Welcome to the Folger
Enjoy great stories | Explore what makes you curious | Share the best in art, history, and literature with friends and family at the world’s largest Shakespeare collection.
The Folger is open! New exhibition galleries, gardens, and shop
Explore our exhibitions
See what’s on view in our galleries.
Plan your visit
Get details and reserve timed-entry passes.
Check out our shop
Gifts, games, merch, and more!
What’s on
Join us for in-person and virtual events: theater, poetry, music, and more.
Little Books, Big Gifts: The Artistry of Esther Inglis
DC, I Love You: Community Playwriting Workshops
Early Music Seminar: A Mass for Christmas Eve
The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo
Folger Book Club: The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo
Virtual Folger Salon with Edel Lamb, Dominick Porras, and Susan Valladares
A Mass for Christmas Eve
Emily Dickinson Birthday Tribute Reading with Kimiko Hahn
An Hour O’erflow with Joy: Stories of Students and Teachers
Folger Salon with Pablo Miguel Sierra Silva and Ania Upstill
News and announcements
Folger Shakespeare Library Names Dr. Farah Karim-Cooper as Director
Press release: May 20, 2024
About us
How did the world’s largest Shakespeare collection end up one block from the US Capitol? Explore the Folger’s origin story.
The latest from our blogs and podcast
“That holy feeling”: Al Pacino on looking for Shakespeare
Austin Tichenor takes a look at Al Pacino’s new memoir, Sonny Boy. Pacino describes how central Shakespeare was to his development as a young actor.
Covering Esther, or What Happens When Renaissance Woman Esther Inglis Exchanges Her Brush and Pen for a Needle: Examining Embroidery Through Reproduction
A behind the scenes look at the creation of a reproduction of one of the embroidered bindings on display in Little Books, Big Gifts: The Artistry of Esther Inglis.
Studying Shakespeare Now
Discover how the Folger’s new teaching guides make Shakespeare’s works more engaging, accessible, and relevant, with strategies for teaching the plays, tackling topics like race and gender, and meeting the needs of today’s students.
About 'The Familiar'
Introductory information on the December 2024 Folger Book Club selection, The Familiar by Leigh Bardugo.
The Reading List: Family Stories
The end of the year brings feasts, celebrations, and family. Our reading list of Folger Book Club picks offers a wide range of ways to reflect on the ties that bind us.
What's onstage at Shakespeare theaters in November
Explore what’s playing at our Shakespeare Theater Partners around the country this November.
Our collection
The First Folio
The Folger has the world’s largest collection of First Folios. Learn more about the book that gave us Shakespeare.
A majestic portrait
The Folger collection includes about 200 paintings. This portrait of Queen Elizabeth I by George Gower is dated 1579, making it the oldest painting in our collection. Two years after he completed this portrait, Gower became Serjeant Painter to the Queen, making him the most important artist in England.
Our other Elizabeth I holdings include hand-signed letters, books, and even New Year’s gift rolls detailing her holiday gifts. It is the largest collection of Elizabeth I materials in North America.
Shakespeare’s works
View the full list of plays and poems to read, search, and download our bestselling editions of Shakespeare’s works.
Shakespeare’s most popular plays
Romeo and Juliet
Macbeth
A Midsummer Night's Dream
Julius Caesar
Othello
Hamlet
Explore
What was Shakespeare's theater like?
Learn about the Globe and other London playhouses where Shakespeare’s company performed. What was it like to be an actor there, or an audience member?
Teach
How can Shakespeare help 21st-century students be stronger readers?
Our Folger Method is revolutionizing how not just Shakespeare but all literature is taught using strategies that allow all students to own – and enjoy – complex texts.
Research
If we are what we eat, what can recipes from the past tell us?
Projects like Before ‘Farm to Table’ unite scholars and practitioners in investigations into the past to shed light on what matters to us today.
Support the things you love
Your gifts make access to our collection, learning opportunities, and exciting experiences happen.