Celebrating Art and Artists
The Arts Influence, Sparkle, and Shine at the Kennedy Center
Image by Maick Maciel from Unsplash
Each year, on a 17-acre campus on the Potomac River in Washington DC, The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts presents 2000+ events and performances, in seven state-of-the-art theaters and Center gallery spaces. The Kennedy Center houses the National Symphony Orchestra and the Washington National Opera, and has presented annual seasons of diverse performances that includes concerts, dance, stand-up, magic, Broadway, and art exhibitions since September 1971.
In addition to these activities, the institution sponsors the Kennedy Center Honors, a program that pays tribute to select performing artists whose contributions to American culture have had significant, positive, and lasting effect. Past Honors winners include Steven Spielberg, Robert DeNiro, Bruce Springstein, Rita Moreno, YoYo Ma, George Lucas, Steve Martin, Paul McCartney, Meryl Streep, Luciano Pavarotti, and Willie Nelson. The first host of the Kennedy Center Honors inaugural 1978 celebration was Leonard Bernstein.
Image by David Hofmann from Unsplash
A Celebration of American Artists in December Each Year
The Kennedy Center program honors America’s finest arts visionaries, and in so doing, has commanded international focus on American standards of artistic excellence, and the legacy and influence of America’s most highly-decorated performing artists. The Honors Gala is broadcast every year on the last Wednesday in December. It is a sparkling annual celebration that for many, serves as the culminating performing arts event of the year. The Gala broadcast features a star-studded program of guests who pay tribute to arts honorees. Notable past Kennedy Center performances include Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler’s tribute to 2010 Honoree Paul McCartney, Kris Kristofferson, Emmylou Harris, and Lyle Lovett’s tribute to 1996 Honoree Johnny Cash, Beyoncé’s tribute to 2005 Honoree Tina Turner.
Finally, in what is perhaps the most lauded Kennedy Center Honors tribute performance to date, Aretha Franklin performs for a packed house, President Obama, First Lady Michelle Obama, and 2015 Honoree Carole King: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8cF0tf35Mbo
2022 Honorees Includes U2 + Five Pre-Eminent Artists
The Kennedy Center Honors serves as the crowning arts event of the year for millions worldwide. It is an evening of tribute that celebrates superb artists and art by way of performances by stars who have followed in honorees’ footsteps. The complete list of gala performances is a guarded secret that is not made public until the show is underway.
This years’ 2022 KENNEDY CENTER HONORS Gala will celebrate meritorious contribution to humankind made by:
Composer/conductor Tania León
Rock icon Bono and band U2
Soul and R&B singer Gladys Knight
Christian /pop music artist Amy Grant, and
Actor/filmmaker George Clooney
Watch the CBS network broadcast of the 2022 Kennedy Center Honors Wednesday evening December 28, 2022 at 7pm Central Time. Mark your calendar and enjoy the uplifting and inspiring Kennedy Center Honors every year in late December.