Kennedy Center Staff Recall 50 Years of Mice as Trump Takeover Empties Venue
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 9
Kennedy Center Staff Recall 50 Years of Mice as Trump Takeover Empties Venue
1 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 9
Summary
A potential two-year renovation closure this month has left the Kennedy Center nearly empty, with remaining staff swapping stories about the mice that have become part of the building’s lore.
President Trump’s takeover of the performing arts center frames that nostalgia, as workers describe a lonely final stretch inside a venue they say has long had its own tan, pearl-bellied regulars.
Stagehands say one mouse nicknamed Skittles often sat beneath a wheelchair ramp facing the Millennium Stage, while mice also raided a charcuterie board left overnight by the cast of “& Juliet” in 2024.
The rodents have repeatedly intruded on performances, including a 2018 National Symphony Orchestra concert and again in May during Puccini’s “Il Trittico,” turning a pest problem into a quirky piece of Kennedy Center history.