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Kennedy Center nixes top lawyer's cover band from venue
Exclusive
Kennedy Center nixes top lawyer’s cover band from venue
Elliot Berke’s cover band the DePlorables was rejected.
Elliot S. Berke arrives at the 2025 Kennedy Center Gala at The Kennedy Center in Washington, on Sept. 27, 2025. | Paul Morigi/Getty Images
By Daniel Lippman
04/11/2026 09:59 AM EDT
Even the Kennedy Center’s top lawyer has rock ‘n’ roll dreams. ... Elliot Berke, the general counsel for the Kennedy Center, last fall tried to book his own cover band the DePlorables to play at the center’s jazz-themed Speakeasy, according to three people familiar with the matter. The people, and others, were granted anonymity to speak candidly about a sensitive issue.
He wanted the DePlorables to play at the Speakeasy — part of the center’s rooftop bar that has been described as “afterhours jazz club hidden in the sky” — even though it’s a rock cover band made up of amateur musicians, they said.
Staff responsible for organizing acts at the Speakeasy ultimately rejected Berke’s requests, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, in part because they believed it was a conflict of interest.
Berke had no comment, but a Kennedy Center official denied that he ever tried to book his band at the Speakeasy.
{snip}
Kennedy Center nixes top lawyer’s cover band from venue
Elliot Berke’s cover band the DePlorables was rejected.
Elliot S. Berke arrives at the 2025 Kennedy Center Gala at The Kennedy Center in Washington, on Sept. 27, 2025. | Paul Morigi/Getty Images
By Daniel Lippman
04/11/2026 09:59 AM EDT
Even the Kennedy Center’s top lawyer has rock ‘n’ roll dreams. ... Elliot Berke, the general counsel for the Kennedy Center, last fall tried to book his own cover band the DePlorables to play at the center’s jazz-themed Speakeasy, according to three people familiar with the matter. The people, and others, were granted anonymity to speak candidly about a sensitive issue.
He wanted the DePlorables to play at the Speakeasy — part of the center’s rooftop bar that has been described as “afterhours jazz club hidden in the sky” — even though it’s a rock cover band made up of amateur musicians, they said.
Staff responsible for organizing acts at the Speakeasy ultimately rejected Berke’s requests, according to multiple people familiar with the matter, in part because they believed it was a conflict of interest.
Berke had no comment, but a Kennedy Center official denied that he ever tried to book his band at the Speakeasy.
{snip}