Renowned Tony-winning playwright and actor Harvey Fierstein urged people to fight back against Republican President Donald Trump's attack on American arts and culture in a blistering Instagram post.
The 72-year-old, known for his critically acclaimed works such as Torch Song Trilogy and La Cage aux Folles, said he had been "banned" from the Kennedy Center, the treasured cultural center of the U.S. in Washington, D.C.
Last month, the uncultured U.S. President became chairman of the Kennedy Center and fired all its board members whom former Democratic President Joe Biden appointed despite the theater palace's history of bipartisan membership.
Trump now has full power to police artistic changes at the formerly esteemed premier performing arts institution.
Here is a clip of White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt at a press briefing of Trump's takeover of the Kenney Center, "where he hopes to restore arts and culture that embrace American tradition—don't disparage it, as we have unfortunately seen over the last several years."
On Monday, Fierstein wrote, "I have been banned from THE KENNEDY CENTER."
When concerned members from the theater-loving community reached out to ask Fierstein how he felt about Trump's "takeover" of the Kennedy Center, he replied, "How do you think I feel?"
Fierstein, who became the first openly gay actor to win a Tony for playing a gay character in Torch Song Trilogy in 1983, continued to list the shows he's written with LGBTQ+ themes that would no longer be welcome at the Kennedy Center.
"The shows I've written are now banned from being performed in our premiere American theater. Those shows, most of which have been performed there in the past, include, KINKY BOOTS, LA CAGE AUX FOLLES, TORCH SONG TRILOGY, HAIRSPRAY, SAFE SEX, CASA VALENTINA, SPOOKHOUSE, A CATERED AFFAIR, THE SISSY DUCKLING, BELLA BELLA and more."
He continued:
"I have been in the struggle for our civil rights for more than 50 years only to watch them snatched away by a man who actually couldn't care less."
"He does this stuff only to placate the religious right so they'll look the other way as he savages our political system for his own glorification."
Fierstein noted that Trump "attacks" free speech, the free press, and the nation's global allies, and that the President's only "allegiance is to himself—the golden calf."
The post concluded with an official response to being asked how he really felt about the situation.
"My fellow Americans I warn you - this is NOT how it begins," he wrote, adding, "This is how freedom ENDS!"
"Trump may have declared 'woke' as dead in America. We must prove him wrong. WAKE THE HELL UP!!!!!"
Social media users joined him in his vexation.
LGBTQ+ community members, allies, and theatergoers answered the call to speak out.
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Trump loyalist Richard Grenell, appointed by Trump as President of the Kennedy Center as well as the first openly gay U.S. Cabinet official, refuted Fierstein's claim, calling it a "total lie."
"Whoever told you this (because you obviously didn’t do your own research) should be fired from your team for purposefully making you look foolish. I, too, have been in the fight for equality for decades," Grenell wrote Thursday morning on X (formerly Twitter).
"You aren’t banned. In fact, come do Hairspray or La Cage here at the Kennedy Center. This is your personal invite."
"Let’s meet. If, however, you can handle diverse opinions and want to be inclusive of everyone, that is," added Grenell.
Fierstein has not yet responded to Grenell's remarks.
Grenell recently lashed out at Lin-Manuel Miranda after Hamilton producer Jeff Seller pulled a run of its Tony-winning musical from the venue due to its new conservative leadership.
Following the announcement of Hamilton's cancellation, Grenell accused Miranda of being "intolerant of people who don't agree with him politically."
Prominent artists like Issa Rae immediately canceled scheduled appearances, and singer/songwriter Ben Folds and American soprano Renee Fleming withdrew as advisers after Trump's appointees to the governing body of the Kennedy Center unanimously elected him as chairman.
On March 6, 2025, the Kennedy Center released a list of 20 canceled or postponed performances since Trump's takeover, citing financial reasons like low ticket sales or "artist availability."
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