The drama in the audience rivaled the spectacle on stage Wednesday at the Kennedy Center, where President Trump attended the opening night of Les Miserables as he tightens his grip on the venerable performing-arts institution. It was his first time attending a show there since his election, and he was booed and cheered as he took his seat alongside first lady Melania Trump, per the AP. Near the end of intermission, someone loudly cursed his name, drawing applause. Several drag queens were in the crowd, their presence a protest against Trump's complaints that the Kennedy Center has hosted too many drag shows.
Despite the condemnation, the AP reports the event had a "MAGA does Broadway" feel. Ric Grenell, the Trump-appointed head of the Kennedy Center, was there, as were Vice President JD Vance and his wife, Usha. Before the show began, Attorney General Pam Bondi chatted with guests, and Health Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. took selfies. Laura Loomer, the conspiracy theorist who has advised Trump on personnel decisions, posted a video from a seat near the stage.
"We want to bring it back, and we want to bring it back better than ever," Trump said of the Kennedy Center on the red carpet before the show. The president has a particular affection for Les Miserables, a sprawling musical set in 19th-century France, and has occasionally played its songs at his events. One of them, "Do You Hear the People Sing?," is a revolutionary rallying cry inspired by the 1832 rebellion against the French king. "Someone explain the plot to him," California Gov. Gavin Newsom wrote on social media.
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Trump's moves regarding the center—he fired the Kennedy Center's longtime director and board and replaced them with loyalists, who then named him as chairman—have upset some of its patrons and performers. In March, the audience booed the Vances after they slipped into upper-level seats to hear the National Symphony Orchestra. Sales of subscription packages are said to have declined since Trump's takeover; several touring productions, including Hamilton, have canceled planned runs at the center; and performers have scrapped scheduled appearances. Understudies may have performed in some roles Wednesday night due to boycotts by Les Miserables cast members, but Trump said he wasn't bothered by anyone skipping the performance. "I couldn't care less," he said. (More here.)
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