Latest news with #TrumpAttendance
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Trump both booed and cheered attending Les Misérables at Kennedy Center
President Donald Trump was greeted with boos, as well as cheers, and chants of 'USA!' as he took his seat for the opening night of Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center on Wednesday. It's the first time Trump has attended a show at the venue since he fired the Kennedy Center's leadership, putting MAGA loyalist Richard Grenell in charge of the famed performing arts institution and naming himself chairman of the board. He promised to scrap 'woke' programming that aligned with what he called leftist ideology, which includes drag shows and 'anti-American propaganda,' the president wrote on Truth Social. The move upset some of the center's patrons and performers, and it was reported that several cast members planned to skip the show in protest of his attendance on Wednesday. When one group of ticket holders found out that Trump, Vance and their wives, Melania and Usha, would be in attendance, they donated their tickets to a group of drag performers, according to Qommittee, as reported by Houston Public Media. Videos posted on social media show the drag performers being cheered before Trump arrived. Other videos showed the president taking his seat to a combination of boos and cheers from the audience. When Trump walked the red carpet with first lady Melania Trump ahead of the show, he said he was not bothered by the reported boycott. 'I couldn't care less, honestly, I couldn't,' Trump said. 'All I do is run the country well. The economic numbers you saw them today, they're setting records. We took $88 billion in tariffs in two months, far beyond what anybody expected. There's no inflation. People are happy. People are wealthy. The country is getting back to strength again. That's what I care about.' Trump also spoke about his plans for the Kennedy Center, whose board he replaced with loyalists, some of whom were in attendance Wednesday, including Usha Vance, Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. 'We want to bring it back, and we want to bring it back better than ever,' Trump said from the red carpet. 'As you know it needs a little help from the standpoint of age and fitness, but it's going to be fantastic.' Trump has previously proclaimed his love for Les Misérables, telling Fox News: 'I love the songs; I love the play. I think it's great.' He has played the musical's rebellion anthem, 'Do You Here the People Sing?' at past events and rallies. The story revolves around revolution in France, and has been a massive smash for decades. Trump also suggested that 'we may extend' the show's run. Currently, Les Misérables is slated to run at the Kennedy Center through July 13. The political drama at the center comes just two months after audience members booed the Vances and they took their upper-level seats at the National Symphony Orchestra. Back in 2016, incoming vice president Mike Pence was booed when he attended a production of Hamilton with his family. Pence acknowledged that he heard 'a few boos" and "some cheers" and told his kids at the time, 'that's what freedom sounds like.' The ethnically diverse cast of the popular and sold-out musical, which tells the story of America's Founding Fathers, asked Pence not to leave the venue before he listened to what they wanted to say – which was that people were worried that Trump would 'not protect them.' While Trump demanded an apology from the cast at the time and called the show "overrated", Pence told Fox News at the time that he, his daughter and cousins "really enjoyed the show".
The Independent
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Trump both booed and cheered attending Les Misérables at Kennedy Center
President Donald Trump was greeted with boos, as well as cheers, and chants of 'USA!' as he took his seat for the opening night of Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center on Wednesday. It's the first time Trump has attended a show at the venue since he fired the Kennedy Center's leadership, putting MAGA loyalist Richard Grenell in charge of the famed performing arts institution and naming himself chairman of the board. He promised to scrap 'woke' programming that aligned with what he called leftist ideology, which includes drag shows and 'anti-American propaganda,' the president wrote on Truth Social. The move upset some of the center's patrons and performers, and it was reported that several cast members planned to skip the show in protest of his attendance on Wednesday. When one group of ticket holders found out that Trump, Vance and their wives, Melania and Usha, would be in attendance, they donated their tickets to a group of drag performers, according to Qommittee, as reported by Houston Public Media. Videos posted on social media show the drag performers being cheered before Trump arrived. Other videos showed the president taking his seat to a combination of boos and cheers from the audience. When Trump walked the red carpet with first lady Melania Trump ahead of the show, he said he was not bothered by the reported boycott. 'I couldn't care less, honestly, I couldn't,' Trump said. 