Vance booed at Kennedy Center after Trump board takeover
Vice President Vance was met by a chorus of boos from audience members at the Kennedy Center while attending a National Symphony Orchestra performance late Thursday.
The former Ohio senator responded to the jeers with a smile while waving to the crowd and sipping his wine, as seen in a video captured by Andrew Roth, a global affairs correspondent for the Guardian.
Second lady Usha Vance, who was appointed to the center's board by President Trump in February, was seated alongside the vice president.
The two reportedly stayed for the entirety of the show.
The Trump administration has faced a backlash for the president's decision to replace the center's leadership with Republican allies.
Those appointed to serve on the board include Lee Greenwood, White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, and senior adviser Dan Scavino. The group voted to name Trump chair of the board last month.
The move initiated a wave of departures including the resignation of musician Ben Folds, who formerly served as artistic adviser to the National Symphony Orchestra.
'It's been a wonderful 8 years' the former Ben Folds Five singer wrote Wednesday on Instagram, saying he and the Kennedy Center's staff encouraged 'thousands of fresh new audiences to appreciate symphonic music.'
Award-winning opera singer and actor Renée Fleming also stepped down from her role as artistic adviser at large to the Kennedy Center, while producers of the Broadway musical 'Hamilton' canceled slated performances at the center.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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