What happens when a satirist tangles with a tyrant?

John Hodge, best-known for his “Trainspotting” screenplay, has a written a new play about an imaginary 1938 encounter between Josef Stalin and dissident Russian playwright Mikhail Bulgakov.

In the play, Bulgakov — stalked by the secret police — is offered a commission to write a play about Stalin to celebrate the Premier’s 60th birthday.

You can see the London production of the play, starring Alex Jennings as Bulgakov and Simon Russell Beale as Stalin, without taking a plane to England.

Rialto Cinemas will present the “National Theatre Live from London” HD simulcast of the production at 7 p.m. Dec. 19 and 20 at the 6th Street Playhouse, 52 W. Sixth St., Santa Rosa.

Admission: $16-$23.

Tickets: rialtocinemas.com.