President Donald Trump on Monday visited the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts, where he took a tour and chaired a meeting of its board of directors. It was his first time at the marquee arts institution since he began remaking it at the start of his second term in office. Trump fired the previous board of the Kennedy Center, writing on social media that they “do not share our Vision for a Golden Age in Arts and Culture.” He replaced them with loyalists, including White House chief of staff Susie Wiles, Attorney General Pam Bondi and Usha Vance, the wife of Vice President JD Vance, and installed himself as chairman. The Republican president's allies have complained that the Kennedy Center, which is known for its annual celebration of notable American artists, had become too liberal and “woke” with its programming. Trump complained of tremendous disrepair Monday speaking to reporters ahead of the board meeting, saying the center “represents a very important part of D.C. and actually our country.” Trump also discussed plans to “improve very greatly” the Kennedy Center and its upcoming artistic programming. “We are going to have some really good shows," he said, adding, “The thing that does well are Broadway hits.” Several artists and productions, including Broadway smash “Hamilton,” have backed out of performances at the Kennedy Center in protest of the Trump takeover. “I was never a big fan, I never liked ‘Hamilton’ very much,” Trump said in response. The Kennedy Center, which sits on the banks of the Potomac River, opened in 1971 and has enjoyed bipartisan support over the years. However, Trump has a fraught relationship with it, dating to his first term as president. He skipped the annual honors ceremony each year. "Needs a lot of work, but we will be ... we're going to make it great. Just like we're going to make the country great and DC great. And this is a big part of DC. I hear the acoustics are fantastic in the center. So that's, that's a big thing. They usually aren't in places. So that's good. But if you if you're ready go ahead. (Reporter: What are the changes are you going to make to the Kennedy Center?) We'll make a lot of changes, including the seats, the decor. Pretty much everything needs a lot of work." ... "Well, we are looking at that. Whatever it is, I think, you know, such an important part of the fabric of the country and of D.C.. So we want to do it right, and we'll do it right, and we'll do it once. So you want a little picture like this? (Trump raises his arms) Perfect. Go ahead. Are you guys ready? Come on. Good." ... "I'd say come here and see a show. I was never a big fan of, I never liked Hamilton very much and I never liked it, but we are going to have some really good shows. I would say this, come here and watch it and you'll see over a period of time it'll improve very greatly, physically. And we're going to get some very good shows. The thing that does well are Broadway hits and we have some beauty. I guess we have Les Mis coming and we have some others. But the Broadway hits have done very well."