'All I do is run the country well. The economic numbers you saw them today, they're setting records. We took $88 billion in tariffs in two months, far beyond what anybody expected. There's no inflation. People are happy. People are wealthy. The country is getting back to strength again. That's what I care about.' Trump also spoke about his plans for the Kennedy Center, whose board he replaced with loyalists, some of whom were in attendance Wednesday, including Usha Vance, Attorney General Pam Bondi and White House Chief of Staff Susie Wiles. 'We want to bring it back, and we want to bring it back better than ever,' Trump said from the red carpet. 'As you know it needs a little help from the standpoint of age and fitness, but it's going to be fantastic.' Trump has previously proclaimed his love for Les Misérables, telling Fox News: 'I love the songs; I love the play. I think it's great.' He has played the musical's rebellion anthem, 'Do You Here the People Sing?' at past events and rallies. The story revolves around revolution in France, and has been a massive smash for decades. Trump also suggested that 'we may extend' the show's run. Currently, Les Misérables is slated to run at the Kennedy Center through July 13. The political drama at the center comes just two months after audience members booed the Vances and they took their upper-level seats at the National Symphony Orchestra. Back in 2016, incoming vice president Mike Pence was booed when he attended a production of Hamilton with his family. Pence acknowledged that he heard 'a few boos" and "some cheers" and told his kids at the time, 'that's what freedom sounds like.' The ethnically diverse cast of the popular and sold-out musical, which tells the story of America's Founding Fathers, asked Pence not to leave the venue before he listened to what they wanted to say – which was that people were worried that Trump would 'not protect them.' While Trump demanded an apology from the cast at the time and called the show "overrated", Pence told Fox News at the time that he, his daughter and cousins "really enjoyed the show".
The Independent
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Les Miserables understudies set to take center stage as cast boycotts Trump-Vance attendance at Kennedy Center
President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and their wives, Melania and Usha, are all expected to be in attendance at Wednesday night's performance of the beloved musical Les Misérables at the Kennedy Center. However, the full cast is not expected to be there. The performance marks the opening of the touring production's month-long run at the historic Washington, D.C. venue. It will be the president's first show at the the Kennedy Center since he's canned the board and taken control of the venue. Trump, 78, has ignited fury over his decision to take the reigns of the Kennedy Center, firing previous leadership and installing himself as chairman. He's also pledged to scrap 'woke' programming aligned with leftist ideology. As a result of Trump's actions, several members of the company are expected to boycott the president's attendance by not performing. Cast members have remained mum on social media regarding the Kennedy Center run, but multiple reports indicate that up to a dozen performers will sit out of Wednesday's show. 'The cast was given the option to not perform the night Trump will be in the audience, and both major cast members and members of the ensemble are among those sitting out,' CNN reported last month. A representative from the Les Miserables company told The Independent: 'The National Tour of Les Misérables is looking forward to performing for D.C. audiences beginning tonight and throughout the engagement at the Kennedy Center, where the U.S. first saw the original production in 1986.' Historically, the Kennedy Center has hosted a variety of productions, ranging from operas to contemporary musicals to symphonies. The institution opened in 1971 and has since served as a showcase for theater, music and dramatic performances, with artists ranging from the Paul Taylor Dance Company to a joint concert by Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga. Weeks after Trump's return to the Oval Office, he fired the Kennedy Center's leadership, putting MAGA loyalist Richard Grenell in charge of the famed performing arts institution. Trump also appointed Usha Vance to the center's board along with White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, Attorney General Pam Bondi and several Fox News channel hosts and other supporters. Instantly, several high-profile performers and members, including Insecure star Issa Rae, Grey's Anatomy creator Shonda Rhimes and singer-songwriter Ben Folds, resigned from their positions and canceled shows. The center, which has seen a staggering 50 percent drop in ticket sales, has since canceled performances by the touring children's musical Finn and a planned concert featuring the Gay Men's Chorus of Washington, D.C. 'The Kennedy Center is coming back,' the president added, claiming: 'It was not properly taken care of and we are taking it back and we are going to turn it back into something great.' Trump has previously proclaimed his love for Les Misérables, telling Fox News: 'I love the songs; I love the play. I think it's great.' He has played the musical's rebellion anthem, 'Do You Here the People Sing?' at past events and rallies. The story revolves around revolution in France, and has been a massive smash for decades. Trump also suggested that 'we may extend' the show's run. Currently, Les Misérables is slated to run at the Kennedy Center through July 13.
