On December 3, the Kennedy Center honored five artists for their lifetime of contributions to the arts and American culture at a gala performance in the Kennedy Center's Opera House.
Recipients honored at the 29th annual national celebration of the arts were: musical theater composer and producer Andrew Lloyd Webber; conductor Zubin Mehta; country singer and songwriter Dolly Parton; singer, songwriter and producer Smokey Robinson; and film director and producer Steven Spielberg.
The President and Mrs. Bush received the Honorees and members of the Artists Committee, who nominated them, along with the Kennedy Center Board of Trustees at the White House prior to the gala performance. Guest artists at the performance included Aretha Franklin, Sarah Brightman, Jessica Simpson, Tom Hanks, Liam Neeson , The Temptations, John Williams, Reese Witherspoon, Itzhak Perlman, Corey Glover, Christine Ebersole, Elena Roger, and group of veterans who survived the D-Day invasion at Normandy. The 2006 Kennedy Center Honors Gala concluded with a supper dance in the Grand Foyer.
Lady Madeleine and Lord Andrew Lloyd Webber.
Frances and Smokey Robinson.
Dolly Parton.
Christine Ebersole.
Christine and Stephen Schwarzman.
Caroline Kennedy, Vernon Jordan and Ed Schlossberg.
