Sunday was a day of great celebration for a select six performing artists as they were honored for their lifetime contributions to American culture with a gala performance attended by fellow artists who saluted them with words of praise and performances.

Music and screen icon Barbra Streisand, Academy Award winner Morgan Freeman, Grammy-winning country singer George Jones, rock music legends Pete Townshend and Roger Daltrey of The Who, and Tony Award-winning choreographer Twyla Tharp were celebrated Sunday, December 7, at the 31st Kennedy Center Honors.

The honors are bestowed annually upon artists in the performing arts from around the world who have brought a remarkable contribution to US culture. Announcing the 2008 recipients of the Kennedy Center Honors in September, chairman Stephen Schwarzman said they all possessed “extraordinary genius and tenacity,” their work having “redefined the way we see, hear and feel the performing arts.”

The gala took place at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington DC, attended by President George W. Bush and First Lady Laura Bush. This was the last time the presidential couple received honorees at the customary White House reception.

This is the highest national achievement in the performing arts, honoring recipients for their excellence in dance, music, theater, opera, motion pictures or television. Laureates are selected by the center’s board of trustees. The artists received their honors the night before during a ceremony.

Each of the honorees was celebrated with warm words of recognition as well as performances, from friends and contemporary artists. Academy Award-winning actor Denzel Washington recounted a humorous working experience he had with Morgan Freeman in the late 1970s, whilst they were performing in a Shakespeare production.

R&B star Beyoncé Knowles performed Barbra Streisand’s iconic and Academy Award-winning song “The Way We Were,” from the 1974 film of the same name. Idina Menzel from Broadway’s “Rent” and “Wicked” and young R&B star Ne-Yo also performed songs from Streisand’s decades-long career.

Streisand, who has made her antagonism to President George W. Bush known over the years, commented it would have been “lovely” to receive the award from President-elect Barack Obama yet condescended art would transcend politics on this occasion.

First Lady Laura Bush revealed she and her husband greatly enjoyed George Jones’ music and contemporary country music stars Garth Brooks, Randy Travis and Alan Jackson paid tribute to the legendary singer performing some of his greatest hits.

Referring to Twyla Tharp’s 1973 Beach Bots- inspired dance show “Deuce Coupe,” actress Lily Tomlin said the esteemed choreographer saw dance wherever she looked. “This is a woman who saw the Beach Boys and made a ballet,” Tomlin said. Kennedy Center President Michael Kaiser praised her as an artist who “would never compromise on quality.”

The Who’s Roger Daltrey and Pete Townshend were paid tribute to by Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl, who performed “Who Are You,” and Matchbox Twenty lead singer Robert Thomas, who sang “Baba O’Riley.” A choir of New York firefighters and policemen also performed, as a token of thanks for the British band’s concert in New York after 9/11.

The gala will be broadcast on CBS as a two-hour special on December 30.