London's Nat'l Theater Live Shakespear's CORIOLANUS Starring Tom Hiddleston

"Coriolanus" is not one of Shakespeare's better known or more popular tragedies.  It's based on factual events during rebellious times in Rome as Rome was often challenged with uprisings v. its governances  during the early 17th C.  Now, with stay in place orders and social upheaval this FREE U-tube broadcast is politically prescient and a present to thespians and the community at large.  Tom Hiddleston stars in the leading role of Marcius Coriolanus, the heroic soldier whose battlefield victories make him an instant celebrity upon his return.  The production, FREE to the publicist not worth complaining about the over narrative and 12 minute prologue that detract from the production.  (Of course, for those who are blind or hard of hearing, this is a much welcomed adjunct.)   The plot parallels the pompous dictator in the White House and borrows both from Shakespeare's more acclaimed plays:  "McBeth" and "Julius Caesar".  Marcius (a tour-de-force Tom Hiddleston) returns from the battlefields to a loving wife, an adoring public and a social climbing, power hungry mother; not unlike lady McBeth.  It's at his mother's pushing Marcius use his notoriety to gain a position elected to the counsel in Rome.  Mauritius doesn't require much prodding by his mother to aspire for high office as he deems himself worthy of adulation and power.  However, his narcissism turns to disdain from the people he represents and there's an incendiary mutiny from within the electorates that not unlike Brutus & Caesar.  The sparse, dark staging is very effective in evoking enmity and blood thirsty revenge.  The costuming blends early Roman dress and contemporary dress which provide an edge to adorn Mauritius' foes.  The choreographed sword fights are staged with stealth and skill.  Shakespeare's dialogue remains an elevated art form that remains music to one's ears.  CORIOLANUS aligns with the anus in the White House who believes himself above the law and above the people for whom he pledged to protect.   "Action is eloquence," which is the antithesis of Trump's tyrannical tactics.  Rather Trump unsheathes Shakespeare's prose "Let me have war, say I, it exceeds peace as far as day does night.  It's spritely, waking, audible and full of vent.  Peace is a very apoplexy."  Now is the time for peaceful protest & discontent.  Now is the time to take advantage of London's Nat'l Theater Live broadcasts.