Delta Airlines, Bank Of America Pull Funding For 'Shakespeare In The Park' After Stabbed Caesar Depicted As Trump

Shakespeare described the stab wound that Brutus gave his good buddy, Julius Caesar, as “the most unkindest cut of all.”

Patrons of the arts might argue that pulling funding for a play is also pretty painful, particularly for critics of President Donald Trump, whose image is used to overhaul the fallen emperor in a controversial new take on the classic.

Bank of America Corp BAC and Delta Air Lines, Inc. DAL have decided to pull their respective sponsorship of New York City’s hallowed “Shakespeare In The Park” held every summer in New York’s Central Park.

“Bank of America supports arts programs worldwide, including an 11-year partnership with The Public Theater and Shakespeare In the Park,” Bank of America said in a statement. “The Public Theater chose to present Julius Caesar in a such a way that was meant to provoke and offend.”

“Had this intention been made known to us, we would have decided not to sponsor it. We are withdrawing our funding for this production.”

Et Tu, Delta?

Oskar Eustis’ contemporary staging of Shakespeare’s tragedy depicts Caesar as a blond-haired man in a business suit who sports an American flag pin and has a wife who speaks with a Slavic accent and dresses sharp.

“No matter what your political stance may be, the graphic staging of Julius Caesar at this summer's Free Shakespeare in the Park does not reflect Delta Air Lines' values,” Delta spokeswoman Elizabeth Wolf told Benzinga.

“Their artistic and creative direction crossed the line on the standards of good taste. We have notified them of our decision to end our sponsorship as the official airline of the Public Theater effective immediately.

The Play’s The Thing

The New York Times review on Friday said the “depiction of a petulant, blondish Caesar in a blue suit, complete with gold bathtub and a pouty Slavic wife, takes onstage Trump-trolling to a startling new level.”

Newsday’s review said the Trumpastic tone is a bit over-the-top, noting that Caesar was a much more efficient leader than the president.

“Here, the titular Roman leader (Gregg Henry) is a blowhard with corn-yellow hair and a glamorous wife (Tina Benko) who speaks in a vaguely eastern European accent. A throwaway line refers to Caesar getting away with stabbing someone on Fifth Avenue.”

It’s not the first time a playwright has adapted Shakespeare to comment on a current political climate. In 1974, David Edgar wrote “Dick Deterred,” aka “A Watergate Musical Parody of Richard III,” in which President Richard Nixon was roasted.