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 Kennedy Center seen from the Potomac River | |
  John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts Location within Central Washington, D.C.  John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts (the United States) | |
| Address | 2700 F Street, NW |
|---|---|
| Location | Washington, D.C., United States |
| Coordinates | 38°53′45″N 77°03′21″W / 38.8957°N 77.0559°W |
| Public transit |  Washington Metro   at Foggy Bottom–GWU Metrobus |
| Owner | United States government |
| Operator | John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts David Rubenstein, Chairman Deborah Rutter, President |
| Type | Performing arts center |
| Capacity | Concert Hall: 2,465 Eisenhower Theater: 1,161 Family Theater: 320 Jazz Club: 160 Millennium Stage: 235 Opera House: 2,347 Terrace Theater: 490 Theater Lab: 398 |
| Construction | |
| Broke ground | December 2, 1964 |
| Opened | September 8, 1971 |
| Architect | Edward Durell Stone |
| Structural engineer | Severud Associates |
| General contractor | John McShain |
| Tenants | |
| National Symphony Orchestra Washington National Opera | |
| Website | |
| kennedy-center | |
The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (officially known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the eastern bank of the Potomac River in Washington, D.C. It was named in 1964 as a memorial to assassinated President John F. Kennedy. Opened on September 8, 1971, the center hosts many different genres of performance art, such as theater, dance, orchestras, jazz, pop, psychedelic, and folk music.
Authorized by the 1958 National Cultural Center Act of Congress,[1] which requires that its programming be sustained through private funds, the center represents a public–private partnership. Its activities include educational and outreach initiatives, almost entirely funded through ticket sales and gifts from individuals, corporations, and private foundations.
The original building, designed by architect Edward Durell Stone,[1] was constructed by Philadelphia contractor John McShain, and is administered as a bureau of the Smithsonian Institution. An earlier design proposal called for a more curvy, spaceship-inspired building similar to how the Watergate complex appears today.[2] An extension to the Durell Stone Building was designed by Steven Holl and opened in 2019. The center receives annual federal funding to pay for building maintenance and operation.
- ^ a b "U.S. capital seeks to build culture center". Lewiston Morning Tribune. Associated Press. October 21, 1962. p. 2.
- ^ Tom (February 24, 2014). "The Kennedy Center Could Have Looked Like This". Ghosts of DC. Archived from the original on March 3, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2019.