Kevin Couch, recently appointed senior vice president of artistic programming at the Donald J. Trump and John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, resigned just days after his hiring was announced.
Couch, whose appointment was announced in a Jan. 16 news release, confirmed his resignation on Jan. 28, deepening the turmoil at the nation’s premier cultural center as numerous performers step out on their planned performances.
Couch’s name has since been removed from the Kennedy Center’s executive leadership listings.
Couch’s brief tenure is the latest string of departures at the Kennedy Center amid major changes set in motion after President Donald Trump assumed control of its leadership.
In early 2025, Trump dismissed the center’s board of trustees and installed his own appointees, who, in turn, elected him chairman.
Under the new leadership, the center has courted controversy with efforts to realign its programming and brand. Most notably, Trump’s supporters on the board voted to rename the landmark institution after the president.
Richard Grenell, a Kennedy Center ambassador, welcomed Couch’s hiring at the time as part of an effort to “expand our commonsense programming.”
Couch’s resignation comes amid a broader exodus of artists and performers from the Kennedy Center’s stages. Several high-profile figures have withdrawn scheduled performances in protest of the center’s new direction under Trump’s leadership.
Philip Glass canceled the world premiere of his latest symphony, Lincoln, citing a “direct conflict” between the work’s themes and values now represented by the center’s leadership. Soprano Renee Fleming withdrew from two May appearances with the National Symphony Orchestra amid the continuing controversy. Other artists, including banjoist Bela Fleck and Wicked composer Stephen Schwartz, also scrapped planned performances.
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These departures reflect deep divisions within the arts community, with critics accusing the Kennedy Center’s leadership of politicizing the venue and undermining its mission to serve diverse artistic voices.
The shake-ups come at a moment when the Kennedy Center’s reputation and audience engagement are being tested. Ticket sales have reportedly declined, and other organizations have reconsidered their partnerships with the center amid disputes over artistic direction and governance.