Her departure comes during a period of significant turmoil at the Kennedy Center following Trump’s takeover last year and the installation of a new board.
By Janay Kingsberry, The Washington PostA woman walks outside The John F. Kennedy Memorial Center For The Performing Arts on Feb. 2, 2026, in Washington. The executive director of the National Symphony Orchestra at the Kennedy Center announced she is stepping down, adding to a wave of upheaval at the institution amid President Donald Trump’s efforts to rebuild the center.
Jean Davidson, who has led the NSO since 2023, announced she would be leaving the role at the end of March to become executive director and CEO of the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts in Los Angeles. “It has been a great honor serving the NSO and working with Gianandrea Noseda, Steven Reineke, the musicians, staff, and board. I am so proud of all we have achieved,” Davidson wrote in an email to The Washington Post. “It is no secret that it has been a hard year though,” she continued, “so I am happy to return home to my husband and the home we own in Los Angeles, and the arts community that I already know and love.”Davidson’s departure comes during a period of significant turmoil at the Kennedy Center following Trump’s takeover last year and the installation of a new board, which voted to include his name on the building in December. A significant list of artists and productions have canceled appearances at the center. And in January, the Washington National Opera said it would part ways with the institution.
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