Esther French
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Quiz: Shakespeare's fathers (and their children)
Shakespeare’s Fathers Which Shakespeare characters (fathers or their children) speak these lines? A daughter’s love “Good my lord, You have begot me, bred me, loved me. I return those duties back as are right fit: Obey you, love…
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50 episodes and counting: Shakespeare Unlimited podcast explores race, imperialism, magic, music, Star Wars, and more
The Shakespeare Unlimited podcast connects Shakespeare and his plays with our world today through interviews with actors, directors, and scholars—but also with astronomers, a conservator, and a professional magician, among others. The 50th episode, which deals with race, Othello, and how…
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The Elizabethan Garden: 11 plants Shakespeare would have known well
The text for this blog post is adapted from an article in the Summer 2009 issue of Folger Magazine. Shakespeare, who grew up in a riverside country town and was the grandchild of prosperous farmers, refers with familiarity to an extraordinary number of plants…
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The perfect Shakespeare-inspired cocktails for summer: Juliet’s Emoji-to and Caliban's Wrong Island Iced Tea from 'Shakespeare, Not Stirred'
Mix your own drinks with recipes inspired by Shakespeare characters! Two professors combined their love of cocktails with their love of Shakespeare to create Shakespeare, Not Stirred: Cocktails for Your Everyday Dramas, a collection of recipes with names like “Kate’s…
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War and America's Shakespeare
“Extremity is the trier of spirits/ Common chances common men will bear.” Quoting from Shakespeare’s Coriolanus, Abigail Adams praised the courage of the militiamen at the Battle of Bunker Hill in a letter to her husband, John Adams, in 1775. From the…
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Follow the First Folio tour! Updates from Louisiana, Massachusetts, Montana, Hawaii, West Virginia, and North Carolina
(Photo Credit: Tulane School of Liberal Arts) Tulane University welcomed the First Folio to its city earlier this month in true New Orleans style: Dr. Michael White and the Liberty Brass Band led a jazz funeral for Shakespeare, followed by a…
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Quiz: How well do you know the history of Shakespeare in America?
America’s ShakespeareHow well do you know the history of Shakespeare in America?The Booth BrothersLess than a year before John Wilkes Booth became infamous for assassinating Abraham Lincoln, he and two of his brothers (normally onstage rivals) teamed up for a…
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Orson Welles and the Voodoo 'Macbeth' that launched his directing career
That’s a hot ticket! (Photo Credit: Library of Congress) Can you feel the feverish excitement in the air? This photograph from April 14, 1936, shows the crowded streets outside the Lafayette Theatre in Harlem on opening night for the Federal Theatre…
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Creating Shakespeare's First Folio
A First Folio at the Folger Shakespeare Library. Photo by Lloyd Wolf. Imagine a world without Macbeth, Twelfth Night, or Julius Caesar. We likely wouldn’t have half of Shakespeare’s plays without the First Folio. Who was responsible for making this book,…
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The Wonder of Will Live: Hear from Kal Penn, Justice Stephen Breyer, and other presenters
What better way to pay tribute to the world’s greatest storyteller than with stories, Folger Director Michael Witmore said as he welcomed the audience to a special event commemorating the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death on April 23, The Wonder…
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Shakespeare's birthday party
William Shakespeare entered and exited the world on the same date: April 23. This past weekend, the Folger Shakespeare Library commemorated the 400th anniversary of his death (1616-2016), but we also threw him a big birthday party as we do every year.…
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Celebrating Shakespeare at 400
The Wonder of Will Live Watch the live broadcast of The Wonder of Will Live on Saturday, April 23, at noon EDT, on C-SPAN2’s Book TV or streaming online. Hear Shakespeare stories from Kal Penn, Supreme Court Associate Justice Stephen…