The Washington National Opera is accusing the Kennedy Center of failing to return more than $17 million in donor funds, escalating a dispute that followed the end of a 15-year partnership between the two institutions.
In a court filing, the opera company said the money in question came from years of contributions by supporters who specifically intended their gifts to benefit the Washington National Opera and its artistic and educational mission. Those donors, the filing argues, entrusted their contributions to support performances, artists, and community programming carried out by the opera over decades.
“The funds held by the Kennedy Center represent years of gifts and contributions made by loyal WNO donors who specifically directed their support to benefit WNO and its mission,” the organization said in court filings. “Those donors trusted that their contributions would support WNO’s artists, its performances and the education and community programs that WNO has carried out for decades.”
The dispute centers on a long-standing affiliation agreement under which the Kennedy Center managed donations on behalf of the opera for roughly 15 years, while the two organizations remained legally separate entities. According to the filing, the Kennedy Center handled fundraising, administrative support, and the management of WNO-designated contributions “for the benefit of WNO,” with those funds always belonging to the opera.
The WNO ended its partnership with the Kennedy Center in January, citing what it described as a financially strained relationship. In the months leading up to the split, the opera alleges, the Kennedy Center stopped performing key obligations under the agreement, including fundraising support, marketing assistance, and timely reporting on the status and growth of WNO-managed funds. Despite repeated requests to address the issues, the opera said the problems were not resolved.
“Having exhausted its efforts to amicably resolve this matter, WNO files this lawsuit to seek the return of money that belongs to it and is necessary to fulfill its mission,” the filing stated.
Kennedy Center officials downplayed the allegations, calling them “meritless.”
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“Despite multiple proposals, WNO failed to engage in good-faith discussions and [WNO Director] Francesca Zambello undermined coordination between the organizations,” The Kennedy Center’s vice president of public relations, Roma Daravi told The Hill. “The Center has acted transparently and in the best interests of the public throughout this process.”
The filing comes amid broader turbulence at the Kennedy Center, including President Donald Trump’s attempt to rename the performing-arts center to the Trump-Kennedy Center. In recent weeks, a federal judge ordered that his name must come off the building. The Trump administration appealed the ruling in a last-ditch effort, but another judge struck down the appeal on Friday, with crews beginning to remove Trump’s name from the building.