MAGA Loyalist With No Experience Conducts Orchestra at Trump’s Kennedy Center

MAGA loyalist Richard Grenell, who was parachuted in as head of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts as part of President Donald Trump’s takeover, is now cosplaying as an orchestra conductor.

Grenell, a former diplomat with no experience in the arts or musical performance, picked up a baton and led the National Symphony Orchestra in a rendition of the national anthem on Saturday.

The Kennedy Center had teased a “mystery maestro” ahead of Sunday’s performance of Steven’s Classical Mixtape, before revealing that it was the former U.S. ambassador to Germany rather than an acclaimed conductor or prominent figure from the classical music world.

Norman Lebrecht, the journalist behind the classical music blog Slipped Disc, commented on the rumors of Grenell’s debut: “In any normal circumstances, the musicians would refuse to play and the director would resign.”

Ric Grenell attends the opening night of "Les Misérables" at The Kennedy Center on June 11, 2025 in Washington, DC. — Richard Grenell reportedly demands that Kennedy Center staff address him as “the ambassador.” Shannon Finney/Getty Images

The stunt was part of a new Kennedy Center fundraising scheme that allows people the chance to conduct the National Symphony Orchestra if they make a “large contribution.”

The initiative comes as the Kennedy Center faces plummeting ticket sales and performance cancellations amid Trump’s disastrous takeover of the venue.

Last month, The Washington Post reported that roughly 43 percent of tickets remain unsold for a typical production, nine months after Trump installed himself as Kennedy Center chair and replaced its board with MAGA loyalists.

Staff have even speculated that the venue has been giving away an increasing number of free “comp” tickets in a desperate attempt to fill seats for performances.

Grenell was appointed head of the Kennedy Center during the MAGA reshuffle despite having no real desire or interest in the job. According to The New York Times, he had desperately wanted to become Trump’s secretary of state in a second term, but had to settle for being in charge of the performing arts center.

In an effort to reassure staff of his qualifications, Grenell reportedly highlighted that his husband danced in a couple of Broadway shows more than 20 years ago.

“He would bring up his husband as a way to be like, ‘Well, I know a lot about dance because I fell in love with a dancer,’” Jane Raleigh, the Kennedy Center’s former dance director, told the Times. Grenell has also been quoted as saying he wants the center’s programming to be “more like Paula Abdul.”