Whoopi Goldberg says she has “no plans to go back to the Kennedy Center” following President Trump’s takeover of the Washington performing arts institution.
The co-host of “The View” made the announcement during a Thursday discussion on the daytime talk show about “Hamilton” producers canceling plans for the Broadway musical to perform at the Kennedy Center next year after Trump fired much of its board last month and appointed himself chair.
Trump stated at the time of the Kennedy Center relocation, “We are going to make sure that it is good, and it is not going to be woke.”
“The fact that there was no discussion was a big smack to the arts, which have no politics. Consider the differences between the actors to understand politics. “That is the true statement,” Goldberg said of the diverse cast of “Hamilton.”
“So I understand why they did it,” Goldberg, who received the Kennedy Center’s Mark Twain Prize for American Humor in 2001, said about the “Hamilton” producers’ decision.
“I have no plans to go back to the Kennedy Center until the Kennedy Center becomes what it was supposed to be, and that was a welcome place for all artists, no matter what your groove is,” according to her.
“They did not pass judgment on the people that they put in,” the 69-year-old actor and comedian said.
Goldberg also rebutted her “View” co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin, who stated that while she admired the arts center, “I do not know that in the middle of the country, this is like a real controversy or scandal.”
“Most people do not have the opportunity to visit the Kennedy Center,” Farah Griffin explained.
“Here’s the thing, people outside of New York watch the Kennedy Center Honors,” Goldberg explained of the annual ceremony. Goldberg appeared at the Kennedy Center Honors in 2023, where she presented the prestigious award to Billy Crystal.
“They have witnessed extraordinary things. So you have been able to see things that you would not normally see in your town,” she explained.
