Around the legendary setting of Shakespeare’s tragedy about Julius Caesar, a role that takes the actor, surprisingly reminiscent of the current President of the United States, a huge scandal erupted, and it is for this reason.
Criticism of such non-standard speed like an avalanche fell on a performance from some conservative publications. Not turned away the son of the President, Donald trump Jr., who wrote in his Twitter the following:
I wonder how much of this «art» is funded by taxpayers? Serious question, when does art become political speech & does that change things? https://t.co/JfOmLLBJCn
— Donald Trump Jr. (@DonaldJTrumpJr) June 11, 2017
«I wonder what part of this «art» is funded by the taxpayers? Serious question, when «art» becomes a political speech and what difference does it make?»
Subsequently, such large companies as Delta Air Lines Inc. and Bank of America Corp. decided not to provide financial support to the new York Public theater, the troupe involved in the show. For many years these companies were one of the main sponsors of the theatre.
“No matter what your political position, the staging of Julius Caesar in the summer the free program ‘Shakespeare in the Park’ does not reflect the values of Delta Air Lines. Their artistic and creative direction crossed the line standards of good taste,” said Ashton morrow, to represent Delta Air Lines Inc.
Following the example of airlines, Bank of America Corp. feel the need to announce that it was considering a production of «Julius Caesar» as a provocative and offensive. “If we had known their intentions in advance, we would not dare to sponsor a [play]. We are withdrawing funding for this production,” said Susan ETRAN behalf of the company.
In turn, the Public theater commented on his attitude to the current situation in the following way:
“We understand and respect the rights of our sponsors and everyone who supports us, to allocate funding in accordance with their values. We recognize that our interpretation of the play sparked a heated debate; the audience and the sponsors have expressed different points of view and opinions. Such a discussion definitely is a goal of our society faces to the theatre; this discourse is the basis of healthy democracy,» written in the «notes on Julius Caesar» on the theatre’s website.
Wished to speak and the Director of the play and artistic Director of the Public theater, Oskar Eustis. He said that “Julius Caesar can be seen as a cautionary parable for those who are trying to fight for democracy by undemocratic means. The fight against a tyrant does not mean podrazhanie him.”
However, not all sponsors of the theatre is equally critical of the performance. For example, publishing The Times expressed its willingness to support the theatre, saying: “As an institution which believes in freedom of speech for art, as well as for the media, we support the right of the Public theater to stage the play as they chose”.
It is worth noting that in 2012, the new York professional theater company The Acting Company put the same play, but then Julius Caesar was presented in the form of Barack Obama.
