Tag: Gloria Estefan

WASHINGTON — On the mezzanine of the Kennedy Center Opera House on Sunday night, the seats for a star-studded class of honorees were carefully spaced in an effort to disguise the obvious: The president, a traditional guest of the Kennedy Center Honors, was missing. It was only the fourth time in 40 years that a sitting United States president skipped the gala, which honors the lifetime achievements of artistic trailblazers in music, dance and entertainment — and the first time that the absence was not because of a national crisis or convention. “We happen to have somebody in the White House who doesn’t care about the arts and humanities,” said Norman Lear, the television producer and progressive activist who received the lifetime artistic achievement award. “I think he was smart to stay away and stay out of town — which is something he does on weekends anyway. Nothing new.” At a State Department dinner for the honorees — Mr. Lear, LL Cool J, Carmen de Lavallade, Gloria Estefan and Lionel Richie — on Saturday night, Julie Andrews, the actress and master of ceremonies, urged attendees to “step away from divisive discourse” for the weekend. For political figures like Nancy Pelosi, the House minority leader, the invitation was welcome. Under the glistening chandelier of the Thomas Jefferson Room, an enthralled Ms. Pelosi embraced LL Cool J and inquired at length about distinctions between rap and hip-hop. Throughout the night, Ms. Pelosi patted the shoulder of Ms. de Lavallade, a dancer and choreographer who, along with Mr. Lear, refused to meet with the president at the White House. Some of Saturday evening’s political commentary was jocular: David Rubenstein, the chairman of the Kennedy Center, advised Mr. Tillerson to quell the rage of Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, by offering him a new hairstylist — or Mr. Lear’s signature hat. In August, all 16 private members of the President’s Committee on the Arts and the Humanities resigned in light of Mr. Trump’s response to white nationalist activity in Charlottesville, Va. “This is the moment, year after year, when the president of the United States — the most senior individual in the land — comes to pay respects to artists,” Deborah Rutter, the president of the Kennedy Center, said in an interview.