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. President Trump did not attend to avoid "political distraction," according to a statement from the White House, but it emboldened honorees to air their angst.
"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. ("Hip-hop is the culture surrounding it: these earrings, this hat," he explained. "And the dancing!" she squealed.)
"Art helps us understand each other," Ms. Pelosi said in an interview. "I truly believe this: Whatever political party, our differences are shed when you engage in the arts."
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But moments later, Ms. Pelosi was seated three tables away from Secretary of State Rex W. Tillerson, the evening's host, whose appointment she once called a "disturbing signal" of the Trump administration's foreign policy motives. Throughout the night, Ms. Pelosi patted the shoulder of Ms. de Lavallade, the dancer and choreographer who, along with Mr. Lear, . (The offer was later retracted.)
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.
But much of it meandered into weightier territory, including immigration policy. In a speech, the actress Rita Moreno quoted a segment of the State Department's official mission to foster conditions for the betterment of "people everywhere."
"Some of us have rattled the chains for issues of justice," said Ms. Moreno, a Puerto Rican friend of the honoree Ms. Estefan, who is Cuban-American. "Well, mi amiga, Gloria, it is not lost on me tonight that one immigrant girl will honor another."
In accepting the award, Ms. Estefan underscored the fragility of freedom. "People here think you can never lose this, but you can lose this," she said. "We all have to stand up for what this country is, for its values."
In light of the event's 40th anniversary, Sunday's lavish tribute — where a single seat costs up to $6,000 — was even more special. Multicolored ribbons were draped from cables over the red carpet in the Hall of States. The rainbow palette of the medallions illuminated the marble perimeter of the Kennedy Center and the bronze bust of President John F. Kennedy.
And while the night's focus was on the honorees, Caroline Kennedy opened the program with a pointed quotation from her father: "The men who create power make an indispensable contribution to the nation's greatness, but the men who question power make a contribution just as indispensable, especially when that questioning is disinterested, for they determine whether we use power or power uses us."
Among the dozens of tributes — from Stevie Wonder, Misty Copeland, Dave Chappelle and Queen Latifah — was a student of Ms. de Lavallade's at Yale: Meryl Streep.
Mr. Trump criticized Ms. Streep after the Golden Globes in January, which began a year of tension with the arts community. The president's spring budget proposal suggested eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts. 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. "The arts are a reflection of what's happening in America. We miss the president, we're sorry he's not here — but we totally get it."
The Kennedy Center Honors will be broadcast on CBS on Dec. 26 at 9 p.m. Eastern.
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