US President Donald Trump announced plans to close the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts for two years starting in July for renovations.

Trump’s announcement on Sunday follows a wave of cancellations by major performers, musicians and groups since the president ousted his previous leadership. added his name to the building.

Trump made no mention of the recent cancellations in his post.

“I have determined that the fastest way to bring the Trump Kennedy Center to its highest level of success, beauty, and grandeur is to cease entertainment operations for approximately two years,” he posted on the Truth social platform.

“The temporary closure will produce faster, higher quality results!”

The closure will begin on July 4, coinciding with the 250th Independence Day celebrations.

Trump said the decision would be approved by the board of directors. Carefully selected After taking over as chairman.

The president added that the facility’s various entertainment events – concerts, operas, musicals, ballet performances and interactive arts – would hinder and slow down construction and renovation work, necessitating a complete temporary closure.

“The Trump Kennedy Center, if temporarily closed for construction, revitalization and comprehensive reconstruction, could without a doubt become the finest performing arts facility of its kind anywhere in the world,” he said.

“America will leave behind a beautiful new landmark of which generations to come can be proud.”

The Kennedy Center had no immediate comment.

The complex was originally a national cultural center but was renamed by Congress as a “Living Memorial” to former President John F. Kennedy after his assassination in 1964.

Opened in 1971, it is open year-round as a public art showcase that includes the National Symphony Orchestra.

After Trump took over as chairman of the center’s board of directors, some entertainers and performers canceled shows in protest of the president’s policies.

These include the producer of the award-winning musical “Hamilton” and international operatic soprano Renee Fleming.

The Washington National Opera recently announced it would be leaving the Kennedy Center, its home since its opening.

Famed composer Philip Glass also announced Wednesday he was canceling a symphony performance dedicated to Abraham Lincoln, saying the center’s “values ​​today” are in “direct conflict” with the message of his work.

Trump criticized some programs at the once nonpartisan center as being too “woke.”

Recently, the Kennedy Center hosted its premiere. Documentary on First Lady Melania TrumpIt had a record-breaking weekend at the box office, but received mostly negative reviews from critics.

The extent of the “complete reconstruction” Trump referred to was unclear, but he described the building as dilapidated and in need of renovation.

An article on X by Maria Kennedy Shriver, the niece of the slain former president, criticized Trump’s decision without naming Trump. She said the closures and renovations were an attempt to distract Americans because “no one wants to perform there anymore.”

Trump’s plan to redevelop the center follows a series of steps to reshape America’s historical and cultural institutions.

He demolished the East Wing of the White House and launched a massive $400 million ballroom projectActive efforts are underway to build a triumphal arch on the Arlington Bridge across from the Lincoln Memorial, and there are plans to build Washington Dulles International Airport.