The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, located in Washington, D.C., and funded through a public-private partnership, has disbanded its dance programming team.
The layoffs occurred on Thursday, Aug. 21, according to reporting from the Washington Post.
“Three individuals were terminated,” a Kennedy Center spokesperson told the Post. “We will have an exciting announcement about the new direction for Dance programming soon.”
PEOPLE has reached out to the Kennedy Center for further comment.
Mallory Miller, an assistant manager of dance programming, confirmed to the Post that she was among those laid off.
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“I am so proud of the two-plus years of work that I have done. It’s been excellent work with my excellent team,” Miller said. She also highlighted her efforts to unionize Kennedy Center employees, adding, “And I think that our firing today proves why we need one.”
President Donald Trump assumed leadership of the performing arts center less than a month into his second term, becoming board chair in February. Ric Grenell, a special presidential envoy in the Trump administration and former acting Director of National Intelligence, currently serves as president of the board of trustees.
“We’re here to have our first board meeting, Kennedy Center, and it’s in tremendous disrepair,” Trump remarked during a March tour of the center, according to NPR. “As is a lot of the rest of our country, most of it because of bad management.”
Recent reporting from the Washington Post indicates that at least 50 employees have left the Kennedy Center in recent months.
The board of trustees, appointed by the president and listed online, includes several familiar names from Trump’s circle, such as 2024 campaign manager Susie Wiles, White House Deputy Chief of Staff for National Security Dan Scavino, Second Lady Usha Vance, and Fox News host Laura Ingraham, among others.
The president has also hinted at the possibility of adding his name to the historic venue.
“On December 5 of this year, the 2026 FIFA World Cup draw will take place at the Kennedy Center,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Aug. 22. “Some people refer to it as the ‘Trump-Kennedy Center,’ but we’re not prepared to do that quite yet. Maybe in a week or so.”
That same day, Trump shared plans for renovations at the center, emphasizing its architectural features.
“The bones are so great. They have marble that is so unbelievable, but it hasn’t been polished,” he said, also suggesting painting the interior columns “probably a very good white, a beautiful white.”
