President Richard Grenell said in a statement to The Associated Press that she was among those who deserved “enormous credit” for their efforts.

“I have enjoyed working with Jean to cultivate new donors and patrons while cleaning up the financial mess at the (center),” he said.

In a statement to The Associated Press, Davidson said: “It has been a great honor to serve the NSO and to work alongside Gianandrea Noseda, Steven Reineke, the extraordinary musicians, and the dedicated staff and board. I’m deeply proud of everything we’ve accomplished together.”

Davidson told the Los Angeles Times that she had found it “more and more difficult” to remain at the Kennedy Center, “given the external forces that are at work that are just so far beyond my control.”

After mostly ignoring the center during his first term, Trump has made it a focal point in his war against so-called “woke” culture.” He ousted the Kennedy Center’s previous leadership and replaced it with a hand-picked board of trustees who voted to rename the facility the Trump Kennedy Center, a change scholars and lawmakers say must be initiated by Congress.

Renée Fleming, Philip Glass and Bela Fleck are among numerous artists who have called off performances, and the Washington National Opera ended its decades-long residency. Last month, Trump said he would move to close the center this summer for construction he expects to last two years.

At the Wallis, Davidson succeeds Robert van Leer, who recently left to join the William and Flora Hewlett Foundation as performing arts program director.