Washington Classical Review

Washington Opera will move its two March productions to Lisner Auditorium

Fri Jan 16, 2026 at 4:14 pm

By Charles T. Downey

The Lisner Auditorium at George Washington University will be the venue for Washington National Opera’s March productions.

Washington National Opera announced scheduling and venue details for part of its remaining season on Friday, following its sudden departure from the Kennedy Center one week ago.

According to a press release, the company will relocate its productions of Scott Joplin’s Treemonisha and Robert Ward’s The Crucible, planned for the Kennedy Center Eisenhower Theater, to nearby Lisner Auditorium. The new runs are scheduled for March 7-15 and March 21-29, respectively.

While WNO claimed from the start that it decided to end the affiliation agreement with the Kennedy Center, KC president Richard Grenell has since countered that the Kennedy Center made the call, in an effort to support the “financial stability” of the center, a spokesperson said. Since resuming operations as an independent nonprofit organization, WNO said it has seen “an outpouring of support, including donations from more than 500 donors in 72 hours,” according to the company’s press release.

Rescheduling of other performances remains undetermined at present. The performance of the American Opera Initiative program, scheduled for January 24, has been postponed to an unspecified future date. The production of Bernstein’s West Side Story will still take place in May, with venue and date information to be determined. The same is true for the WNO Gala, which will be hosted by Broadway composer Stephen Schwartz sometime in May, now that the event will no longer be held at the Kennedy Center.

WNO Cafritz Young Artists will perform at some events this spring as well. Most importantly, according to the press release, the Kennedy Center Opera House Orchestra will be rechristened the Washington National Opera Orchestra. The ensemble will perform at a few other events this spring as well.

Patrons who have already purchased tickets for WNO events at the Kennedy Center will receive refunds. Tickets for the new dates will go on sale to the public on January 23, with a special pre-sale option for WNO subscribers opening January 20. Details on dates, pricing, and subscriptions may be found at the company’s new website, washnatopera.org.