The composer and lyricist of Fellow Travelers, an opera based on Thomas Mallon’s 2007 novel about the anti-gay lavender scare of the 1950s, have withdrawn the work from the 2025-26 season of the Washington National Opera at The Kennedy Center in Washington D.C., citing concern over Donald Trump’s takeover of the institution’s leadership.
The withdrawal was confirmed by Tim O’Leary and Francesca Zambello, Washington National Opera General Director and Artistic Director, respectively. In a statement obtained by Deadline, O’Leary and Zambello said, “We deeply regret that the creative team of Fellow Travelers has decided to deprive WNO audiences of the chance to experience this opera. Art and music have the power to rise above division and bring people together to find common ground. The WNO has long been a place for everyone to enjoy the power of the opera and it will remain a place for patrons of all backgrounds and beliefs.”
In a letter to the Washington National Opera obtained by The New York Times, the opera’s composer Gregory Spears and librettist Greg Pierce indicated that Trump’s takeover does not uphold Fellow Travelers‘ values of “freedom and liberty for all people.” (Mallon’s novel was also adapted for television in 2023, with Matt Bomer and Jonathan Bailey starring in the Showtime miniseries).
The Times quotes the Spears-Pierce letter as saying: “We have made the impossibly difficult decision that the Kennedy Center is not a place the team feels comfortable having the work presented.”
Fellow Travelers will be replaced on the Kennedy Center line-up with a new production of Robert Ward’s opera The Crucible.
The withdrawal is the latest high-profile voluntary protest cancelation at the Kennedy Center in recent weeks. The producers of Hamilton pulled out of a staging next year, and comedian Issa Rae canceled an appearance, while Ben Folds and Renee Fleming withdrew as Kennedy Center advisers. In a 26-show list of total cancelations put out by the Kennedy Center earlier this month, the center notes that most have been canceled by the artist or artist availability, or by the producers. Four shows since Trump’s official takeover on February 12, according to the center, were canceled for low ticket sales or for financial reasons, and two were postponed.
Two of the most headline-making cancelations – of the Kennedy Center’s upcoming tour of the children’s musical Finn, which can be read as a metaphor for LGBTQ+ pride and self-acceptance, and a May symphony and chorus performance celebrating 50 years of Pride, were pulled by the Kennedy Center either after the Trump takeover or in the days leading up to it. Kennedy Center officials have said the cancelations were financial decisions.
Another canceled project, Jonathan Spector’s Eureka Day, is a recent Broadway comedy that centers on a private school grappling with an outbreak of the mumps, as parents and administrators weigh what to do amid the anti-vaccination movement. It is listed on the Kennedy Center’s roster as being canceled by the producer due to “financial reasons.” (A representative for the play has told Deadline that Eureka Day producers would have no additional comment.)
Many in the artistic community, including artists associated with some of the canceled shows, have publicly expressed doubt about the Center’s explanations, particularly in light of Trump’s repeated exhortations to do away with “woke” programming at the beloved arts institution.
In yet another development at the Kennedy Center, the Daily Wire reported yesterday that Kennedy Center Chief Financial Officer Donna Arduin sent a letter to Kennedy Center staff saying that the insitution was $40 million in debt and will soon begin “reducing expenses” to address its “difficult” financial situation.
The Daily Wire posted a watermarked copy of Arduin’s letter on X, drawing a response from Richard Grenell, the Kennedy Center’s interim executive director appointed by Trump.
“True,” Grenell wrote on X. “But we have a path forward. It starts with cutting executive pay and downsizing the staff where possible.” He adds, “We must also have commonsense programming that the general public will support. The Kennedy Center should be the premiere Arts institution in the country – welcoming everyone.”
It’s worth noting that the canceled Finn tour followed a sold-out engagement at the Kennedy Center.
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