The Washington National Opera announced Friday it will end its long-standing affiliation with the Kennedy Center and relocate performances to alternative venues, marking another significant departure from the prestigious arts complex following substantial leadership changes under President Donald Trump’s administration.

The opera company cited newly imposed financial constraints as the primary reason for its decision, explaining it will pursue an “amicable transition” away from the Kennedy Center to resume operating as an independent organization. This move comes after Trump dismissed the center’s board and appointed allies to oversee the institution.

In its official statement, the opera revealed plans to scale back its spring season and seek new performance spaces “to ensure fiscal prudence and fulfill its obligations for a balanced budget.” While the statement carefully avoided direct mentions of Trump, it follows the controversial decision by the center’s new board to incorporate the president’s name into the venue’s identity. Despite Congress still formally recognizing it as the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, both the building’s exterior signage and website now display “Trump Kennedy Center.”

Ric Grenell, a Trump aide serving as the center’s interim executive director, defended the separation, stating the Kennedy Center has invested millions to support the Washington National Opera while the company continues to operate at a deficit. Grenell suggested on social media platform X that parting ways would provide “the flexibility and funds to bring in operas from around the world and across the U.S.”

The opera’s departure adds to a growing exodus of high-profile artists who have canceled events at the Kennedy Center since Trump’s overhaul of its leadership in early 2023, when he orchestrated his own appointment to head the board of trustees. “Hamilton” creator Lin-Manuel Miranda and rock musician Peter Wolf are among those who have withdrawn from scheduled performances, with cancellations accelerating following the December 2023 rebranding that incorporated Trump’s name.

Opera officials elaborated that the Kennedy Center’s restructured business model, which requires productions to be fully funded before approval, is “incompatible with opera operations.” This approach presents significant challenges for opera companies, which typically cover only a fraction of production costs through ticket sales and depend heavily on grants and donations to bridge the financial gap. These funding sources cannot be secured with the years of advance notice needed for planning complex productions.

Furthermore, the opera company noted that the new business requirements don’t accommodate industry standard practices, such as using revenue from popular performances to subsidize less commercially viable but artistically significant works.

Francesca Zambello, who has served as the Washington National Opera’s artistic director for 14 years, expressed both pride and determination in her statement. “I have been proud to be affiliated with a national monument to the human spirit, a place that has long served as an inviting home for our ever-growing family of artists and opera lovers,” she said, while pledging to maintain diverse programming “from monumental classics to more contemporary works” despite the transition.

The separation represents a significant shift in Washington’s cultural landscape, where the Kennedy Center has traditionally served as the premier performing arts venue since its opening in 1971. The Washington National Opera had become closely integrated with the center after financial difficulties in the early 2000s led to their merger.

As of Friday evening, the Kennedy Center website still listed several upcoming WNO productions, including “Treemonisha,” “The Crucible,” and “West Side Story,” though their future locations remain uncertain as the company begins its transition toward independence.