Kennedy Center Weighing Options for the National Symphony Orchestra During Renovation
One scenario would pause NSO programming altogether. The board takes up the plans Thursday.
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Kennedy Center budget planners have drawn up three scenarios for what happens to the National Symphony Orchestra during the institution's proposed two-year renovation - and one of them would effectively pause the orchestra's programming, according to internal documents obtained by Axios.
The plans, prepared Aug. 3 by the Kennedy Center's Audit and Finance Committee, go before the full board of trustees Thursday at 10:30 a.m., Axios reported.
Under the first scenario, the NSO would decamp to offsite alternate venues while limited programming continued at the REACH, the center's indoor-outdoor campus. The orchestra is no stranger to playing away from home: it makes its Hollywood Bowl debut later this month and is scheduled to perform at DAR Constitution Hall in September.
The second scenario would keep the NSO performing inside the Kennedy Center itself, with construction carried out in phases - an approach that could stretch the project beyond two years. The REACH would continue programming and the John F. Kennedy memorial on the Terrace Level would stay open.
The third scenario is a slimmed-down operation that appears to pause NSO programs entirely.
The price tags diverge sharply. The two options that keep the orchestra playing would run roughly $25 million annually, while the reduced-operations scenario would cost about $10 million a year, per Axios. Those figures are separate from the $250 million President Trump has said he anticipates spending on the renovation itself.
"A comprehensive, nearly 200-page document encompassing independent, third-party analysis, was provided to the full Board for review ahead of the upcoming meeting where renovation discussions will take place," a Kennedy Center spokesperson told Axios.
Founded in 1931, the National Symphony Orchestra has played a full season of subscription concerts at the Kennedy Center since the building opened in 1971 and became an artistic affiliate of the institution in 1986. Gianandrea Noseda serves as music director.
