Twitter is having fun at the President’s expense today, inspired by a week-long backlash against a Shakespeare in the Park performance of “Julius Caesar” that featured a Donald Trump-inspired take on the title character.
The outcry against the production by New York’s Public Theater led sponsors Bank of America and Delta Airlines to withdraw their support, and culminated Friday night when two protesters crashed the stage and interrupted the performance.
Notably, a production of the play in 2012 featuring a Barack Obama-inspired take on Julius Caesar provoked no such outrage. Inspired by that and by Friday’s incident, Twitter decided to lean into it and imagine some other seminal works from the Bard — only Trumpified.
Democratic political consultant John Aravosis started the conversation Saturday morning, asking his 65,000 followers to imagine what it would be like if “all of Shakespeare was really written about Donald Trump,” suggesting “King Lear” would be renamed “King Leer” and adding the hashtag #ShakespeareInTheTrump.
https://twitter.com/aravosis/status/876088098819584001
Twitter rolled with it, and had plenty of suggestions:
If you prick us do we not have blood coming out of our wherever? #ShakespeareInTheTrump
— G.E. Filtefish votes. every. time. (@NOLAKenneth) June 17, 2017
You blocks
You stones
You worse than senseless things
O you hard hearts
You cruel men of Trump#ShakespeareInTheTrump pic.twitter.com/96rmdpZ4gK— BrokenPromisedLand?? (@VoteAngryNow) June 17, 2017
https://twitter.com/LindaKrylov/status/876115421879037952
#ShakespeareInTheTrump If you prick me, do I not act the bigger prick? If you wrong me, shall I not claim vaguely to have something on you?
— John Drummond Stands With Ukraine ?? (@4eyesJohnny) June 17, 2017
"Alas, poor Yorick / He had a pre-existing condition" #ShakespeareInTheTrump #AHCAKills pic.twitter.com/pfRj28GJrj
— Donald J. Drumpf (@RealDonalDrumpf) June 17, 2017
"To thine own self be lewd."#ShakespeareInTheTrump
— Where's #BrittneyGriner????? (@wheresjulee) June 17, 2017
https://twitter.com/CMontyBurnsIII/status/876118797266161664
https://twitter.com/aravosis/status/876092912299384832
Neither a borrower nor a lender be – unless it's a loan from Russia, always take those! #ShakespeareInTheTrump
— Deep Blue in a Red State (@KissyGa) June 17, 2017
Shall I compare thee to a Summer's Eve? #ShakespeareInTheTrump pic.twitter.com/zz2KqDeKjc
— G.E. Filtefish votes. every. time. (@NOLAKenneth) June 17, 2017
https://twitter.com/Rossalincoln/status/876119334568861698
"Now is the winter of our discovfefe" #ShakespeareintheTrump https://t.co/1iDrUXAN8q
— (((Roberta This Tweet is Cake Lipp))) (@RobertaLipp) June 17, 2017